The County shall continue to support the Ventura County Continuum of Care to end homelessness within Ventura County in efforts to provide housing, emergency shelter, and social services to homeless persons or those at risk of homelessness.
Healthy Communities
HE-3.1 Prioritize Housing Assistance for Special Needs Populations
The County shall give priority in providing housing assistance to those groups with demonstrated special needs, such as lower income households, seniors, persons with disabilities, persons with mental illness, large families with children, female-headed households, victims of domestic violence, and people who are experiencing homelessness.
HE-2.2 Increase Housing Opportunities within Area Plan Boundaries
The County shall pursue the following policies in Area Plan updates to increase housing opportunities[3].
- Identify opportunities to rezone more properties to Residential Planned Development to encourage the development of diverse housing types, such as: duplexes, triplexes, fourplexes, courtyard buildings, bungalow courts, cottage housing, townhouses, multiplexes, accessory dwelling units, and live/work buildings that provide affordable housing options
- Identify opportunity sites for higher density housing near job clusters and transit stops to support housing for the County’s special needs population.
- Identify County surplus land that can accommodate residential development and consider re-designation, if feasible.
- Enhance existing residential areas by seeking opportunities and funding sources for public infrastructure improvements such as installing sidewalks and other pedestrian networks, bicycle facilities, neighborhood parks, and planting street trees, with priority given to designated disadvantaged communities[4].
Program “F” in the Land Use Element identifies a schedule for comprehensive Area Plan Updates between 2020-2040.
[3] Additional residential land use policy direction as well as the Comprehensive Area Plan Update Program “F” is described in Chapter 2 of the County General Plan, the Land Use and Community Character Element.
[4] Additional policies related to providing equitable public services in “designated disadvantaged communities” are in Chapter 2, Land Use and Community Character Element.
HE-1.3 Residential Rehabilitation
The County shall partner with public and private agencies and provide funding support for residential rehabilitation programs that assist homeowners and renters to ensure the safety and habitability of existing housing units and the quality of residential neighborhoods for lower income households.
HE-1.1 Ensure Housing Meets Basic Standards
The County shall support its Code Compliance Division in responding to complaints and ensuring that existing housing meets public health, safety, fire and other applicable development codes and standards, with priority given to designated disadvantaged communities.
AG-C County Procurement
The County shall develop a program to identify opportunities to continue to provide organic and locally grown foods into cafeteria services, the jail, Ventura County Medical Center, and other County-sponsored services and events that provide food service, to the extent feasible.