New Janss Marketplace Mascot "Scooter" to Make Debut on Saturday, March 30th

“Scooter” Costume Character at Janss Marketplace Saturday Kids Event

 Justin Bieber Concert Tickets Prize Registration

Scooter, the lovable new skateboarding costume character mascot of Janss Marketplace’s Kid Fun Zone program, makes his very FIRST public appearance on from noon to 3 p.m. on Saturday, March 30 near Toys R Us at the shopping center, located at 215 N. Moorpark Road in Thousand Oaks.   Bring your cameras to take pictures with Scooter at the event.

Visit the Kids Fun Zone Craft activity booth during this Saturday’s event where children 12 and under can decorate FREE Easter-themed canvas sacks, perfect for egg-hunting ,and join Scooter at the spin-to-win wheel for the chance to win prizes from Lucky’s Dog House, Cold Stone Creamery and Regency Theatres.

Kids Fun Zone members can participate in the Easter craft activity and prize spin activity.  All children ages 12 and younger can join the FREE Kids Fun Zone program to participate in activities and events held on the last Saturday of each month at Janss Marketplace.  Membership benefits also include birthday treats and exclusive discounts at participating Janss Marketplace stores. Visit www.JanssMarketplace.net for more information.

Justin Bieber Tickets

Janss MarketPlace is proud to support California Lutheran University’s student fundraiser for the Special Olympics Ventura County.   From noon to 1 p.m. on Saturday, attendees at the Janss Marketplace Kids Fun Zone event can make a donation to the Special Olympics Ventura County for the chance to win VIP tickets for the Justin Bieber June 24 concert at the Staples Center.   On June 4 California Lutheran University will conduct a random drawing to select two winners to each receive a pair of VIP box seat tickets to the concert.  The college students in Jean Kelso Sandlin’s Advanced Public Relations class developed the fundraiser as part of a service-learning project this semester.

Janss Marketplace is professionally managed by NewMark Merrill Companies, LLC, which is owned by President and Chief Executive Officer, Sandy Sigal.  Since 1984 he has led NewMark Merrill in a community leadership role at the company’s shopping centers in more than 45 cities. For more information about Janss Marketplace events, visit www.janssmarketplace.net or become a fan on Facebook.

Thousand Oaks Police Department Says To Be Aware of Coupon Book Scam

Here is a "City Watch" alert from the Thousand Oaks Police Department. If you would like these updates directly from via email, click here for more information.

"The Coupon Book Scam"

A solicitor was selling a coupon book for $80.00 to benefit the local Boys and Girls Club. The female told the victim that if he purchased the book, he would need to go to the local Boys and Girls Club to pick up the coupon book. The victim wrote a check to a company called “La Familia Management Company” and was given a receipt with an address out of Aurora, Illinois.

The victim went to the Boys and Girls Club with his receipt only to find out he had been a victim of a scam.  The Camarillo Boys and Girls Club is not selling coupon books nor have they authorized anyone to sell coupon books on their behalf. 

If you have been a victim of this scam or have any information relating to this scam, please contact the Thousand Oaks Police Department to report the information.

City of T.O. Permit (example)The Thousand Oaks Police Department would like to remind citizens that solicitors are required to have valid solicitor permits in their possession, and to ask the solicitor to see their permit which is issued by the city of Thousand Oaks. The Thousand Oaks regulatory permit is shown to the right as an example.

If the solicitor cannot provide the permit or you are not sure if the permit is authentic please contact The Thousand Oaks Finance Division at (805) 449-2201 between the hours of 8:00 am to 5:00 pm Monday through Friday.  If the solicitor is acting in a suspicious manner or you are unable to verify the permit through the city, please call our dispatch center at 805-654-9511 to have a deputy respond and investigate.

Miller Family YMCA Kicks Off Activate Newbury Park Program on Wed, April 3rd

Activate Newbury Park is a free, 8-week program open to all members of our community. The program involves walking groups on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays, with special activities thrown in on some of those dates (see schedule). Every few weeks, we will host a new medical professional from the UCLA health system to do a health lecture on Wednesday nights.

The program will begin on April 3 at our kick off Family Fitness Expo at the Newbury Park High School Gym from 5pm to 8pm. You are encouraged to register online, but you may also register at the Expo on April 3. A number of local vendors will be in attendance from our medical and health community to advertise their businesses and give free screenings. All participants will do their first confidential weigh-in at the kick off event. Weigh-ins will be each Friday at the YMCA anytime between 6am and 8pm.

