‘Pathways’ to celebrate CEDC, Fernandez with Saturday festival
June 03, 2011
By Peggy Kelly
Santa Paula City Council
Recognizing 30 years of the county’s most active affordable housing provider will also double as a way to celebrate a Santa Paula activist Saturday at Plaza Park in Oxnard.
At recent meeting Bernardo Perez of Cabrillo Economic Development Corporation invited the City Council to the June 4 “Pathways to Peace and Prosperity” event to be held at Plaza Park, 545 S. “A” St. from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. The event will also serve as a celebration of the contributions of Santa Paula resident Rodney Fernandez, a CEDC founder and executive director who is soon retiring.
Perez told the council the event is planned to celebrate “the commitment to communities we serve including Santa Paula,” while providing opportunities for attendees to “get connected” with a series of service providers and “engage in partnerships” at a Community Resource Fair. Food, art, games and other activities for children as well as live musical entertainment will also be featured at the free event. Interface Children Family Services, which operates the Santa Paula Family Resource Center, will also participate.
Perez said one element of Pathways is the community services advocacy and community organizing to work on critical issues as well as present such information in a “dynamic and interconnected” format. The second road on Pathways is education that Perez is a family effort, including planning for academic success and utilization of educational resources.
“Another highlight of the day is to celebrate 30 years” of CEDC leadership provided by Fernandez, who “as you know is an active participant in the Santa Paula community.”
Perez also told the council that Paseo Santa Barbara, located just west of Dean Drive, is at 50 percent completion and is expected to have full occupancy of 90 families by the end of the year. “It’s great this has become a reality,” and Perez said the development will benefit the entire community.
Several councilmen have toured the site, and Perez invited the others to arrange a visit to the construction site. “It’s coming together” and an attractive project, noted Mayor Fred Robinson.
“It is moving along rather nicely and we’ll see how it progresses,” said Councilman Ralph Fernandez. “It’s an important project for the council to see how it progresses,” which will help “gauge the future” of such developments.
CEDC, said Vice Mayor Bob Gonzales, “has done some great things,” and Paseo Santa Barbara is a “benchmark.”
For more information on Saturday’s “Pathways to Peace and Prosperity” call 659-3791 ext. 129.
