Ventura County

County in southwest California; area 4,823 sq km/1,862 sq mi; population (1990) 669,000. It is located to the northwest of Los Angeles, in the Transverse Ranges, on the Pacific Ocean. Important cities include Ventura, the county's administrative headquarters, Oxnard, Camarillo, Thousand Oaks, Simi Valley, Moorpark, and Santa Paula. The northern half of the county lies in the Los Padres National Forest. In the south, citrus orchards, oilfields, and military installations compete with the demand for residential development overflowing from Los Angeles and the San Fernando Valley to the southeast.