Cal Lutheran University Ranked 16th in U.S. News List of Top Regional Universities

U.S. News & World Report ranked California Lutheran University among the top regional universities in the West for the 21st consecutive year.

Cal Lutheran is ranked 16th in the top tier of 87 regional universities in 15 Western states. The field included universities that provide a full range of undergraduate majors and master’s degrees but few doctoral programs. The rankings were released today in U.S. News’ 2016 Best Colleges report.

The Thousand Oaks-based university, which provides many opportunities for students to work closely with professors inside and outside the classroom, had a student-faculty ratio of 16-to-1, and the proportion of its classes that had fewer than 20 students increased to 59 percent. The proportion of classes with 50 or more students held steady at 1 percent.

Students working with assistant professor of biology Kristopher Karsten on lizard research (Photo credit: Brian Stethem)
 

The report also considered the freshman retention rate, graduation rate, the university’s assessment by peers at other colleges, and the alumni giving rate. It looked at the academic qualifications of freshmen by factoring in the acceptance rate, the standardized test scores of freshmen and the proportion of freshmen in the top 25 percent of their high school class.

Cal Lutheran ranked 14th among regional universities in the West in the U.S. News Best Colleges for Veterans list. The university has appeared in this ranking every year in this list's three-year history.

The university made the U.S. News list of A-Plus Schools for B Students for the sixth year in a row, showing that admissions policies are flexible enough to allow some students who aren’t at the top of their classes to get in and that students can then go on to thrive during their undergraduate years.

The latest rankings are posted at usnews.com and will be featured in the “Best Colleges 2016” guidebook that is available online and will hit newsstands Sept. 29.

Cal Lutheran also made this year’s lists of Forbes’ America’s Top Colleges, Money’s Best Colleges, Washington Monthly’s Master’s Universities and PayScale’s College Salary Report.

With an enrollment of about 4,200 students, Cal Lutheran offers undergraduate and graduate programs through its College of Arts and Sciences, School of Management, Graduate School of Education, Graduate School of Psychology and Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary. It has additional locations in Woodland Hills, Westlake Village, Oxnard, Santa Maria and Berkeley.  

County of Ventura Food Facility Closures Mid-May 2015 through August 2015

The County of Ventura Environmental Health Division (EHD) protects public health and the environment by ensuring conformance with State laws and County ordinances pertaining to food protection, hazardous materials, hazardous waste, individual sewage disposal systems, land use, medical waste, ocean water quality monitoring, recreational health, solid waste, underground fuel tanks and vector control.

The EHD publishes food facility closures at www.ventura.org/rma/envhealth/community-services/consumer-food/closures.html.

The following closures were noted from mid-May 2015 through August 2015. Keep in mind when reviewing this that there are many possible reasons for the closures, most of which are very temporary issues.

August 2015

Island Squeeze Cafe, 3301 E. Main Street, Unit 1072, Ventura;

Cockroach infestation, unsanitary conditions;

Date closed - 08/31/15; Date reopened - 09/02/15

Sam's Club, 2401 N. Rose Ave., Oxnard;

Inoperable plumbing, no water for hand washing or utensil washing;

Date closed - 08/30/15; Date reopened - 09/01/15

TR Oil, 3050 E. Thousand Oaks Blvd., Thousand Oaks;
Rodent infestation, unsanitary conditions;
Date closed - 08/26/15; Date reopened - 08/27/15 

Ojai Ranch House, 102 Besant Rd. Ojai;

Unapproved remodeling of the facility;

Date closed - 08/24/15; Date reopened - 08/31/15 

Rice Thai, 387 E. Main Street, Ventura;

Cockroach infestation, unsanitary conditions;

Date closed - 08/24/15; Date reopened - 08/31/15

Jack in the Box #3237, 2580 Vineyard Avenue, Oxnard;

Cockroach infestation, unsanitary conditions;

Date closed - 08/19/15; Date reopened - 08/20/15

Gandolfo's NY Deli, 2790 Seaglass Way, Oxnard;

Rodent infestation, unsanitary conditions;

