My home is on Cedar Street, which gives me an unobstructed view across the Ventura River to the hillsides, to the Ojai Mountains, and to the Channel Islands.

A few years ago there was a proposal to build the California State University on the Taylor Ranch property - property that is directly across the Ventura River from my home. Many people were very excited; they envisioned the Ventura Avenue area being transformed into an Isle Vista: new homes, student housing, condos, many new retail establishments, new schools, new parks, and many other new and wonderful amenities plus hundreds of jobs and untold amounts of money coming into the cities coffers.

Thanks to the owner of Patagonia who was against the idea for reasons untold. He financed a couple of people that were also against the idea of the University to be elected to the Ventura City Council. Of course, the rejection of the idea by our locals who followed his lead with the attitudes "not in my backyard" built absolutely nothing anywhere near anything and the whole idea was killed.

As we all know now, the University was then established in the old Camarillo State Mental Hospital in Camarillo. It is thriving very well and bringing many jobs to Camarillo and millions of dollars of tax money into the Camarillo city coffers. The University is a sight that you really ought to go see; it is beyond imagination.

Now what is happening to the Taylor Ranch - a ranch that for years was a slightly used pasture for limited cattle grazing because of the lack of water? It has been transformed into the BEAUTIFUL, BOUNTIFUL, FARM. The farm is producing lots of crops, some of which are Lemons, Avocados, Strawberries, and others.

When I at first began witnessing the work being done on the hillsides of the RANCH, I envisioned a wine grape vineyard with a beautiful tasting room and sales store. Now I understand they are growing a limited amount of grapes for the wine industry; however, I still haven't heard about any plans for a tasting room - maybe someday.

As I have watched the mostly BARREN HILLSIDES BEING TRANSFORMED INTO A THRIVING, BEAUTIFUL, FARM, I have gazed with amazement at how much work and energy is applied to establishing such a plan. Thousands of cubic feet of soil have been rearranged, hundreds of workers have planted crops, a fleet of farm vehicles traverse the area on a daily basis, and the farm which began on a few acres near the 101 freeway has now stretched for possibly FOUR TO FIVE HUNDRED ACRES OR MORE ALONG THE HILLSIDES.

What enabled this farm to come into being was the imagination of somebody that was able to get permission and permits to drill water wells into the base of the Ventura River and pump water for irrigation up to the farm property. Without this water obviously no farm would exist. So even though a few people with no thought for the future of Ventura were able to kill the idea of a University in our town, I have at least had the opportunity to watch the establishment of the Farm - a creation that has been a great opportunity as well as a beautiful sight for my eyes.

Rellis Smith
rellis39@sbcglobal.net
www.californiachile.com

Posted: 06-05-10

Posted: 06-01-10