Is moving to Oxnard a good idea? (Los Angeles, Camarillo: how much, house)

[cricket_factor]

Yep, my parents in Thousand Oaks always drive to Oxnard for those "Oxnard strawberries" and other produce.

My boyfriend, who spent a great deal of his childhood in Wichita, Kansas, says Oxnard is flatter than Kansas.

[Winston Smith]

Originally Posted by cricket_factor

My boyfriend, who spent a great deal of his childhood in Wichita, Kansas, says Oxnard is flatter than Kansas.

At least in Oxnard you can see mountains. I've been to Kansas, Oklahoma and those states. Being in that landscape gave me a good idea of how one could develop agoraphobia. Nothing but flat land as far as you could see. No mountains and big, big sky. It's down right eerie after a while.

[NardForLife]

Originally Posted by Winston Smith

What I like most about Oxnard, aside from the great weather, the coast, the downtown, cultural events, farmers markets and easy Amtrak/Metrolink access, is the glimmer of hope of "new urbanist" planning. It's starting to look like the future of Oxnard is one where you can live in a nice habitation above or nearby store/services, walk to your destinations or easily grab a shuttle. Oxnard is slowly becoming far less car-centric than it has been in the past. And far more "new urbanist," certainly, than cities like Thousand Oaks or Simi Valley.

Winston, I absolutely agree! As the sole representative of South Oxnard, let me share with you what I have observed in my area these last few years.
I live near Oxnard College, and because of our wonderful weather year round, you can see almost anything imaginable on the street sidewalks: Students, walkers with dogs, joggers, old couples exercise walking, cyclists, and yes, the Hispanic mother with her stroller and kids in tow. Now what I love about the area is, they built a Walgreens, Fresh and Easy Neighborhood Market, eateries like Jack N the Box, Panda Express, Quiznos and CJ's Barbecue and then there's the beautiful Oxnard College Park (Strawberry Festival held here) where they have lighted basketball courts at night and even a dog park!! And all within walking distance to many neighborhoods!
And I do agree with heartshinegirl when she says the 'good' shopping is done in other cities, BUT here's my take: I would rather travel to these places than have all that traffic noise come down here. Seriously, I really have nothing to complain....as long as they keep building neighborhood establishments, keep the area clean, and the nights are quiet....I'm settled! Everywhere else is a temporary stopover!!

[LadyKLO]

nardforlife, that's a good write up. I used to live in South Oxnard but now on the other end of town. I love that CJ's bbq and I have been to that Fresh and Easy before. That area of town is growing and look at all the construction at 5 Points with the new CVS and other stores.

[stuffavail]

Originally Posted by sarah212

Hello!

My husband and I currently live in Seattle and want to move to California in the next year. LA is a little out of our reach financially, but we came across the city of Oxnard and found homes within our reach ($400k). The town seemed great to me, near the beach, restaurants, etc. but I've read a lot of posts where people say the city is ghetto and filled with crime.

Can anyone give me a read on the town and let me know if it's worth moving to? Thank you!!

--------------------------------------
Welcome to CA!

If you have a boat and work from home Oxnard is great.
The 101 runs through the middle of it.

Then there are many fruit and veggie fields.
Get a job there first before you go. It is a very small town.

We know people there and they like it fine.
I read an article not long ago that said it is the 5th safest town in America. Best to check but that sounds pretty good.

Compare the crime rates there with the crime rates where you live now.
Then you will have something of an apples to apples comparison.
I assume you are comfy where you are.

City-data.com has all manner of demographic data for every place in America. Great site!

Best wishes!

[timincal]

Having arrived first as a young man of the age of 17,in 1973,I thought the Oxnard,Port Hueneme area was a hidden gem,that nobody knew about.

I have been a part of this community for the most part the whole time except when I was re-assigned for short periods.

I was employed by the city of Oxnard for a period and the pathetic poor attitude of the city employees was mystifying

until I realized that the majority of the upper city management and other city workers did not even live there!

The streets will attest to that.

Every major through fare in the city is potholed and crumbling.

When the Alaska airlines tragedy occurred of our coast the media and their support trucks converged on the city.

The L.A.Times front page article began with this statement,

"The only thing more prevalent in Oxnard other than television satellite vans,is the potholes in the streets."



I slowly have watched this city deteriorate in to the crime ridden barrio it is today.

All areas of the city have extensive crime.

The local paper has a homicide map of the entire Ventura county area.

Ventura County Star: Local Ventura, California News Delivered Throughout the Day.

The number of homicides in this particular area is astounding.



Oxnard has one of the highest absentee home ownership in the state.

That is rental properties.

People who rent have no true roots in the community and no respect for the neighbors who own their own home.

During the free run on home loans with the zero down no income verification fraud

and the escalating prices on homes many people bought in to it.

Now thousand of houses sit empty and many have been vandalized.

The expense to rehabilitate these house will be enormous and most families wishing to purchase a home will not be able to do so.

There goes the neighborhood.

Those who did and have stayed,were multiple generational family groups living in one unit.

They have paved over the front yard for additional parking,Built second stories

on top of garages and even built entire two story additions in the back yard.

What was once a nice"single family residence" is now a "multi-family facility".

The thing that is ironic, and most people don't know,all this construction was done without permits from the city.

You cannot sell a house that has un-permitted construction in the state of California.

