The Hill North of Highway 101 in Newbury Park

There's a prominent hill north of the 101 in Newbury Park as you make your way towards the top of the Conejo Grade. Grande Vista Drive parallels the 101 and the hill is directly behind it. 

What is the name of this hill that we see every day here in the Conejo Valley? It is referred to as "Adventist Hill" as it is on property owned by the Seventh Day Adventist Church in Newbury Park.

Adventist Hill is located in the Conejo Canyons Open Space a 1,628 acre open space area of the Conejo Valley. The Conejo Canyons Open Space also includes the Western Plateau, northern Arroyo Conejo, Western Canyon and Calleguas Ridgeline. Most of this area is owned by the City of Thousand Oaks and Conejo Open Space Conservation Agency (COSCA)., although 380 privately owned acres are subject to a Specific Plan condition requiring an offer of dedication to the City.

Seen in the Fall of 2014

Transfer of Assessed Value to Taxpayers 55 and Older for New Residence Purchases in Ventura County

There are two California propositions that allow exclusions from reappraisal when selling your property in Ventura County if you are age 55 or older at the time of sale.

Proposition 60 allows transfers of base year values within the same county. Proposition 90 allows transfers from one county to another county in California (inter-county). Not all counties in California have inter-county policies; Ventura County does.

Prop 60 allows taxpayers ages 55 and older to sell their personal residence and buy a new one of equal or lesser value to transfer the "assessed" value of the former home to the new home. This can save you significantly in property taxes if the assessed value of your former home is significantly less than the current market value (as a result of Prop 13 limitations).

If you qualify, you must complete the Claim of Person(s) at Least 55 Years of Age for Transfer of Base Year Value to Replacement Dwelling (Prop 60/90) form available on the Ventura County Assessor website at assessor.countyofventura.org/taxsavings/seniors.asp.

Here is a variety of additional details and limitations:

• Either you, or your spouse (if married) has to be 55 or older at the time of sale. It does not have to be both of you.
• Both properties must be your personal residence (e.g. not a rental property).
• This is a one time tax benefit, even if you divorce or a spouse dies. (Except if one of you subsequently becomes severely or permanently disabled, in which case if you move again you can file for relief again under Prop 110.)
• The new home or property must be purchased within 2 years of selling the old home.

More details at www.boe.ca.gov/proptaxes/faqs/propositions60_90.htm.

Thousand Oaks Ranked #33 on 2014 BICYCLING Magazine List of Top 50 Bike-Friendly Cities

Amgen Tour of California 2016

In August 2014, BICYCLING Magazine published its biennial list of the top 50 bike-friendly cities in the United States. The list was completed based on cities with populations of 95,000 or more (roughly 300 U.S. cities are in this category) based on input from various sources, including the League of American Bicyclists.

Congratulations goes out once again to the City of Thousand Oaks for placing 33rd on this list, up from 38th on the 2012 list. Thousand Oaks was one of three Southern California cities to make the list, which included Los Angeles (28th) and Long Beach (23rd).

Keep in mind that this list was based on cities with populations of about 100,000+, which represents about 300 of the 20,000 or so cities in the U.S.

For Class I Bike Paths in and around Ventura County, click THIS LINK.

Other local cycling clubs/groups in and around Ventura County at THIS LINK.

"Girl From Conejo Valley" by M. Ward

Matthew Stephen Ward (known as M. Ward) is a singer-songwriter and guitarist from Portland, Oregon. He records "Indie Folk" and blues type music as a solo artist and with other artists. Ward has released a number of albums over the years, including his latest, More Rain, in March 2016.

I came upon M. Ward at random on eBay, of all things, when I noticed someone selling a copy of the single, "Girl From Conejo Valley." After the initial amusement, I listened to the song several times and started really enjoying it. So, but of course we must share this song here on Conejo Valley Guide.

This is a fun, catchy song. I found it a bit bizarre, but entertaining, both the lyrics and the video. What I didn't see in the video is footage of Conejo Valley. While I tried to convince myself that some of the aerial footage could be from the Western Plateau section of the Conejo Open Space, I don't think it is. But do take a look and add a comment as to what you think.

