Farming

The landscape of Ventura County changed in 1998 in ways that begin to make conservation of local agriculture more likely. The land use initiatives passed easily, though perhaps not due to any great interest in agriculture but to the citizens’ interest in preserving the fine quality of life enjoyed here.

Although we in agriculture are proud to provide the open-space amenities, we now look to the other side of the bargain. Our urban neighbors must be willing to provide us with the environment needed for viable long-term agriculture, and must allow us access to the necessary cultural tools that enable us to be competitive in the new reality of global sourcing and markets.

Believe it or not, our first challenge for 1999 is still land use. Measure A advises our elected officials to take the next step and rationalize and make permanent the new urban growth boundaries created by SOAR. This will not be simple, as the give and take of democratic processes and the balancing of interests, which were not part of SOAR, still need to occur. A comprehensive countywide city and Local Agency Formation Commission sphere of influence study is an important first step.

Our second challenge will be coming to grips with the flip side of growth boundaries. If our American Dream persists in being a single-family dwelling on a quarter-acre lot, then all the SOARs in the world will not make a difference. Serious thought must be given to a new land-use ethic that includes greater density in our cities and calls for transportation and infrastructure patterns that ensure the preservation of our agricultural lands.

Our verdant county is saddled with a planning process in which major players are making huge, long-term decisions without much citizen input. No entity in the county, including the Board of Supervisors, has control of the “master plan.” Water agencies are planning and building for big population increases, transportation agencies already have major arterial road projects on the drawing board, all without any regard for the new landscape created by the voters in November. The third challenge in 1999 will be to somehow bring coherence to all these planning processes, to respect the will of the voters.

Agriculture’s special challenge is to become more sensitive and effective in its dealings with the urban community. We have been given a mission to provide open space; now we must stay engaged with our urban neighbors if we are to survive in our profession. We must reevaluate our role within society; it is no longer about just producing food. And through it all we must stay profitable.

For farmers and citizens alike, the challenges of the coming year will ask for our best. We have a long row to hoe ahead, one best approached with attitudes of optimism and cooperation.