County of Ventura Advises Public to Avoid Contact with Ocean Water 72 Hours After Rainfall

The Ventura County Environmental Health Division is providing the following precautionary information for the public.

Rainfall that is significant enough to result in runoff can flow into storm drains, channels, creeks, and rivers that empty onto the beaches of Ventura County. In general, 0.2 inches (2 tenths of an inch) of rainfall may be enough to create significant runoff conditions.

There is a potential for storm water runoff to carry disease causing bacteria to the beaches and into the ocean water. In addition, storm water runoff can transport physical hazards such as partially submerged tree limbs and logs into the ocean that could result in serious physical injury. Contact with this runoff water will result in an increased risk to human health and should be avoided for at least 72 hours after all rainfall activity has ended.

As a result of the recent and predicted rainfall, the public is advised to avoid body contact with all storm water runoff and ocean water at all Ventura County beaches. Any items that may have come in contact with runoff or ocean water should also be avoided. If contact occurs, wash thoroughly with soap and water.

Any shellfish on or from Ventura County beaches may have also been exposed to this contamination and should not be eaten.

This advisory will remain in effect for 72 hours (3 days) after all rainfall has ended.

Results for specific beaches are also available on the Environmental Health Division hotline (recorded information), 805/662-6555, and at www.ventura.org/rma/envhealth/technical-services/ocean/index.html.

You can also view any current beach advisories and learn about the State ocean water quality standards on the VC Safe Beaches app, available for Android and Apple devices.

County of Ventura website: www.ventura.org

Ribbon Cutting for Phase I of Rotary Dreamcatcher Playground in Thousand Oaks Took Place Today

Working with the Conejo Recreation and Park District, the Rotary Club of Thousand Oaks Sunrise has been working to raise $500,000 by 2016 to expand and refurbish the existing special needs playground at Old Meadows Park in Thousand Oaks. The Therapeutic Recreation Unit of CRPD provides special programs for residents with disabilities and is located at the park. The playground, available to special needs and all children, has been named the Rotary Dreamcatcher Playground.

Today the ribbon cutting for the $300,000 Phase I of the project took place. Phase I expands the size of the playground and contains mat surfacing, rolling turf hills, large shaded areas, tree log swings, seagull swings, harmony chimes, hammocks, pod seats, picnic tables and many other cool features.

Phase I was possible due to the tremendous fundraising efforts of the Rotary, CRPD and Play Conejo and with generous grants from the Tull Family Foundation, County of Ventura, Farmer’s Insurance, City of Thousand Oaks, the TO Rotary Club and the Rotary Foundation, Kenrose Kitchen Foundation, Verizon, CBC Federal Credit Union, and Harrison Industries.

Old Meadows Park is located at 1600 Marview Drive, Thousand Oaks, off of Erbes Road.

Phase I is done but the fundraising continues! Visit www.rotarydreamcatcher.org to learn more and to support the effort.

Ventura County Library System Launches "Career Cruising" Exploration Program

Ventura County Library cardholders can now access Career Cruising, a bilingual (English and Spanish language) career exploration and research program for all ages. Available now, Career Cruising provides age-appropriate career development, assessments, planners and other resources to assist users to achieve their full potential in school, career and life.

Your Ventura County Library card is all you need to create a personal account (My Plan) and complete interest and skills assessments resulting in a personalized list of career matches. With your personal My Plan account, you can find careers, schools, and majors of interest to you, create a resume and prepare a personal career and life plan.

If you don't have a library card, get one at any of our Ventura County Library locations. Visit vencolibrary.org to find a library near you.

Ventura County eLibrary's Career & Jobs online resources include:

• Career Cruising
• Career Transitions
• LearningExpress Job & Career Accelerator
• LearningExpress Library of practice tests and skills courses

Ventura County Library System: Inspiring our community to explore, discover and connect.

The Ventura County Library is available 24/7 at www.vencolibrary.org.

City of Thousand Oaks Adopts Drought Action Plan to Conserve Water

Per the State of California issued mandates, Thousand Oaks must reduce water consumption citywide by an average of 32%. In response, the Thousand Oaks City Council has adopted a comprehensive Drought Action Plan and declared a Level 2 Water Supply Shortage with a series of water conservation measures which impact residents, businesses, City operations and other local agencies.

Community Measures:

• Outside irrigation is now limited to 2 days a week for no more than 15 minutes per station per day
• Outdoor irrigation prohibited between 9 AM - 5 PM
• Watering is prohibited during or 48 hours after rainfall

City Measures:

• Removal of over 916,000 square feet of turf in street medians
• Removal of non-essential turf at all City facilities
• Establishment of new watering systems to provide water to trees in the medians
• Emptying of The Civic Arts Plaza fountain 

Enforcement of the new requirements will be focused on voluntary compliance through education, but fines of up to $500 per occurrence are possible for repeat offenders. A host of water conservation information, rebates and resources can be found at www.toaks.org/savewater. A water hotline is available to report water waste and to request a free in-home water conservation consultation at (805) 375-5747.

New Splash Pad and Picnic Shelters at Rancho Tapo Community Park

A new and improved splash pad was set to premier on Friday, May 22nd BUT HAS BEEN RESCHEDULED TO NEXT WEEK at Rancho Tapo Community Park in Simi Valley. The new splash pad is 55% larger, has a water treatment and recycling system and had three different play areas! Yay!