Date closed - 08/18/15; Date reopened - 08/20/15

Hook, Line & Sinker Seafood #2, 2950 Johnson Drive, Ventura;

Inoperable plumbing resulting in inability to properly wash utensils;

Date closed - 08/18/15; Date reopened - 08/18/15

Erringer USA, (food sales only), 1356 Erringer Road, Simi Valley;

Rodent infestation, unsanitary conditions;

Date closed - 08/17/15; Date reopened - 08/18/15

Manny's El Taco De Mexico, 1038 Avenida de los Arboles, Thousand Oaks;

No warm water available for handwashing, unsanitary conditions;

Date closed - 08/17/15; Date reopened - 08/18/15

Carla's Bakery, 319 W. Los Angeles Avenue, Moorpark;

Cockroach and rodent infestation, unsanitary conditions;

Date closed - 08/11/15; Date reopened - 08/12/15

Panaderia Gaby, 419 Moorpark Road, Moorpark;

Rodent infestation, unsanitary conditions;

Date closed - 08/05/15; Date reopened - 08/07/15

Healthy and Active Life, 315 S. Borchard Drive, Ventura;

No hot water available for utensil washing or hand washing;

Date closed - 08/03/15; Date reopened - 08/12/15

July 2015

El Taco De Guadalajara, Lic.#4KV2550, 2557 Cortez Street, Oxnard;

Inoperable refrigeration units, insanitary conditions, unpermitted remodel;

Date closed - 7/30/15; Date reopened - 08/03/15

Dairy Queen, 1368 Madera Road, Simi Valley

Cockroach infestation, unsanitary conditions;

Date closed - 7/30/15; Date reopened - 7/31/15

Asian Fusion Garden, 842 E. Ojai Avenue, Ojai;

Cockroach infestation, unsanitary conditions;

Date closed - 7/27/15; Date reopened - 7/30/15

Rice by Mama at 419 E. Main Street, Ventura

Cockroach infestation and unsanitary conditions

Date closed - 7/26/15; Date reopened - 7/30/15

El Matador Meat Market #1, 3801 Saviers Road, Oxnard

Inoperable refrigeration units;

Date closed - 07/21/15; Date reopened - 07/22/15

Sushi Ichiban, 207 E. Channel Island Blvd., Port Hueneme

Cockroach infestation, unsanitary conditions;

Date closed - 07/21/15; Date reopened - 08/07/15

Lupita’s Restaurant, 616 Cooper Road, Oxnard

Rodent infestation and unsanitary conditions;

Date closed - 07/20/15; Date reopened - 07/21/15

Subway, 2887 Agoura Road, Thousand Oaks;

Inoperable plumbing to only hand wash sink in food preparation area;

Date closed - 07/16/15; Date reopened - 07/16/15

Tacos El Monoraca, Lic.#4LN2781, 2557 Cortez St., Oxnard:

Inoperable refrigeration;

Date closed - 07/09/15; Date reopened - 07/10/15

It's Healthy Oak Park Nutrition, 658 Lindero Canyon Road, Oak Park;

Cochroach infestation, unsanitary conditions;

Date closed - 07/09/15; Date reopened - 07/11/15

Olivios Trattoria Italian Cuisine, 585 E. Los Angeles Avenue, #C, Simi Valley;

Rodent infestation, unsanitary conditions;

Date closed - 07/09/15; Date reopened - 07/11/15

Arco AM/PM, 3907 E. Telegraph Road, Piru;

Inoperable toilets, sewage backing up inside the facility, unsanitary conditions;

Date closed - 07/08/15; Date reopened - 07/08/15

June 2015

Marisco El Campeon, 1175 E. Harvard Blvd., Santa Paula;

Rodent infestation; unsanitary conditions;

Date closed - 06/30/15; Date reopened - 07/02/15

Mi Pueblito Meat Market, 148 S. Ojai Street, Santa Paula;

Rodent & fly infestation inside the facility; unsanitary conditions; failure to adhere to a compliance agreement;

Date closed- 06/29/15; Date reopened - 06/30/15

Montezuma Restaurant, 112 Stroube Street, Oxnard;