They don't care, these people do not plan to ever sell these properties!

A drive through ALL neighborhoods will prove my statement.



Disease is also rampant in Oxnard.

Those who have moved there and never were medically evaluated before coming here like legal residents do,have put all at risk.

Tuberculous is a communicable disease that left untreated can kill you,and is rampant in all areas of the city.

There is a map at the local county health department that tracks reported TB cases in the county.

They place a small push pin to indicate a reported infection of TB.

Oxnard is totally covered with push pins!

Think about that the next time you are standing in a exceedingly long line to check out

in any of the stores in the city,and the people behind you all have a persistent cough!

Or the theaters or any public place in the city where groups gather.

Only one city in the county has NEVER had a reported case of TB.

That city is Camarillo.


The schools systems are a joke.

My niece came to live with us from Kentucky for a school year and we enrolled her at Channel Islands High school in the 10th grade.

Within ONE reporting period she was at the top of her class.

I asked her if she was really that smart.

Her response was, "No,not really.Everything they are teaching, I learned back in Kentucky last year in 9th grade"!

The high school she attended in Kentucky was one of the lowest rated schools in the state!


There are thousands of illegal alien farm workers living and working and utilizing the cities services.

They drive poorly maintained unregistered vehicles with no licenses.

A Oxnard police officer told me once,that they believe after 5 P.M. on Fridays

50% of the drivers on the road is physically impaired(driving drunk).

After 7 P.M. it is 70%!

The illegal alien farm workers get paid on Fridays!

They have no identification and no bank accounts,so they cash their checks at liquor stores and mini-marts.


Oxnard is over populated plain and simple,schools,hospitals,parks are over run.

Attempting to move around the city after 5 P.M. is impossible.

There are long lines at gas stations all the time.

The parks on weekends have been over run by foreign "visitors"and

impossible to be used by those who have long term roots legitimate employment and vote.

If you find a place to use be sure you like "ethnic" music played loud!

I could go on but I think anyone reading this from out of state will understand where I am coming from.


It is so bad in Oxnard and so well known,it was even joked about on a top situation comedy.

A very popular show with high ratings and the writers were telling the whole country that Oxnard sucks!

"The Big Bang Theory",had an episode where a character was getting laid off do to budget cuts.

He was depressed and one of the main characters asked why.

He responded he was not going to be able to afford his apartment

and was going to have to move in with his daughter,a single mother with 3 children living in Oxnard.

Asked what was wrong with living with his grandchildren?

It was not living with the family that was depressing to him, it was LIVING in Oxnard.

He also emphasized that he wasn't going to the nice part of Oxnard by the beach,but the area of Oxnard, downwind of the onion processing plant!


I have said enough there is a lot of research on the best place to live if you want to live in Ventura county.

Camarillo is a gem of a city.

Built along the 101 freeway the mall in Thousand Oaks is just a short drive and the shops and beaches and harbor area in Ventura is too.

The outlet is across the freeway from the community proper and is a great source for shopping.

A well kept planned city with well maintained streets,no graffiti written walls and schools where the teachers care.

A very stable population,the school system has in recent years closed elementary schools because of lack of students to attend.But.the high school in the community has always been ranked high scholastically.

That is called a stable population that has roots in the community,takes ownership and pride in their community.And it shows.

And that is where I have moved to.


The straw that broke my back on the dump called Oxnard was this.

I was following a van.It had seen its better days and was occupied by a family with numerous small children.As I followed them down the main street in the city,Oxnard Blvd.

I noticed they were thrown things out the window on the passenger side.

Small white bundles flew out the window and in to the street.

I counted 6 bundles as we traveled north through the city.

What were they?

Used disposable diapers!



That is the attitude of most of the population residing in the city now.

It is not their home they just live there.

And the community shows it.

[GeekUSA]

I was considering moving to Oxnard but now I'm having second thoughts after reading timincals post. Can anyone confirm / deny his story?

[Charles]

Originally Posted by GeekUSA

I was considering moving to Oxnard but now I'm having second thoughts after reading timincals post. Can anyone confirm / deny his story?

It's a little one sided as not all of Oxnard is that way, but some parts of Oxnard might be that way. I worked at Point Mugu for 11 years and we'd go into Oxnard for lunch (Super Taco, Sal's Mexican Inn) and a lot of my colleagues lived in Oxnard and we'd go their homes to visit. However, I haven't been in Oxnard in around 13 years.

[Steve Bagu]

There is nothing wrong with Oxnard...no different then many other cities. I lived in Ventura owning a business 17 yrs and dealt with all kinds of people from both cities...even some from Camarillo etc.

The Colonia (barrio) of Oxnard is where many hispanics live...some good and some not good...just like any other city. A person should not pass judgement on only one persons negative opinion.

A short story. On applying for citizenship I was asked why I had held off for so many yrs. I related an incident I had with a woman at the Immigration office some yrs back that ticked me off with her answer to my question at the time. He told me that this one person (woman) was NOT an example of the American people. She may have had a bad day (your immagination).

This stands true with the negative opinion of the above poster. The description could be of any city in the US. You would like the area of Oxnard, Ventura and the beaches.

Steve

[Winston Smith]

Originally Posted by GeekUSA

I was considering moving to Oxnard but now I'm having second thoughts after reading timincals post. Can anyone confirm / deny his story?

Believe timincals to be a troll.