Ventura's Westview Village receives $1 million as next phase nears completion

Correction: An earlier version of this story misidentified EPIC. It is a Ventura nonprofit focused on character development of young people.

Westview Village in Ventura received $1 million in federal funding earlier this month to complete construction of a community center, commercial kitchen, playground and early childhood center, all set to be operational by April.

These facilities are part of Westview Phase II, which includes 50 affordable apartments — 44 one-bedroom and six two-bedroom units. Property management and Section 8 teams are currently vetting applications and the leasing process will begin in April.

The overall project is located on 20.6 acres in west Ventura between Olive and Riverside streets. It is being built by the Housing Authority of the City of San Buenaventura, an affordable housing developer for eligible low-income residents, with BRIDGE Housing as co-developer.

The housing authority submitted a funding request last spring through the late Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-California, and Congressman Salud Carbajal, D-Santa Barbara, which was approved as Congress passed the Housing and Urban Development appropriations bill earlier this month.

“I lived in public housing myself growing up in Ventura County and have had a chance to see the work being done to expand Westview,” Carbajal said via email. “These units and community amenities will help so many families and reduce the stress and the strain that can come for families worrying about the stability of their living situation."

A multi-phase development

The proposed project, which began in 2017, was to be built over four phases and involved demolishing 180 public housing units built in 1952 and constructing 320 apartments and homes in its place.

Westview Phase I was completed in 2019, with 18 two- and three-story buildings consisting of 131 one- to four-bedroom units. At least half of the families displaced after the demolition returned to live in Phase I, according to Sandy Sanchez, senior developer at the housing authority.

Westview Phase III went into construction next. It was built before Phase II because its fundraising took longer than expected. Phase III was completed in 2022 and included a 105-unit development with one- to four-bedroom apartments, Sanchez said.

Westview Phase II will be complete in a couple of weeks. The last stage, Westview Phase IV, will include 34 for-sale row houses and duplexes. It is still in the planning stage and the housing authority does not have an expected completion date yet.

While the total development cost for Phase II is approximately $38 million now, it was previously estimated at $35.7 million. This also includes the cost of building a public park and some public infrastructure like nearby streets.

The pandemic affected construction costs, said Ricardo Torres, senior policy and community affairs manager for the housing authority.

The construction for Phase I saw delays in the aftermath of the Thomas Fire and Phase III was delayed by five months due to COVID-19-related material shortages. The other phases have been completed "within anticipated timelines," Torres said.

The project will help the city meet housing goals, specifically serving a mixed-income community with affordable housing options. The city of Ventura's total housing goal between 2021 and 2029 is 5,312 units, including 1,187 units for very low-income and extremely low-income households.

Free learning and youth programming

The new early childhood center built in Westview Phase II will be operated by Child Development Resources or CDR, a nonprofit that serves Ventura County through free and subsidized children’s programs.

The two classrooms at the center will be a free preschool for 40 kids between 3 to 4 years old, from low-income households.

“It's the convenience of being located on-site,” said the nonprofit’s CEO Jack Hinojosa. “The facility has beautifully designed classrooms with ample space for a really high-quality learning environment."

The children will also be fed homestyle meals prepared at the on-site kitchen, Hinojosa added.

CDR is currently working with the housing authority to finalize the lease agreement. Pending approvals, the early childhood center will begin operating in August with the start of a new school session.

Although Westview already has two smaller community rooms, at the Phase I and Phase III apartments, residents are excited about the new community center at Phase II as it will be a bigger and better space, said Kate Simonson, who has served on the Resident Advisory Council at Westview for nearly nine years

Simonson lives in Westview Phase I and her family was one of 72 households displaced because of the demolition. As a program director for EPIC, a Ventura nonprofit focused on youth character development, she has also been organizing after-school homework help and programming at the community rooms to help vulnerable youth.

'This is really our home?'

Denia Gonzalez has been a Westview Phase III resident for nearly a year. She lives in a two-bedroom apartment with her 17-year-old daughter Juliana.

They lived in a recreational vehicle for 13 years. Gonzalez ultimately sold it, and they led a nomadic life over the next four years, renting rooms and moving every few months. She said they were also homeless and separated for two months when they stayed with different friends.

When Gonzalez told Juliana their housing application was approved, they came to pick up the keys for a home in Westview together. They didn't expect to move into a brand new apartment as its first residents.

Phase III had 22 units set aside for homeless people. Phase II will also have five apartments as permanent supportive housing units for formerly homeless people.

“A month ago my daughter asked, ‘Mom, this is really our home, right?’" Gonzalez said. "And I said, ‘Yes.’”

She hopes the new community center will have a space for teens her daughter’s age. Although all ages are welcome at the children’s clubs and programs in Westview, Gonzalez said Juliana, being older than most kids in the area, isn’t always interested in them.

Jeffrey Lambert, CEO of the housing authority, said that the community center was designed as the center of the Westview Village. With an adjacent green space, a basketball court, a playground and even an amphitheater, the community center is the true heart of the community, he said.

The Resident Advisory Council hopes to host the first party in the community center. It will be both a Mother’s Day and Father’s Day celebration.

Dua Anjum is an investigative and watchdog reporter for the Ventura County Star. Reach her at dua.anjum@vcstar.com. This story was made possible by a grant from the Ventura County Community Foundation's Fund to Support Local Journalism.

This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Ventura's Westview Village prepares to open next phase