Serious and repeated violations; unsanitary conditions;

Date closed - 06/25/15; Date reopened - 06/27/15

Round Table Pizza, 239 W. Los Angeles Avenue, Moorpark;

Warewashing sink unavailable for utensil washing;

Date closed - 06/16/15; Date reopened - 06/17/15

El Pollo Loco, 571 New Los Angeles Avenue, Moorpark;

Warewashing sink unavailable for utensil washing;

Date closed - 06/15/15; Date reopened - 06/15/15

Corrigan's Steak House, 556 E. Thousand Oaks Blvd., Thousand Oaks;

Rodent infestation, cockroach infestation, unsanitary conditions;

Date closed - 06/15/15; Date reopened - 06/17/15

May 2015

Las Sirenas Bar & Grill, 2091 N. Oxnard Blvd, Oxnard;

Serious and repeated violations; failure to adhere to a compliance agreement; no hot water at bar or at women's restroom; unsanitary conditions;

Date closed - 05/20/15; Date reopened - 05/22/15

Tresierras Supermarket, 280 E. Harvard Blvd., Santa Paula;

Serious and repeated violations, failure to adhere to a compliance agreement;

Date closed - 05/19/15; Date reopened - 05/20/15

Saloon BBQ Co., 456 E. Main Street, Ventura;

Rodent infestation; unsanitary conditions; failure to adhere to a compliance agreement;

Date closed - 05/18/15; Date reopened - 05/19/15

Commemorative Air Force SoCal Wing Constructing New Hangar Complex as Part of Expansion

Existing CAF Hangar at Camarillo Airport

Construction is underway on a new, 32,800 sq. ft. hangar complex, part of a multimillion dollar plan by the Commemorative Air Force Wing to develop a modern WWII aviation museum that will attract more U.S. and world visitors to Ventura County wanting to see its historical archives and flying fighter, bomber, training, and other aircraft on display.

The Wing has run out of space in the current CAF complex, built 14 years ago, consisting ofa maintenance/restoration hangar, and adjoining museum/and event hangar.

Concrete has been poured around the exterior perimeter of the new hangar building including the big foundation pads where the main steel beam framework will be bolted into place. Once all the foundation cement and flooring is poured and cures, then attaching the steel sections begins.

The new hangar was engineered, manufactured and specifically designed by Butler Buildings to fit adjacent to the present western side of the CAF property.

One key element of the expansion plan is a CAF wing 30-year leasing agreement with the Department of Airports. It insures the aviation museum complex will remain at Camarillo Airport for years to come.

The agreement also involves a lease-land swap with Camarillo Chapter 723 of the Experimental Aircraft Association. It wanted to give up its land, old office building and hangars next door to the CAF. In the exchange, the E.A.A. gets new offices, a new hangar and is leasing facilities in the new CAF Complex. The old E.A.A. buildings were torn down and foundations removed.

The new Hangar complex provides the Wing with much needed space for parking and displaying aircraft and museum historical artifacts.

Ultimately this will be a new state-of-the-art, temperature-controlled indoor two-story aviation museum with all new exhibits, a theater, digital video areas, a restaurant with an outdoor viewing area of the museum and hangar complex and a new gift shop.

More information at www.cafsocal.com.

Westlake Village Community Park, Skate Park and Triunfo YMCA Facility

Westlake Village Community Park construction well underway

Westlake Village Community Park is located on a hilltop at 31107 Thousand Oaks Blvd (just west of Lindero Canyon Road). There is a one-way entrance and a one-way exit off of Thousand Oaks Blvd that can be accessed by vehicle, bicycle, or sidewalk during park hours.

This is a 19 acre site that includes the park as well as the 55,000 sq ft Triunfo YMCA facility slated to open in early 2016. 

View of the Triunfo Y facility under construction

Once completed, Westlake Village Community Park will contain eight acres of lighted synthetic turf athletic fields for soccer, baseball, softball, and other sports, a walking/jogging trail, skate park, picnic areas, outdoor volleyball and basketball courts, fitness equipment, restroom/concession facilities, and children’s play areas. 

