Cover Story
Clued in: The escape room craze finds a home on the Central Coast
The nighttime forest hum of crickets and frogs, sometimes punctuated by a distant wolf howl, fills the wood-paneled cabin room. Lined with locked boxes, tables with drawers, a pot-bellied stove, a bed, and frontiersman accoutrements, the only modern feature to the room is a keypad-locked door. This isn’t the California wilderness of the late 1800s,…
Political Watch 10/25/18
• After the U.S. Department of Justice announced the indictment of Russian national Elena Alekseevna Khusyaynova for interfering in the 2018 midterm elections, Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-California) released a statement, saying it was “yet another example of ongoing Russian efforts to interfere in our electoral process.” “Russia continues to use social media platforms like Facebook…
Hobnobbing with Helen: A socially satisfying October
It was impossible not to have a good time at the Boys & Girls Clubs’ annual Celebrity Waiter’s Night on Oct. 18 at the Santa Maria Country Club. This was a high-octane event, positively oozing with energy and excitement. The fundraiser attracted 225 enthusiastic friends and supporters and included some in costume. You had to…
Scary thoughts
I’ve said before that the truth hurts, but sometimes it’s downright chilling. Take the report released by the Santa Barbara County Office of Emergency Management (OEM) about the county’s response to the Thomas Fire and Montecito mudslides (see page 7). The county’s own report recommended improved evacuation plans, more public outreach via social media and…
Viet Kitchen brings traditional Vietnamese food to Santa Maria
Santa Maria just got something it really needs–a new Vietnamese restaurant. The recently opened Viet Kitchen on Skyway Drive is just what Santa Marians on the south side of town need, and from what I can tell, really want. Vietnamese cuisine is some of the world’s best comfort food, and the restaurant is off to…
Allan Hancock College singers reunite with San Luis Chamber Orchestra for Beethoven’s Mass in C
In the second half of the Gloria movement of Ludwig van Beethoven’s “Mass in C Major,” there’s a massive build and rising unison sung among the choir on the words, “quoniam tu solus sanctus,” or, “for thou alone are holy.” As soon as the cadence comes to a rest, the bass players fly out of…
Lompoc Civic Theatre tackles mortality and love in On Golden Pond
From the moment you set foot inside the Ellery Room at Lompoc’s Mission Club, it’s clear something is very special about this latest Lompoc Civic Theatre production. On Oct. 27 and Nov. 3, the theater group presents a dinner theater production of On Golden Pond, the classic 1979 play written by Ernest Thompson. The play…
Nancy Jo Ward debuts solo show at Ann Foxworthy Gallery
On the day Nancy Jo Ward is interviewed by the Sun, she is busy experimenting with yet another technique in her digital art making. “It’s called a pastel ground,” she said. “It’s like a clear medium that has sand in it. I’m adding it to an aluminum print because I want to see what happens…
‘The Patch’ offers fall fun and education opportunities for local students
It was last school year in May when Hannah Limon first attended a work day devoted to developing Santa Maria’s first ever pumpkin patch. Limon, a student at Pioneer Valley High School, had heard a lot about the program from one of her agriculture teachers–about how participants would learn to grow and harvest pumpkins and…
Spotlight on: Treetop Yoga
For Nicole Lowe, owner and lead instructor at Santa Maria’s Treetop Yoga, a seventh year anniversary is an occasion to take in stride. The studio celebrated the milestone in mid October by hosting a series of free classes that include yoga sessions for all ages and skill levels. “It was neat to kind of have…
What went wrong: Santa Barbara County analyzes action during Thomas Fire and 1/9 Debris Flow
For a brief stretch of time spanning December 2017 to January 2018, Santa Barbara County was synonymous with the word “disaster.” First, the Thomas Fire in December scorched hundreds of thousands of acres of federal, state, county, and private land, becoming one of the largest fires in California’s recorded history. Barely a month after the…
Lompoc to spend nearly a half million on riverbed cleanup
The Lompoc City Council approved a $400,000 contract on Oct. 16 with a company tasked with cleaning the Santa Ynez Riverbed, which is filled with several tons of trash left by recently removed homeless encampments. The city has been working with Qwikresponse, a Southern California-based company that specializes in hazardous and biohazardous materials removal, since…
