Did I miss the nice parts of Ventura? (Thousand Oaks, Agoura Hills: renting, mattress)

[Winston Smith]

Originally Posted by OpenSky

If we drew a box around Ventura the way you're drawing a box around your area, we could tap Ojai, Lake Casitas (part of Los Padres), etc.

TO alone is 55 square miles of land. Ventura is 22.

Give it a rest and zip your pants back up, you're measuring wrong anyhow.

Precisely! I suppose it could take 2 hours to drive from Ventura to, say, Matilija. For most of us, it takes around 20, 30 minutes. Maybe if user_id took the jalopy in for tune-ups once in a while it would be less than 2 hours -- and traffic on 33 would flow better.

[rgb123]

Originally Posted by user_id

Not sure I get the "biased opinion" thing, I'm trying to point you to things that match what you like, not necessarily things that I like. Anyhow, I think I've already mentioned all the apartments that I'm aware of, in particular I would really check out the area around Lindero cyn road and Kanan Road (This area is border line Westlake and Oak Park). There are apartments on both streets (unfortunately, don't recall the names) that are all in nice communities and all look decent. The prices, from what I recall are around $1,500 for a 1-bedroom and around $1,800~$2,000 for a 2-bedroom. The apartments in his area also have a lower percentage of kids since the area is popular with older folks.

Also, the Knolls complex that I linked to previously is in a nice area as well, the interiors are nice as well. One thing creeps me out about this place though, 1-2 years ago there was a dad that shot his kids and himself in one of those apartments.

Note, I'm just pointing you to complexes that are in nice communities that look decent, in most cases I don't know whether the management is any good or whether the interiors of the apartments will match what you want.

because I can go (or could) go to a place to see if I like it, I had little time and wanted some real opinions. I think what you consider okay would be similiar to what I consider okay and it was just a figure of speech.

I'm weirded out by how the prices change daily. so, I think Ive figured out the general area and apartments I like best, I may just see what the specials are the day I show up.

[DowntownVentura]

Any of you rock (face) climb? Off 33, past Matilija, past Rose valley, then you go downhill a bit then on the left is Black Wall. Rose Valley is about mile marker 25, the top of that mountain is about mile marker 27, so I am going to guess Black Wall is at mile marker 33.

I don't climb (or hike for that matter, both too strenuous for me) but I bicycle through there a lot and see tons of rock climbers on that wall.

At mile marker 43 is Pine Mountain. That is elevation 5160 feet. From there, one can hike to Reyes Peak, which goes to 7500 feet.

For reference, mile marker 0 is where 33 and 101 connect, the coast.

[rgb123]

Originally Posted by user_id

Please read what I'm actually saying, the 2 hour remark was in relation to getting to the nice parts of the the Los Padros National Forest not hiking spots in general. There is local hiking in Ventura, its just not particularly nice. Good thing there is the beach...


Yes, if you want to drive to these areas instead of you know, hiking to them it may take you 20~25 minutes by car to get to them. Its fundamentally odd to focus on hiking that happens to be 20~25 minutes away while ignoring the numerous places one can hike that are considerably closer. Spin spin spin....

I guess it depends what you want to do, if you want to do an hour hike on some grandma trail in the middle of Malibu state park, etc than you'll have to drive there. But this isn't necessary and I don't know anybody here that does it, because you can just park locally and hike to these areas.

And this is the point, in the Conejo Valley regardless of where you live you can within a few miles get some trail head that will take you to numerous spots all of which will be rather beautiful. That is, you can open your garage get on your bike and have numerous options right by your home. The same can't be said of Ventura or Oxnard, the immediate hiking options just aren't as good. Simi Valley is similar in this regard, but I don't think the mountains there are as nice.

Lastly, I have to comment on the irony of someone complaining about "car culture" yet driving 20, 30, etc minutes to go hike....

yeah, that is in particular what I am asking about in terms of Conejo Valley, at least the areas I am looking at. That raises the desirability of the apartment complex stuff there. I was wondering if there was anything comparable in Ventura (not the county, but near the place I would live) in terms of walking out my door. How far does the bike path along the ocean go? (not the ones along the highway but actual paths...)

of course if I lived in Ventura I would drive to hiking places, but I am asking about accessibility. All nearby places are intersting too and I'll be more interested later as well.

