Questioning the cost of housing project
Re: your June 16 story, “Affordable housing project planned”:
I’m a strong believer in providing affordable housing and doing everything possible to help people move off the streets into stable housing and self-sufficiency. I applaud the Ventura City Council and Ventura Housing for moving forward with the new 33-unit housing project for low-income residents.
What I struggle to understand is the cost. At $26.6 million, this project comes out to roughly $806,000 per unit. That is more than the cost of many existing condominiums and not far below the price of a median single-family home. As a taxpayer, I want affordable housing that is truly affordable, and this price tag does not pass that test.
We should be able to build far more units with this level of investment. When affordable housing costs 30% more to build than market-rate housing, the system is broken. I don’t claim to have all the answers, but I urge Ventura Housing to work with elected officials and policymakers to reduce the regulations, delays, and red tape that drive up costs.
Until construction costs come under control, we should be cautious about moving forward with projects like this and instead pursue more cost-effective solutions. We do not need to reinvent the wheel. We should identify what other states are doing successfully and adopt the best ideas.
The definition of insanity is doing the same thing repeatedly and expecting different results. Continuing to follow California’s costly affordable housing playbook while expecting a different outcome is not a sustainable solution and insanity
David Jaffe, Ventura
Take time with plaza redesign
The Civic Arts Plaza (CAP) was built in 1994 on an area previously made famous as “Jungleland” and has been a centerpiece of the community for 32 years. The CAP was very controversial when it was approved and eventually built. However, as time passed, the 1,800-seat Kavli Theater and 400-seat Scherr Forum Theater went from operating in the red for many years to being very successful today. The design and size of the CAP (theaters, City Hall and tenant space) itself have never been well received by the community.
Fast forward to 2026 and now the city wants to redesign the area and make it even bigger, higher and denser.
Over the last year, the city has done an adequate job getting the word out of what the city did for the CAP three decades ago. However, a portion of the community is now objecting to the project, specifically to its size, height and density. In my opinion, it’s a massive project that is out of character for Thousand Oaks that will change the community forever. Some say for the better while others say for the worse.
Simply put, this project can unify the community or divide it and for that reason alone, the city council must get this right. The only logical step for the city council is to take steps to delay approval of the project and set up meetings to listen to and consider all the concerns of residents that are against this downtown project. Once that has been completed, return to city council to consider a redesigned project that has full community support. Take the time to get it right. It is that important.
Grahame Watts, Thousand Oaks
This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Costly housing project in Ventura, Civic Arts redesign | Letters
Reporting by Ventura County Star / Ventura County Star
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Ventura County Star | USA TODAY Network
