Father Junipero Serra Statue in Downtown Ventura

NOTE: On June 18, 2020, the City of Ventura issued a press release stating that it plans to work with members of the community in moving the statue of Father Junipero Serra to a new, non-public location.

Father Junipero Serra (1713-1784) was a Roman Catholic Spanish Franciscan friar who founded nine Spanish Missions in California stretching from San Diego to Carmel. 

The last of these nine missions, founded on March 31, 1782, was Mission San Buenaventura, which today is an active parish of 3,000 members located at 211 East Main Street in Ventura.

Serra was beatified by Pope John Paul II on September 25, 1988, and canonized by Pope Francis on September 23, 2015, at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C. - the first canonization ceremony to be held in the country.

Located on a pedestrian island in front of Ventura City Hall at the intersection of N. California Street and Poli Street is a bronze statue of Father Junipero Serra.

In 1936, the Federal Art Project (part of the New Deal) funded this heroic sculpture. Finnish sculptor John Palo-Kangas originally cast it in cement, which decayed over the years.

The present statue, an exact replica of the original statue, was cast in bronze and dedicated on October 20, 1989. A wooden duplicate used in the making of the bronze statue can be seen in the City Hall Atrium.

According to the Mission San Buenaventura website, Serra stood just 5 feet, 2 inches in height. This statue is over 9 feet tall. Go check it out!

Moreton Bay Fig Tree at Plaza Park in Downtown Ventura Planted in 1874

Moreton Bay Fig Tree at Plaza Park in Ventura

If you're ever out and about in Downtown Ventura, you may want to stop by Plaza Park and admire the historic Moreton Bay Fig Tree thriving at the northwest corner of the park at E. Santa Clara Street and S. Chestnut Street - just one block down from Main Street, near The Majestic Ventura Theater.

This tree, formally called Ficus macrophylla, was planted by someone in 1874 and now stands at over 73.5 feet tall, with a branch spread of 139 feet and root spread of 87 feet. That is one heck of a tree, only slightly smaller than its slightly younger and more famous brother in Santa Paula.

For other things to do in Ventura, visit THIS PAGE.

Solstice Canyon in Malibu Has a Perennial Waterfall and Much More

Solstice Canyon is a worthy local hiking destination, located at the intersection of Corral Canyon and Solstice Canyon Roads in Malibu. It is home to one of the only year-round waterfalls in the Santa Monica Mountains.

The main trail is the Solstice Canyon Trail, a fairly easy, not too steep, 2.1 mile round trip hike, largely paved, to the stone and brick ruins of the Fred and Florence Roberts ranch house. This house is referred to as the Tropical Terrace. 

Missouri native Fred Roberts founded Roberts Public Market, a chain of grocery and liquor stores, in the late 1920s. He sold the chain in 1949, while in the meantime amassing nearly 1,000 acres in Solstice Canyon.

A large portion of the Solstice Canyon Trail is paved.

In 1952, Roberts hired renowned African-American architect Paul R. Williams to design the home, which featured beautiful architectural designs that blended into the serene environment and incorporated fire protection features using pumps, pipes and water collection pools. Roberts passed away in 1976. In 1982, the Dayton Canyon Fire burned the site to the ground.

Remains of the home of Fred and Florence Roberts at the top of Solstice Canyon.

Today you can see the foundation, fireplaces, steps and other interesting features, then explore the shaded rock pool area, where you'll see the waterfall (which in drought years can be quite small, but perennial nonetheless).

Waterfall access is the right (east) of the Roberts home.

Naturally canopied rock pool area where the waterfall can be seen and explored.

On the way to the Roberts House, you will see a sign, "Built of Stone and Tin." Read about the wood cabin purchased by Henry Keller in 1901 that was destroyed by a fire two years later. Keller, who enjoyed hunting and fishing in Solstice Canyon, rebuilt the one room hunting lodge in stone and tin to withstand future fires. Over the years, wood porches were added. The structure was scorched in the Corral Fire of 2007.  But the stone walls are still there today...and are considered to be the oldest still-existing in Malibu today.

