INTERVIEWER: What’s your background as a Venturan?
JACK SELBY: Okay, so I have been in Ventura my whole life. I am a sixth generation Ventura family, so we have been here for quite a while. I had three straight generations of district attorneys in my family, so yeah, we have been here for a while and I love the town.
INTERVIEWER: Which measure on the ballot are you most passionate about and why should students and their families also support it?
SELBY: Yes, they should be able to issue bonds and make the school system better. For Measure A, which is for Oxnard School District to have $3 million at three cents to the hundred dollar that they would profit. But yes, I support Measure A for Oxnard School District.
INTERVIEWER: Two state propositions that would likely prove to be significantly impactful if passed in the election are Prop 2 and Prop 12. Do you support either, both, or neither of these measures? Why?
SELBY: Prop 12. I would support that one, and for Prop. 2 as well. They both sound pretty good
INTERVIEWER: How do you plan to strengthen the partnership between the school district and the city, and involve more students in local government?
SELBY: I think that the local government should not seem so far fetched as it is now. I think that kids our age should be able to run for positions in the local council. I think that to a kid, it seems like a very hard and unachievable thing to do because it seems so far away. But it is actually not very hard at all—all you need to do is get 20 signatures on a piece of paper.
INTERVIEWER: What do you think is the most pressing issue facing our city today and how can it be addressed?
SELBY: So I would say that we need more high density, low income housing for people over near Main Street. It would stimulate the local economy and I also think that demographics of the average Venturan are pretty old. And we need to boost the economy by allowing this new generation in, because it is very expensive to live here.
INTERVIEWER: Our City Council representatives should embody the values closest to our hearts, because these values will guide their decisions in office; they should also act as leaders not only on Monday nights in City Hall but throughout their term in their interactions with the community. What values do you embody, and how do you act as a role model for the youth of Ventura?
SELBY: One way that I would like to lead by example is by being very proactive and trying to go and get your passion and that it is very important—that kids have dreams and aspirations and they go and are driven to pursue whatever makes them happy. And I think that it is shocking to a lot of people that a 19-year-old kid would want to run for City Council and that it would be good for the younger generation to look up to that and think that it is possible.
