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Use building for mentally ill
Meeting
Though discussion of the Hillmont Avenue building is not on the agenda for the Board of Supervisor's Tuesday meeting, members of the National Alliance on Mental Illness of Ventura County will be at the meeting to advocate retaining the building. The supervisors meet at 8:30 a.m., in the Hall of Administration board room, 800 S. Victoria Ave., Ventura.
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More from OpinionSomething very bad and irreversible is about to happen in our county unless we can persuade county supervisors to change their minds.
There are plans now on the table that just do not make sense — to demolish a two-story county building at 300 Hillmont Ave. in Ventura and replace it with a parking lot. This building was initially built for use by the Mental Health Department. It has previously been occupied by administrative offices. It should now be used to serve the needs of the mentally ill. How can the county justify tearing it down when there is such a scarcity of housing? Board- and-care homes have very few vacancies and other facilities have waiting lists. Many clients have to be sent out of the county for housing.
When renovated, the second floor of this building could harbor up to 12 clients, with additional space for activities or a clinic on the ground floor. The building is adjacent to two other Behavioral Health buildings, making it convenient for staff to communicate. What a waste it would be to try to replicate what is already in existence. Remember, these are taxpayers' dollars. The National Alliance on Mental Illness of Ventura County unanimously supports the effort to save this building, and would be willing to help financially in a joint housing renovation project.
I have a problem with the reasoning that it would be better to tear down and rebuild at another location. The cost of vacant land would probably be prohibitive, construction worse. Is there any logic to demolish a building on land now owned and buy expensive land elsewhere?
Without sacrificing the existing building, there is a very simple solution. Across the street, within a few steps, there is a sizable parking lot. A second level could be built above that, which would double the parking area. (Incidentally, that level would accommodate more cars than the space that would be created by tearing down the building.)
I encourage the good people of our county to please take a moment to contact your supervisors to ask them to save this building. It is a poor plan, both morally and financially, to tear it down.
— Irene King lives in Thousand Oaks.
Posted by Tom_Johnston on July 9, 2007 at 5:41 a.m. (Suggest removal)
It just isn't reasonable to use a building of the size of the one at 300 Hillmont to house what...12 people? Whatever the needs of the mentally ill, I doubt that 12 beds will make that much of a dent in things.
The parking lot needs to go in because existing lots will be used to construct new clinic facilities currently housed in inadequate leased buildings up and down Loma Vista Road.
More signifigantly these buildings were recently renovated..into office, gotta wonder about that.
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