Cover Story
Santa Maria Energy project is approved with an emissions caveat
Santa Maria Energy finally received a green light to go ahead with its well expansion project, but it comes with a price that might make the project economically unfeasible. The price the energy company will pay for the project—should it become a reality—is in the form of emissions. After months of discussion over what should…
What’s your favorite photograph?
Gerri Clemens retired “Back in South Dakota, before I went into the military, I was up on a hill with my family, and I lived near the Missouri River, and the hues of pink and yellow reflecting off the river … it was just magnificent.” Shane Jackson self-employed “It’s called A Psychotic Mind. … It’s…
Pioneer Valley High School students learn from seasoned record producers at the Grammy Museum in Los Angeles
In the age of hip hop, the producer is king. A producer is tasked with creating the music a rapper will rhyme over, whether the artist is recording all live instruments or sampling from other songs. Four Pioneer Valley High School (PVHS) students have been following their passion for sound recording and music with the…
Can you hear me now?
My wife has an iPhone. This little miracle of technology can accomplish about a thousand different things and still fit in your pocket. But my wife’s particular iPhone, it isn’t used for a thousand things. It isn’t even used for 10 things. It actually only exists to do two things. Its most important job is…
More than a coat of paint: PCPA Theaterfest’s Marian Theatre renovation is complete
Construction sounds emanated from on, above, and below the stage of the Marian Theatre on Oct. 28 as PCPA Theaterfest artistic director Mark Booher led several members of the press through the nearly completed building. “It really is amazing,” he said. “I think people might ask, ‘How could you have spent $5 million on this…
Los Flores Ranch gets new hours
The City of Santa Maria Recreation and Parks Department, which oversees Los Flores Ranch Park, has released the winter hours for the park now that Pacific Standard Time has returned. The park is open Thursdays through Sundays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. with entry into the park ending at 4 p.m. The last chance…
Getting creative at Michaels
Michael’s offers several arts and crafts events for kids including a “Kids Club Winter Wonderland Snow Globe” event on Nov. 9 from 10 a.m. to noon for $2, including supplies. A “Kids Club Rudy the Reindeer Ornament” event is Nov. 16 from 10 a.m. to noon. Cost is $2 for supplies. Michaels is at 1934…
Attention young musicians: Santa Maria Philharmonic Society is holding auditions
The Santa Maria Philharmonic Society has announced the audition date for the third annual “Youth Showcase” recital event. The final concert will be on Jan. 19, but the audition will be held Dec. 7 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Unity Chapel of Light, 1165 Stubblefield Road, Orcutt. The “Youth Showcase” event is for…
Santa Maria-style barbecue makes Aussie TV
One of Australia’s top-rated morning television shows recently made a stop on the Central Coast to highlight some of the area’s iconic cuisine. Sunrise filmed a spot at Casmalia’s Hitching Post restaurant and interviewed Chef Phil Meza about the specific barbecue style for a part of the series titled “The Original Road Trip.” The stop…
Known overnight: Local screenwriting duo secures prestigious fellowship
From the moment the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced the winners of the 2013 Academy Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting competition a couple of weeks ago, the lives of several screenwriters changed forever. One screenwriting duo based in Santa Ynez made the cut for Legion, a script by Frank DeJohn and David Hedges.…
Crazy for cupcakes: Get your fix from Goodie Godmother and Willow
Twenty-two-year old Estephanie Diaz was born to bake. The pastry chef at the new Willow restaurant in Nipomo is young, but she’s had many good teachers over the years. Growing up in the Santa Maria Valley, the daughter of a former hotel pastry maker, Diaz also watched her uncle at work in his Tan Top…
Special Olympics need support
Support Special Olympics of Northern Santa Barbara County at this year’s law enforcement torch run and crab feed on Nov. 22. Open to all ages, the event will feature all-you-can-eat snow crab, live entertainment, and a silent auction. The event kicks off at 6 p.m. at the Veterans Memorial Community Center, 313 W. Tunnell St.…
Bid like a warrior: Silent auction supports Righetti High School athletics
Support Righetti High School athletics by joining the Warriors for an auction and dinner/dance on Saturday, Nov. 23, at the Radisson Hotel in Santa Maria. The event begins with no-host cocktails and a silent auction at 5 p.m., followed by dinner at 7 p.m. The dancing goes from 8 p.m. until midnight. Tickets cost $50…
Dune adventures
Join the Guadalupe Dunes Center for a leisurely two-mile walk through the Pismo Dunes. Learn about the various habitats and animals; the hike departs at 10 a.m. from the Grand Avenue beach entrance on Nov. 10. More info: dunescenter.org.
