Board approves Ventura Ranch farmworker housing after heated hearing over wildfire and evacuation risks

The Ventura County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously on May 19 to approve the Ventura Ranch farmworker housing project, a proposed 328‑unit development on an 83‑acre parcel on North Ventura Avenue that would reserve about 63 acres as permanent open space. The board approved staff’s recommendation after a de novo hearing that drew hours of testimony from the applicant, county staff, appellants and dozens of public commenters.

The project would subdivide the existing legal parcel into four lots, develop three with multi‑family housing—18, three‑story buildings, two community centers and recreational amenities—and retain the largest lot as open space. Planning staff recommended approval under the CEQA streamlining provisions (Guidelines §15183) that allow programmatic EIR analysis to be relied on when a project is consistent with a previously certified general‑plan EIR.

Appellants and many nearby residents argued the site is now in a very high fire hazard severity area and said evacuation capacity on Ventura Avenue and nearby ramps could be overwhelmed in a wildfire scenario. "A 15‑minute model delay should not be treated as abstract on a road that has already experienced evacuation gridlock," appellant Sarah Swidler said, summarizing concerns about traffic modeling and emergency response during the Thomas Fire.

Planning staff, the applicant and experts disagreed that the reported increases created an unmitigable public‑safety impact. County planners and the applicant’s wildfire and evacuation experts said the site and proposed design comply with currently applicable objective standards and that the general‑plan EIR had previously evaluated similar risks. "We looked at the programmatic EIR and then drilled down with project‑level technical studies," said Neil McGuire, counsel for the applicant. Fire‑safety measures in the plan include building construction to very‑high fire hazard standards, sprinklers, ember‑resistant vents and an expanded fuel‑modification zone adjoining the open space.

The board also heard procedural objections. Appellants asked the board to remand the matter for full project‑level CEQA review, to treat the application as incomplete because it lacked a preliminary "will‑serve" water letter from the city of Ventura at filing, and to revisit mapping used to determine fire‑hazard status. County staff said the city of Ventura performed a water review and the record contains the appropriate water‑service analysis and correspondence; staff also said the relevant historic CalFire‑based hazard maps are in the administrative record.

Supporters of the project, including agricultural employers, labor unions and several housing advocates, told the board farmworker housing is urgently needed. "Farmworkers are the backbone of Ventura County’s agricultural economy," said John Christ of House Farm Workers. Several unions and nonprofits said the project includes long‑term affordability controls and onsite management.

After deliberations referencing the Housing Accountability Act (which constrains local discretion to deny projects that comply with objective standards in effect when applications were deemed complete), Supervisor Lavere moved to adopt staff recommendations; Supervisor Lopez seconded. The motion passed unanimously.

The board’s action approves the tentative parcel map, plan development permit and discretionary tree permit subject to the conditions in the staff report and imposes deed restrictions and occupancy controls limiting units to occupants who meet the county’s farmworker definition and related compliance monitoring. The project record includes soil and pesticide testing, wildfire and evacuation technical reports, and a phase‑2 environmental site assessment that staff said shows soil results below residential screening levels.

Next steps: The applicant must complete conditions of approval, execute required service agreements (including water and sewer connections), finalize any required out‑of‑agency agreements with the City of Ventura and obtain building permits before construction can begin.