You can walk fairly close to the Keller House ruins.

Other trails include the:

• Dry Canyon Trail - 1.2 mile easy round trip canyon trail that in the winter brings a 150 foot waterfall and stream.

• TRW Loop Trail - 1.5 mile round trip loop that is fairly easy.

• Rising Sun Trail - 1.5 mile moderate trail on the eastern ridgeline of the canyon that connects at the top to the Solstice Canyon Trail near the waterfall.

• Sostomo Trail/Deer Valley Trail - Moderate to strenuous extension from near the top of the Solstice Canyon Trail of roughly 4 miles.

There is a small amphitheater at the main parking area, public restrooms and several picnic areas here. A great place to bring the kids! Dog friendly too (except not dogs in the waterfall area), as long as they are on leash.

Solstice Canyon was opened as a public park by the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy in 1988 and today is managed by the National Park Service. More information at www.nps.gov/samo/planyourvisit/solsticecanyon.htm.

One way to get to Solstice Canyon from Thousand Oaks is to take the 101 south to Las Virgenes/Malibu Canyon Road, south to PCH, where you'll turn right (west). Turn right on Solstice Canyon Road (a light) and your first left is Solstice Canyon. There is limited parking at the entrance, but the main parking lot is about 1/4 mile up the hill.

The New 2019 Form 1040-SR U.S. Tax Return for Seniors Generally Mirrors 2019 Form 1040

Here we are at the start of a new year, and with that the start of a new tax season. Doing taxes ranks up there between having a root canal and preparing for a colonoscopy in terms of things to look forward to.

But when I heard there was a new tax form for 2019 - Form 1040-SR U.S. Tax Return for Seniors - I thought, ok, that’s good news for some folks. Right?

The new Form 1040-SR is, according to the IRS, “available as an optional alternative to using Form 1040 for taxpayers who are age 65 or older.” (That leaves me out of contention.) The IRS further clarifies for 2019 that “age 65 or older” means you were born before January 2, 1955.

OK, so if Form 1040-SR is an “optional alternative” to the Form 1040, what’s different about it and why would any senior want to use a form that reminds them that they are a senior? There must be some benefit to using the form, right? Maybe you get free Geritol for completing this new form?

Well, here’s what the IRS says in the 2019 Form 1040 and 1040-SR Booklet about Form 1040-SR: “The form generally mirrors Form 1040.”

So why are we using taxpayer funds to create a new form that mirrors an existing form?

View fullsize

I did a side-by-side comparison to confirm to what degree Form 1040-SR “generally mirrors” Form 1040.

(By the way, the 2019 Form 1040 looks quite a bit different than the so called “postcard” 2018 Form 1040, which in reality was a terribly designed two page form that easily could have fit onto one page, plus six separate schedules. The 2019 Form 1040 looks more like the previous 2017 Form 1040, when we had the pleasure of choosing among Form 1040, Form 1040A and Form 1040EZ the latter two of which went away in 2018.)

It is true. The two forms are nearly identical, with two minor exceptions:

1) Form 1040-SR includes a Standard Deduction Chart at the bottom of the form showing the Standard Deduction amounts. The Form 1040 tells you to go to the instructions to figure this out. Yet the bottom third of Form 1040 page one is blank. There is PLENTY of room to include the Standard Deduction Chart on the face of Form 1040 too.

View fullsize

The Standard Deduction Chart on 2019 Form 1040-SR simply shows on the face of the form the larger Standard Deduction you can take if you were born before January 2, 1955 or are blind.

(And on a related note, the Standard Deduction in 2019 is $12,200 for single and $24,400 for married filing jointly taxpayers. Single taxpayers receive an additional $1,650 deduction for being 65+ and/or for blindness. Each married taxpayer receive an additional deduction of just $1,300 for 65+ and/or blindness. There’s a bit of a disparity there; perhaps another example of the marriage penalty in our tax system.)