Jordan Jantzen
Jordan Jantzen is truly a Renaissance gentleman, although a very young one. He was quite precise when he said he’s 15-1/2 years old, and that precision is what’s garnered him tremendous respect in local soccer circles. That’s because he’s not just a first-rate soccer player, he’s also a highly respected coach and referee for Arroyo…
Live at the Game keeps Central Coast football fans up to date
Central Coast football fans are staying on top of their favorite local teams despite not being able to hit every game, with help from the innovative Live at the Game mobile app. The grassroots media organization, funded by Gold Coast Toyota dealer and now in its third year of operation, provides a constant stream of…
Look forward to downtown
There has been a lot of discussion recently regarding the Downtown Specific Plan. Certainly the Towbes Group’s Hancock Terrace Apartments on East Boone (a project that will add 262 new units at a site that was previously industrial) at a cost of $40 million and the purchase of the vacant Mervyns retail space by National…
Unintentional scare: Stop bee deaths
I decorate extensively for Halloween. For the first time, I used Halloween spider web, the white “stretchy stuff.” I was horrified when I took it down and discovered several honeybees in the web. Please do not use this product. We have few enough bees to pollinate our local crops.
Have you tried drinking a cup of coffee?
Break out the bran. Pour out some prune juice. Find some fiber. We’ve got major case of blockage here, and it’s going to take some serious effort to get it moving. Actually, truth be told, we’ve got a lot of blockages—not just one. I’m in a mood to get things flowing ever since I read…
Mobile clinic meets medical needs at Delta High
Delta High School is now getting regular doses of medical compassion from a mobile health clinic on campus during the second and fourth Tuesdays of every month. Community Health Center’s Community Health Outreach Program started the mobile service at the end of September and has examined more than 30 students since. It’s a service that’s…
Santa Barbara County superintendent wins state award
William Cirone, superintendent of the Santa Barbara County Education Office, received the 2013 Ferd. J. Kiesel Memorial Distinguished Service Award from the Association of California School Administrators. The Ferd J. Kiesel award is the highest honor the association can present to an individual, and it’s made in the memory of the association’s founding president. Educators…
Guadalupe students vow to be drug free
Red Ribbon Week swung into Kermit McKenzie Junior High School and Mary Buren Elementary School with a red whoosh on Oct. 28, and Guadalupe’s students dutifully donned their red ribbons and embraced the week with pledges and promises for the future. More than 1,200 Guadalupe students participated in activities, wore ribbons, and listened to testimonials…
Spotlight on: Bardi and Associates Real Estate
An often hinted at rule in business is to never work with your spouse. Work life and home life can blend together, and there’s no getting away from the office at home, nor heading off to work just to get out of the house. But some rules are meant to be broken by those capable…
Community Notebook 11/7-11/14
MONDAY, NOV. 11 • The Santa Maria City Block Grants Advisory Committee has its regular meeting at 5:30 p.m. in the City Hall Conference Room, 110 E. Cook St., Santa Maria. TUESDAY, NOV. 12 • The Solvang City Council has its regular meeting at 7 p.m. in City Council Chambers, 1644 Oak Street, Solvang.…
Community Corner: A hundred-turkey donation kicks off the Foodbank’s annual turkey drive
Stu and Jan Bartleson helped jump-start the Foodbank of Santa Barbara County’s annual turkey drive by donating 100 frozen turkeys during the big kick-off event in Santa Maria on Nov. 1. The Bartlesons weren’t the only givers who boosted the beginning of the turkey drive; Marlena and Matt Walker of Walker and Associates chipped in,…
Competency gap: Santa Maria High School tackles the chasm between community and school with cultural proficiency
Test scores, grades, and all the rest of the numbers that make up a school’s academic success rubric often overshadow the human side of education—which are the relationships and ensuing collaboration between parents, the community, the faculty, staff, and the school district that enable a student to be successful. Those relationships are strained at Santa…
Religious watchdog sues Pismo Beach
They’ve been agitated for years, and now a coalition of individuals and organizations who object to Pismo Beach’s brand of public prayer has filed an extensive, strongly worded lawsuit in San Luis Obispo County Superior Court. The Freedom From Religion Foundation, a Wisconsin-based nonprofit, is the official name on the suit, with Dr. Sari Dworkin—a…
Arson victims vacate Minami Shelter
On Nov. 1, the city of Santa Maria closed the Minami Community Center sheltering operation that had opened to help residents displaced by the Oct. 12 Town Center Inn fire—but the closure only came after leaders came up with a contingency plan for those residents who didn’t have anywhere else to go. Although a little…
Guadalupe deals with a sewer line failure
Worst-case scenario: The city of Guadalupe’s sewer line burst. Best-case scenario: It’s only blocked—badly. To find out what the issue actually is, the city has to bore under five sets of railroad tracks to take a look because it’s exhausted all the other options. On Oct. 30, Guadalupe experienced a failure of its main gravity-fed…
Santa Barbara County responds to the Chumash fee-to-trust legislation and application
Santa Barbara County leaders officially penned their opposition to the recently proposed legislation to allow the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians to annex its Camp 4 property and the fee-to-trust application the tribe filed with the Bureau of Indian Affairs regarding the same property. The Board of Supervisors wrote letters to Congressman Doug LaMalfa…
