Hi neighbor,

Big week for Camarillo. The city's water fight just landed at the California Supreme Court and it’s so much more important to the environment and your water bull than you think plus the City Council unanimously adopted a five-year plan for Old Town.

Also in this issue: six Mother's Day brunch picks (book now, they're filling fast), a husky mix who's been at the shelter since just before Christmas, and a weekend stacked with armored combat, a community rummage sale, and a Mother's Day pop-up.

Let's get into it.

Local forecast via Grant @CamWX

☀️ May Is Starting Right

Perfect weather locked in for the long weekend. Sunny skies Thursday with highs in the low 70s, and Saturday stays warm at 74°F before cooling slightly Sunday. No rain in sight. Just classic Camarillo spring weather to get May started on the right foot.

More local weather updates → CamWX.com

Saturday is stacked. Hit a community-wide rummage sale at sunrise, watch armored combat at Valle Lindo by mid-morning, and end the day at a spring market in Village Commons.

🛡️ Darach Anniversary Medieval Festival

Saturday · 8 am · Valle Lindo Park

Armored combat, rapier tournaments, leatherwork demos, and a potluck lunch. The Kingdom of Caid's anniversary festival turns Valle Lindo Park into something out of a different century. Costuming, ceramics, and a white elephant fundraiser round out the day. Bring a dish if you want to join lunch. $15 adults, $5 with membership, kids free with an adult.

👉 See details →

🛍️ Community Rummage Sale

Saturday · 7 am · Camarillo Community Center

Around 100 sellers set up booths at the Community Center for a morning of treasure hunting. Free to walk in, and Goodwill is on-site at the end to collect anything that doesn't sell. Get there early for the good stuff.

👉 See details →

💐 Mother's Day Pop-Up at XOJO Beauty

Saturday · 4 pm · 211 Village Commons Blvd

A one-day pop-up the weekend before Mother's Day, with permanent jewelry, a charm bar, hair tinsels, sweet treats, raffles, and a photo booth. Local vendors only. Bring your mom, bring a friend, or just go for yourself. Get the gift sorted before next weekend.

👉 See details →

The basin under Camarillo has been gaining water, even during last year's drought.

A court just ruled it's being over-pumped.

A coalition of large landowners is fighting in the California Supreme Court to restrict Camarillo's water supply, which would raise your water bill and force the city's $66 million water treatment plant to scale back. Most residents have no idea any of this is happening.

👉 I broke down the full story here →

Mayor David Tennessen used his council comments time at last Wednesday's meeting to defend Camarillo's automatic license plate reader program, citing five recent constituent meetings where residents raised concerns. He credited Police Chief Cmdr. Eric Tennessen with originating the audit process that uncovered a data breach and pushed the sheriff's department to switch from periodic audits to daily ones. Two homicides have been solved using Flock data from Camarillo in the past six months, the mayor said.

"When you're on a public street or in a parking lot open to the public, there is zero expectation of privacy," Tennessen said.

Camarillo currently has 25 Flock cameras, more than double the original 10 deployed in 2023. Oxnard, with nearly three times the population, has 19 and ended its Flock contract earlier this year.

Listen to the Mayor’s comments here →

The City Council unanimously adopted a five-year roadmap for Old Town last Wednesday. Concrete changes on the way include brighter lighting along Ventura Boulevard, more programming at Dizdar Park, public art on city walls and utility boxes, and a real Old Town logo and brand kit. The plan also locks in prime Ventura frontage for active retail and restaurants rather than offices or service businesses.

The longer-term play is the PVSD property at 2222 Ventura Boulevard, currently home to Studio Channel Islands Art Center. The plan calls it one of Old Town's most significant long-term opportunities, and the city is now in active Surplus Land Act negotiations with Pleasant Valley School District. Nothing's decided. We’ll keep tracking.

Read the plan →

Mother's Day is May 10, and Camarillo brunch reservations are already filling up. I pulled together six options, from a casual $15 menu special at Country Harvest to an $85 jazz brunch buffet at SLATE. Italian at Ottavio's (kids under 5 eat free), bottomless mimosas at Money Pancho, live acoustic at Onyx, prime rib carving at Ric's, and the full splurge at SLATE if you want jazz, sushi, and a made-to-order eggs Benedict bar with four hollandaises. The guide breaks down hours, prices, what's on each buffet, and who each one is best for.

Heads up while you're clicking through: this guide lives on the new Camarillo Caller site, which I've been quietly building for months. The full site launch is coming in the next few weeks. The brunch guide also links out to a sneak peek of the new events calendar, which is a big upgrade from what we have now. Subscribers will be the first to hear when everything is live.

👉 See the full Mother's Day Brunch Guide →

Rubio is a 2-year-old Husky mix who's been at the Camarillo Animal Shelter since just before Christmas. He's recovering from hip surgery and needs a softer home, somewhere with carpet or rugs instead of hard concrete and slippery floors. Volunteers say he's shy at first but a sweetheart once he warms up.

👉 See Rubio’s full profile

Ventura County Animal Services is currently offering $0 adoption fees for all shelter pets, with a special need for adopters for large dogs.

Pets leave the shelter: Spayed/neutered, Vaccinated, Microchipped, Flea treated

A $25 licensing fee applies for county residents.

👉 Get directions to meet Rubio

Know someone looking for a great dog?

Forward this email and help Rubio find his home. 🐾

If you made it this far, you’re officially more in-the-know than most of Camarillo.

Know something we should cover? Just hit reply.
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The Camarillo Caller is a local newsletter created by Camarillo resident Gabrielle Ridgeway.