Learn more about M. Ward at mwardmusic.com.

Five New Sports to Be Added to the Tokyo Olympic Games in 2020

Copyright: epicstockmedia / 123RF Stock Photo

Earlier this month, the International Olympic Committee approved the addition of baseball/softball, karate, skateboarding, sports climbing and surfing to the 2020 Olympic Games to be held in Tokyo.

This will mark the first appearance of these sports at the Olympics, except for baseball/softball which was last on the Olympic program at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games.

The additional sports will not be binding on future Olympic games and will not impact existing Olympic sports. In total, inclusion of the new sports will add 18 events and 474 athletes. These new sports are anticipated to attract a younger generation of athletes to the Olympics.

Without knowing these five sports were to be added to the next Olympics, we ran a local restaurant drawing on the CVG Facebook Page, asking entrants to indicate what additional sport they would like to see at the next summer Olympics. Here's the interesting assortment of responses we received:

• Softball, surfing and karate all received a number of mentions
• Hula hooping
• Dodgeball
• Auto racing
• Ukelele playing
• Donut eating
• Handball
• Pickleball
• Wake boarding
• Yo Yo-ing
• Netball
• MMA
• Shuffleboard
• Shopping
• Bowling
• Extreme video gaming
• Lacrosse
• Football
• Billiards
• Hopscotch
• Juggling
• Tiddly winks
• Belly flopping
• Pokemon Go
• Disc golf
• Jousting
• Competitive eating
• BMX racing
• Ultimate Frisbee
• Roller Derby
• Cheerleading
• Mini golf
• Synchronized juggling
• Speed knitting
• Ballroom dancing

A clever group of folks we have on our Facebook page.

Ventura County Area Schools in U.S. News 2016 Ranking of Nation's Top High Schools

U.S. News & World Report has published its 2016 ranking of the nation's best public high schools. The rankings were based on data from 28,561 public high schools and from that total, 19,908 schools with high enough enrollment and sufficient data to be ranked.

The methodology for the ranking process was to 1) identify schools that best serve students' needs, including disadvantaged subgroups, based on academic performance in reading and math and 2) evaluate college preparedness based on graduation rates and participating and performance on Advanced Placement (AP) or International Baccalaureate (IB) exams.

The median College Readiness Index (CRI) for 2016, measured on a scale of 0 to 100, was 20.17. A CRI of 100 means that all 12th graders took and passed at least 1 Advanced Placement or International Baccalaureate test.

Among other factors, to be ranked, a high school had to perform better than expected on state accountability assessments, factoring in the proportion of economically disadvantaged students.  In other words, to receive a ranking, a school had to perform higher than other schools in the state with similar proportions of economically disadvantaged students.

To be ranked in California, schools must receive either a gold (top 500 nationally) or silver (top 501 to 2,673 nationally) medal, representing schools with CRI values at or above the 20.17 median.

Learn more at www.usnews.com/education/best-high-schools/national-rankings.

2015 survey summary is at THIS LINK.

Ventura County Area Schools in Newsweek's 2016 Ranking of the Nation's Top High Schools

Newsweek has published its 2016 ranking of the nation's "top 500 public high schools." The rankings were based on data from 16,285 public high schools from the National Center for Education Statistics.

Researchers determined the ranking by selecting schools at perform in the 70th percentile or higher in standardized state testing. From there, the ranking was done using the following criteria:

• 10% of ranking based on "Holding Power," or the proportion of 9th graders that stay enrolled through 12th grade.
• 10% based on the ratio of school counselors to students.
• 17.5% based on SAT/ACT test score performance.
• 17.5% based on AP/IB dual enrollment composite.
• 20% based on graduation rate
• 25% based on college enrollment rate.

Based on the above methodology, four local area schools made the top 500:

Oak Park High School ranked 51st overall and 7th in California

Westlake High School ranked 119th overall and 15th in California

Foothill Technology High School in Ventura ranked 393rd overall and 45th in California

Missing from this year's list that were on the 2015 list were Thousand Oaks High School (215th overall last year) and Calabasas High School (339th overall last year).

See more at www.newsweek.com/high-schools/americas-top-high-schools-2016.