View fullsize

This is the bottom third of 2019 Form 1040. Completely blank. Wouldn’t ya think they would include that same Standard Deduction Chart on Form 1040-SR here too? Nah, that would make too much sense.

2) Font Size- 2019 Form 1040-SR uses two full pages of space, yet 2019 Form 1040 leaves the bottom third of the form blank on both pages. Is this blank space for doodling or what?

View fullsize

Page one of 2019 Form 1040-SR fills the whole page and has larger font than 2019 Form 1040.

View fullsize

Page one of 2019 Form 1040 uses smaller font for us younger folk with 20/20 eyesight in 2020 and leaves a 3rd of the page blank.

View fullsize

Page two of 2019 Form 1040-SR fills nearly the entire page. Nothing wrong with that.

View fullsize

Exact same information on page two of 2019 Form 1040 as Form 1040-SR, but scrunched up in smaller font, leaving plenty of doodling space at the bottom of the form. Makes a lot of sense, doesn’t it.

From a practical standpoint, why wouldn’t our legislators hire smart people that could step back and say, hey, maybe we don’t need a new form to confuse people when this new form adds zero value to society. Maybe we can simply increase the font of the existing form size and call it a day?

Don’t blame the IRS. Let’s dive even deeper into this matter to find out who makes these stupid decisions.

Although the IRS designed these forms, it was at the direction of the 115th Congress (2017-2018), signed into law by Donald Trump on February 9, 2018 in H.R. 1892, the “Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018.”

TITLE II--MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS

Sec. 41106. Form 1040SR for seniors.

FORM 1040SR FOR SENIORS.

(a) In General.--The Secretary of the Treasury (or the Secretary's delegate) shall make available a form, to be known as “Form 1040SR'', for use by individuals to file the return of tax imposed by chapter 1 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. Such form shall be as similar as practicable to Form 1040EZ, except that--

(1) the form shall be available only to individuals who have attained age 65 as of the close of the taxable year,

(2) the form may be used even if income for the taxable year includes--

(A) social security benefits (as defined in section 86(d) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986),

(B) distributions from qualified retirement plans (as defined in section 4974(c) of such Code), annuities or other such deferred payment arrangements,

(C) interest and dividends, or

(D) capital gains and losses taken into account in determining adjusted net capital gain (as defined in section 1(h)(3) of such Code), and

(3) the form shall be available without regard to the amount of any item of taxable income or the total amount of taxable income for the taxable year.

(b) Effective Date.--The form required by subsection (a) shall be made available for taxable years beginning after the date of the enactment of this Act.

So where did this ineffective new law originate? Who can we blame?

The text of this new law is nearly identical to the “Simple Tax for Seniors Act of 2004” introduced to the 108th Congress by Republican Senator Larry Craig on June 3, 2004, almost exactly four years to the day before he was arrested for indecent behavior in a men’s restroom at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport. The proposed new law didn’t go anywhere, while Craig pled guilty to a charge of disorderly conduct.

The bill made a comeback in 2011, when Republican House Representative John Fleming and Senator Marco Rubio introduced it to the 112th Congress as the “Seniors’ Tax Simplification Act of 2011.” It went nowhere. It was presented again in 2013 and 2015. No changes were made in the bill other than the date.

Then the Honoring Hometown Heroes Act (H.R. 1892) was introduced to the House on April 4, 2017, authorizing governors to fly U.S. flags at half-staff in the event of the death of a first responder who dies while serving in the line of duty. It passed the House on May 18th. It passed Senate on November 28th.

What does this have to do with Form 1040-SR? H.R. 1892 was amended in a massive way in February 2018 and was renamed the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018. Division A of the law is the Honoring Hometown Heroes Act. Divisions B, C, D and E incorporate other new laws. Division D includes the new Form 1040-SR.

And as mentioned above, the Bipartisan Budget Act was signed into law on February 9, 2018, nearly 14 years after the original vaguely-worded Simple Tax for Seniors Act was introduced.