Cal Lutheran to Dedicate Bronze Statue of Richard Pederson on April 18th

After five years in the making, a bronze statue of the farmer who donated his land for the California Lutheran University campus in Thousand Oaks will be dedicated at 11:30 a.m. Saturday, April 18.

The statue of Richard Pederson, a son of Norwegian immigrants, will be dedicated during the Scandinavian Festival, but the site will be accessible to people who are not attending the event. The statue stands next to Soiland Humanities Center near the flagpoles on Memorial Parkway. The ceremony is free and open to the public.

Cal Lutheran President Chris Kimball will preside over the event. Pederson’s niece, Janet Pederson Reeling of Bishop, plans to attend.

While serving as an artist-in-residence during Cal Lutheran’s 50th anniversary in 2009, Paul Lucchesi of West Virginia decided to sculpt a statue of Pederson based on a black-and-white photograph of him looking out over his ranch. With the statue now at the top of an incline near the center of campus, Pederson will forever look out over the university he made possible.

The original clay sculpture sat in storage until last spring, when the Cal Lutheran Community Leaders Association, Artists and Speakers Committee and University Advancement paid for Lucchesi to return to campus to create a wax mold and prepare it for casting in bronze.

Pederson had been ready to retire a bachelor when he donated his 130-acre ranch in 1957 so California Lutheran College could be built. The ranch’s chicken coops were converted into the first offices and classrooms. Classes began in 1961 with 330 students. Today, the university has 2,800 undergraduate and 1,350 graduate students who come from around the world and represent a diversity of faiths and cultures.

Pederson’s parents, Lars and Karn Pederson, had paid $3 an acre for the ranch land and $2 an acre for the hillside in 1890 when they became one of the founding families of the Norwegian Colony.

After Lars Pederson died, the family moved to Santa Barbara, but Richard and his brother Peder returned in 1913 and their mother later joined them. They lived in a Sears, Roebuck & Co. catalog kit house, which today is the home of the Music Department. They grew alfalfa, hay, tomatoes and grapefruit and raised chickens, selling about 9,000 eggs a day. Pederson died in 1976 at the age of 81.

Mountains Restoration Trust Seeks Volunteers at Rancho Sierra Vista in Newbury Park

Mountains Restoration Trust (MRT) has received a $94,469 grant from the Ventura County Tree Mitigation Fund and will work closely with the National Park Service (NPS) to to revive native trees and plants at Rancho Sierra Vista in Newbury Park. Rancho Sierra Vista is part of the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area.

Elementary school students plant native plants at Rancho Sierra Vista in Newbury Park. The National Park Service and Mountains Restoration Trust are seeking volunteers to help plant nearly 5,000 native plants and trees. (Credit: National Park Service)The project encompasses 24 acres and consists of planting, monitoring and regular maintenance of 2,000 trees, including coastal live oaks, valley oaks, walnuts and sycamores. In addition, there will be 3,000 understory plants, including shrubs such as sage, bunchgrass and herbs. All plants and trees will be maintained and monitored over a 10-year period.

"This is an exciting and important restoration because we are connecting to 10 acres we planted last year in the upper reaches of Potrero Creek," said Irina Irvine, a restoration ecologist for the National Park Service. "We will be creating a functioning, self-sustaining riparian corridor which will benefit overall watershed health, reduce flashy fuel loads and provide water, forage and shelter to wildlife."

The public is invited to volunteer either a few hours or on a more long-term basis to help with planting and weeding. More information is available at www.volunteermatch.orgsearch/opp1943238.jsp.

All trees and plants will be grown locally at native plant nurseries operated by the two agencies.

Mountains Restoration Trust is a non-profit land trust dedicated to preserving natural land in the Santa Monica Mountains through restoration, education and land acquisition. Founded in 1981, MRT collaborates with government agencies in an ongoing effort to maintain a cooperative relationship between urbanization and native land. More information is available at www.mountainstrust.org.

Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area is the largest urban national park in the country, encompassing more than 150,000 acres of mountains and coastline in Ventura and Los Angeles counties. A unit of the National Park Service, it encompasses a seamless network of local, state and federal parks interwoven with private lands and communities. As one of only five Mediterranean ecosystems in the world, SMMNRA preserves the rich biological diversity of more than 450 animal species and 26 distinct plant communities. For more information, visit www.nps.gov/samo.

The Ventura County Tree Mitigation Fund distributes funds for projects that result in the planting and maintenance of protected trees, including restoration and/or maintenance of their associated habitat. The program is administered by the Ventura County Planning Department.

Malibu Canyon Road Nighttime Closures Begin in January 2015

Starting January 2nd and lasting approximately 8 months, the Malibu Canyon Road tunnel will be closed for construction from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m. 5 nights a week, Sunday nights to Thursday nights (until 5 a.m. on Friday mornings). The tunnel will remain open weekdays between 5 a.m. and 9 p.m as well as all day on weekends (until 9 p.m. Sunday night).

During these closures, Malibu Canyon Road traffic will be detoured onto Kanan Dume Road and Topanga Canyon Boulevard.

Los Angeles County Public Works is undertaking this massive 7 month project in order to improve the tunnel’s interior lining by replacing steel plates inside of the tunnel. Other improvements will be made to the roadway in order to improve road safety and driver comfort. The project will also bring water quality benefits with the construction of a vegetated swale, which will filter pollutants from storm water and help replenish groundwater supplies.

For more information, visit the LA County Public Works website at dpw.lacounty.gov/pdd/proj/MalibuTunnel.