After 70 years of allowing the community to use the Loma Vista Elementary School campus when school is not in session, the Ventura Unified School District (VUSD) is cutting off community access by fencing the entire perimeter of the school and locking it off to the public. The neighbors, who have lived in harmony with the school for decades and have children who attend or have attended the school, are fighting to keep the campus open after school hours, on weekends, on holidays and during school breaks.

While student safety is everyone's top priority, it does not make sense to lock down our school campuses when students are not present. For years, neighborhood schools have served the community as important places where families can recreate, exercise and enjoy each other's company, and where local youth sports teams can practice. At Loma Vista, which currently enjoys an abundance of community engagement, neighbors pick up trash, tend to the native community garden, donate to the PTA and serve as eyes and ears for the school after hours.

Because the Loma Vista neighborhood lacks a nearby public park, many local children and their parents/grandparents rely on the campus as a place where they can play and connect with one another. Closing off the campus will not only result in less opportunities for neighbors to enjoy the mental and physical benefits of living near accessible green space, it will lower property values, decrease quality of life, increase neighborhood disconnectedness and create animosity between the neighbors and the school. 

The new VUSD Superintendent, Dr. Antonio Castro, has indicated that the complete closure of the campus is highly likely.  We need to let Dr. Castro and the entire VUSD School Board to know that closing off the campus from the neighborhood is wrong and not in the best interest of the community.

Please join us in advocating for an open Loma Vista Elementary School campus so it can continue to be an excellent educational institution AND a highly valuable community asset.