Ball fields 1 and 2 as well as the skate park are currently open to the public.

Skate park at Westlake Village Community Park is open to the public

Haggen Announces It Is Closing 27 Grocery Stores, Including 3 in Ventura County

Seen near the Newbury park location on labor day

Haggen announced today that it is closing 27 stores in California, Arizona, Oregon and Washington over the next 60 days as part of a restructuring. Local stores that will be operating as they wind down operations over the next 60 days are in Newbury Park (Newbury Road) and two in Simi Valley (Cochran St and Madera, 660 E. Los Angeles Ave).

38 staff will lose their jobs at the Newbury Park location.  53 at the Los Angeles Ave location.

Earlier this year, the Haggen grocery store chain acquired 146 stores as part of the Albertsons/Safeway merger. Prior to the acquisition, Haggen operated 18 stores in Oregon and Washington. 

Of the 146 stores, eight are based on Ventura County. After the closures, that leaves five Haggen stores operating in the local area.

Remaining local area Haggen stores in Westlake Village (Lindero Canyon), Thousand Oaks (Arboles), Simi Valley (E. Los Angeles), Camarillo (Las Posas), Oxnard (Ventura Rd) and Ventura (Telegraph Rd). www.haggen.com/find-our-stores

Ventura County Sheriff's Office Announces "Operation Take Back the Pumps" Effort

Operation Take Back the Pumps is a collaborative effort by Ventura County law enforcement agencies, businesses, and Federal agencies to combat credit/debit card fraud and identity theft facilitated through the illegal use of credit card skimming devices placed on gasoline/fuel pumps.

Identity theft is a national problem that is significantly affecting citizens in Ventura County. One way thieves are obtaining victim’s credit and debit card information is through the use of illegal card skimming devices being surreptitiously placed in fuel pumps. When an unsuspecting customer swipes their debit or credit card into the pay station on the fuel pump, these illegal devices capture the card and pin information. The thieves then use this stolen information to commit identity theft and other fraud related crimes. Losses from a single illegal skimming device on a fuel pump usually averages between $50,000 and $100,000.

Operation Take Back the Pumps consists of multiple phases designed to combat identity theft perpetuated by the use of illegal card skimming devices on fuel pumps. The phases consists of training law enforcement and gasoline station personnel on prevention methods and the identification/detection of illegal skimming devices; Programs that promote regular inspections of the pumps for tampering and/or illegal card skimming devices, if the agency should decide; And finally, education of the public on practices that will help keep them from becoming victims of identity theft.

Operation Take Back the Pumps was coordinated by the Moorpark Police Department and launched on August 13, 2015, beginning with a joint effort by all of the involved agencies/businesses coming together in an attempt to inspect all fuel pumps in Ventura County. This proved to be successful as 1,512 fuel pumps were inspected and three (3) illegal skimming devices were discovered and removed. These devices will be used as evidence in an attempt to identify and prosecute the suspect(s) responsible for these crimes.

The following is a breakdown by city of pumps inspected and the number of illegal card skimming devices found:

City of Camarillo - 155 pumps inspected and no devices found
City of Fillmore - 76 pumps inspected and no devices found
City of Moorpark - 72 pumps inspected and no devices found
City of Ojai - 44 pumps inspected and no devices found
City of Oxnard - 335 pumps inspected and no devices found
City of Port Hueneme - 8 pumps inspected and no devices found
City of Santa Paula - 42 pumps inspected and no devices found
City of Simi Valley - 173 pumps inspected and no devices found
City of Thousand Oaks - 272 pumps inspected and three (3) devices found
City of Ventura – 335 pumps inspected and no devices found

Law enforcement and participants in this operation encourage the public to consider the following steps when purchasing fuel. Following these steps will significantly reduce the risk of being victimized by identity thieves.

• Pay with cash whenever possible.
• If paying with a credit/debit card, go inside the gas station instead of paying at the pump.
• Look for security seals/stickers on fuel pumps. If the seals/stickers are broken, cut or read “VOID,” do not use that pump and immediately report your observations to gas station personnel

Source of Release: Ventura County Sheriff's Office

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.