Visit www.sevymca.org/newburypark/html/activate.html for more information.

Conejo Valley Unified School District Recycling Program Mascot is Selected!

A competition to select a mascot for the Conejo Valley Unified School District’s (CVUSD) recycling program has ended.  “Recyclops,” the recycling Cyclops was chosen to become the new green face of CVUSD recycling.

The competition took place across all middle and high schools in the district. Students were asked to vote for their favorite mascot, either by texting or through the program’s Facebook page. ReCyclops will be featured in an upcoming video to help promote and encourage bottle and can recycling at CVUSD campuses. Hundreds of votes were received over the three-week period the competition ran, and dozens of students won prizes for voting.

“The whole aim of the contest was to get the students engaged with the program,” says CVUSD Recycling Coordinator Joanie Burns. “We not only wanted to give them some ownership, by letting them select their mascot, we also wanted to draw attention to the new www.CVUSDRecycles.org website and Facebook page.

CVUSD Recycles is a joint effort between the Conejo Valley Unified School District and the City of Thousand Oaks. The program is funded through a grant from the State of California and provided recycling containers for all CVUSD campuses, allowing the schools to effectively collect California Redemption Value (CRV) containers. 

Additional information can be found at www.cvusdrecycles.org.

New NEOS Ring Electronic Playground at Conejo Community Park in Thousand Oaks

During a recent visit to the Conejo Valley Botanic Garden, I noticed something new in the adjacent children's playground at Conejo Community Park. Upon further inspection, I discovered there is what looks to be a new NEOS Ring electronic playground.

These NEOS playgrounds involve selecting a game involving lights, sounds and music and chasing them down by pressing buttons on the unit. NEOS can be a fun form of exercise for kids and adults alike. While I've never quite been able to understand most of the games (well maybe I should say I haven't taken the time to understand them), all I know is, the kids are entertained by these.

Other local NEOS play areas are at Conejo Creek Park North (though last time we were there it was out of order), Janss Marketplace (adjacent to Gold's Gym) and Peppertree Park in Newbury Park. If you are aware of others in the area, lemme know!

The NEOS at Conejo Community Park is a "ring" style NEOS device that is "designed especially for early childhood and accessible playspaces. One freestanding user control panel gives kids access to six games for one to two players. Then they're off in a mad dash around the 6' (1,83m) ring to hit the six blinking buttons before it's too late" according to NEOS manufacturer Playworld Systems. Playworld indicates the NEOS Ring is geared towards ages 2 to 12. If you're looking to buy one for own backyard...it retails for over $16,000!

The NEOS playgrounds at Janss Marketplace and Conejo Creek Park North are of the "Wall" variety while the Peppertree Park NEOS is circular. Here's the NEOS Wall at Janss Marketplace:

Conejo Community Park is located at Dover and Hendrix Avenues in Thousand Oaks.

Del Prado Playfield in the Dos Vientos Section of Newbury Park is Now Open

The newest park in the Conejo Valley is the Del Prado Playfield, located on, most logically, on Calle del Prado between Via Rio and Via Las Brisas in the Dos Vientos section of Newbury Park. The park is located around the corner from Sycamore Canyon School and The Village at Dos Vientos, and within walking distance, about a half a mile, of Cypress Elementary via Kimber Drive/Via Rio.

This is a 26 acre park with a nice variety of things to do, including a unique playground area, 3 lighted softball fields with plenty of soccer space, basketball court, tennis court, two pickleball courts, plenty of walkways and, the holy grail of local parks, clean restrooms! There is also lots of available parking, well over 100 spots. Visit the Conejo Recreation and Park District website at www.crpd.org/parkfac/parklisting.asp for more information.

One of the more unique looking playgrounds around town. Never quite figured out what those green thingys are overhead but cool to look at!Like many local parks, Del Prado has a separate play area geared towards 5 and under.Pickleball. Yes, pickleball. Apparently one of the fastest growing sports in the country. I don't have a clue how to play just yet but a couple in what I'd estimate were in their 50s were playing on one of the 2 pickleball courts when I stopped by. Rackets looked like handball rackets and the ball looked somewhat like a whiffle ball that bounces on the court (which is roughly half the size of a tennis court). That's all I got for now on Pickleball but my interest is sparked and may have to actually learn how to play now.The grassy areas were quite brown on the large expanse of fields but I suspect they will be greening up a bit as we get towards Spring/Summer 2013.