So now you know the history of Form 1040-SR. If our legislators were competent, the new Form 1040-SR would not exist. Instead, Form 1040 would have slightly larger font size and Standard Deduction details shown on the face of the form to benefit all taxpayers equally.

San Buenaventura China Alley Memorial in Downtown Ventura

The San Buenaventura China Alley Memorial is located on the Figueroa Street Mall at the 200 Block of East Main Street, adjacent to Mission Park.

The memorial is in memory of a Chinese community that was established in this area in the early 1870s. Chinese merchants, laborers, cooks, laundrymen, gardeners and servants conducted business and lived in small homes in the area.

The Chinese immigrants built housing, grew and sold food, and provided a place of worship for the immigrants. Artisans, vegetable gardeners and fishermen plied their trade. Merchants exported marine products and imported Chinese goods. Other contributions of the Chinese immigrants to the community included a water flume above the San Buenaventura Aqueduct along Ventura Avenue and the Chinese Fire Brigade that served China Alley and the surrounding neighborhood.

The population of the Chinese community in Ventura declined in the early years of the 20th century, largely due to the rise of anti-Chinese sentiment and restrictive immigration laws.

The China Alley Memorial honors the lives and history of these early Chinese pioneers in Ventura. The China Alley Historic Area is City of Buenaventura Historic Landmark No. 91.

Santa Paula Hardware Company / Union Oil Company Building on the National Register of Historic Places

The California Oil Museum at 1001 E. Main Street, Santa Paula (corner of Main and 10th) is the birthplace of Union Oil Company (now part of Chevron). The building was completed on October 17, 1890 and originally was the Santa Paula Hardware Company Building, housing the headquarters of the Union Oil Company on the 2nd floor. Union Oil moved its headquarters to Los Angeles in 1900, but continued to operate a field office out of this building.

The Union Oil Museum was established in 1950. The building was restored to its original appearance for its centennial celebration in 1990. The building is also a California Historical Landmark and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Here’s the California Oil Museum building in April 2019.

A view of the building I believe prior to 1900.

Spencer Furniture store at the historic building in I believe the 1940s.

Sections of the Juan Bautista de Anza Trail in Ventura County and Nearby Areas

In 1776, while American patriots fought for their independence from England, Spanish Lt. Colonel Juan Bautista de Anza led more than 240 men, women, and children some 1,800 miles to establish a settlement at San Francisco Bay. These families were the first colonists to come overland across the frontier of New Spain into present-day California.

The trail connects Mexico to San Francisco. The group included the settlers, military escorts, support workers and Indian guides, as well as 1,000 head of livestock. The expedition reached “el río de San Francisco “ on June 27, 1776 and established Spain’s northernmost colony in Alta California.

Local hikers will see signs like this on sections of the De Anza Trail.

The historic trail today is memorialized with a 1,210 mile route extending from Nogales on the U.S./Mexico border through sections of southern Arizona into California. You will see signs from time to time signifying you are on the De Anza Trail.

Locally here in Ventura County, you’ll encounter sections of the De Anza Trail as follows:

• The Los Robles Trail in Thousand Oaks is an official recreation hiking route.

• The Los Robles Trail connects to the Wendy Trail in Newbury Park at its west endpoint on Potrero Road.

• Other trails in the area designated part of the De Anza Trail go through Cheeseboro Canyon, the Cheeseboro Ridge Trail, Palo Comado Canyon Trail, Albertson Motorway and the Hillcrest Open Space.

There are nearly 17 miles of trail in the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area designated for the Juan Bautista de Anza National Historic Trail.

The coastal parks of San Buenaventura and Emma Wood State beaches, the Faria and Hobson County Parks and the recreation trail on the Ventura beach boardwalk all provide memorable ocean views.

More details on the Ventura County portions of the De Anza Trail at www.anzahistorictrail.org/visit/counties/ventura.

Learn much more at www.anzahistorictrail.org.