[rgb123]

Originally Posted by kanhawk

Just want to reinforce what rgb123 said about Naples, FL. I have visited there a couple times myself and I don't know what they do to keep the riffraff away, but they do a pretty good job of it. The downtown, the neighborhoods, the beach were very safe it seemed to me. Of course, it's possible I missed the seedy parts of town, but for a beach community it was very free of the bothersome public social problems so many other places have.
My experience with the west coast in general is that it has now and has always had more of a drifter/transient problem. Horace Greeley famously said "go west, young man" and I think the region in general has always attracted both a good and bad element. It's sort of the end of the line and this is where people of all types end up.

Naples is soo nice! And yes, citizens and the city council are aggresive, I worked with them. They have some serious zoning rules/laws and HOA's etc. Everything is planned.

I actually lived in what would was planned as "affordable housing" when I lived there, as the city was pressured to create affordable housing. It was some of the nicest housing I'd ever lived in up until that point! It was brand new, nice pool, gated. And those beaches are the best in terms of actually being able to swim, wild life and clarity, not to mention the sand. and those sunsets. And there is some serious wealth in Naples for those that don't know, and think CA is where it's all at...

oh and your theory about the west coast....Ann Rule would probably agree with you (true crime writer) when asked why so many serial killers seem to end up in the PacNW...there is defintiley more of a runway/drug/homeless type problem in the western coastal states taht you don't see in quite the same way other places. Austin, TX is catching up...

[Pedro2000]

Naples has what, 20,000 residents ?
Ventura has over 100,000 and Oxnard over 200,000.
Of course Naples would look cleaner and nicer, not many people
Live there. It's a tourist town.

Comparing the Ventura/Oxnard beaches and area where there are over 300k people, many whom are middle class to poor, to a place with 20,000 people, many who are wealthy, is absurd.

Wow it's hard to imagine a "city" With mostly 20,000 wealthy people is cleaner than a place with 300,000 people.
20,000

[user_id]

Originally Posted by OpenSky

You're mixing and matching geography with the distance on the 101 where convenient. Not a surprise.

I'm not mixing anything, I'm looking at distance from the perspective of commuting and I was doing this in both cases.

Originally Posted by OpenSky

It can take, depending where you are, a half hour to traverse from one end of the CV to the other.

Its hard to see a case where this would be true, but perhaps for some of the more isolated communities in the mountains.

Originally Posted by OpenSky

Ventura, which by itself, has 25%+ fewer people that just the incorporated part of TO - then drawing conclusions

Incorporated part of TO? What in the world are you talking about!?

Regardless, each city in the Conejo Valley has ample local hiking options, you don't need to take the Conejo Valley as a whole.

[user_id]

Originally Posted by OpenSky

If we drew a box around Ventura the way you're drawing a box around your area, we could tap Ojai, Lake Casitas (part of Los Padres), etc.

No you couldn't, but you are actually supporting my point. Thousand Oaks has a lot of open space areas that are within the city limits which increase its overall square footage, these areas provide ahem....local hiking options.

Also, the geography here is important as well. Oxnard/Ventura are in a plain, the Conejo Valley is in a relatively narrow valley and this geography provides better hiking options. Again, the same thing can be said of Simi Valley, its just that the mountains in Simi Valley aren't as lush.

[user_id]

Originally Posted by rgb123

I'm weirded out by how the prices change daily. so, I think Ive figured out the general area and apartments I like best, I may just see what the specials are the day I show up.

Repricing on a daily basis is common, they are using software that takes the current level of vacancies, time of year, etc to appropriately price the apartments. The goal is of course to get top dollar.

Anyhow, did you get a chance to look at the areas I pointed out?

[user_id]

Originally Posted by rgb123

I was wondering if there was anything comparable in Ventura (not the county, but near the place I would live) in terms of walking out my door. How far does the bike path along the ocean go? (not the ones along the highway but actual paths...)

There are some communities in the hills in Ventura, but I don't know of any apartments in them. Anyhow, you're not going to be that close to wilderness areas in Ventura, just the beach. The city has naturally oriented itself around the ocean not the mountains.

Anyhow, if you're into hiking, biking, etc the Conejo Valley is a better option, just as if you're into surfing, etc Ventura is a better option. The denial around this simple fact is just weird....