Solvang opts to allow only one medical dispensary
Tempers flared to close a Solvang City Council meeting on Oct. 22 when the topic of cannabis came up on the night’s agenda. The issue at hand? How many medical marijuana dispensaries should be allowed within city limits. “I’ve talked to many constituents that are totally opposed to a dispensary [in town], period,” Mayor Jim…
Bookworm hosts former local columnist
Author Steve Corbett, a former local journalist, will appear at The Bookworm in Santa Maria on Nov. 3. Corbett will present a reading from his new book, Blood Red Syrah, a thriller based in Central Coast wine country. In Corbett’s novel, killer Wally Wilson fights with “Syrah,” a voice in his head that sends him…
SYV Historical Museum presents 34th annual Vaquero Show
The Vaquero Show and Western collectible sale, presented by Santa Ynez Valley Historical Museum (SYVHM), is set to take place Nov. 9 through 11. The event, now in its 34th year, honors the lifestyle, culture, and horsemanship of the California vaquero. The vaquero lifestyle evolved into a specific style of apparel, tack, saddles, and other…
PCPA resident artist expands engagement
Pacific Conservatory Theatre (PCPA) announced Kitty Balay, resident artist, has expanded her engagement with the group. Balay has appeared in more than 80 productions and teaches Voice and Speech within in the conservatory, and will now also serve as the conservatory’s director of engagement. According to a release from PCPA, the actress, director, and teacher…
Support Measure Y
I have no artistic ability except for my talent at drawing “stick people,” but I can recognize what art brings to our community. I’ve seen the studies about how exercising that portion of our brain only enhances our other cognitive abilities in math and the sciences. I read the articles and watched other communities who…
Thanks for coming to AirFest
I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who helped make the first annual Central Coast AirFest such a tremendous success. We were thrilled to be able to bring back a major airshow to the Central Coast after an absence of several years. Obviously, an undertaking of this nature does not happen without…
We need more jobs
As a small business owner, I have experienced firsthand how difficult it is to run a business on the Central Coast. But the cost of running a business here is only part of the problem. The other problem is how incredibly expensive it is to live in the Central Coast where few good-paying jobs exist.…
Reply to ‘Lowering the bar’
I agree with Libby Breen (“Lowering the bar,” Oct. 11) in her letter to the Sun: “Drain the swamp. Vote.” However, I do not agree with the rest of the comments in the letter. What ever happened to “innocent until proven guilty?” As it turns out, there was no evidence against Kavanaugh, except the testimony…
Enough faux outrage
Poor Libby Breen is upset with the Kavanaugh confirmation (“Lowering the bar,” Oct. 11). If only the Dems sent their evidence to the FBI in June so a thorough investigation could’ve been completed. If only the Dems hadn’t falsely targeted someone with salacious accusations. If only you worried about Dems the same like Bill Clinton…
Innocent until proven guilty
Ms. Breen stated in the Sun that we are “lowering the bar” (“Lowering the bar,” Oct. 11). You must have been present at the party because you seem to have some information that the rest of us don’t have. Several people that Ms. Ford said were there denied ever being at this party. For me,…
Vote yes on Measure U
As Election Day nears, I frequently hear use of the words “quality of life” For me, quality of life is what I have because of living in the caring city of Santa Maria for more than 60 years, raising a well-adjusted family here, owning a business here for more than 45 years, and always being…
Lompoc, vote ‘no’ on Measure E
Lightning does strike the same place twice. Yes, it does at the Lompoc Unified School District’s board (LUSD), who have placed on the Nov. 6 ballot a requirement for a new school bond for the third time in two years. This bond is designated E2018 on the ballot and is for $79 million to be…
Morgan Krause
On the volleyball court, Pioneer Valley High School senior Morgan Krause knows how to block the competition. As a tall player with a lot of energy, Krause has climbed her way to the top of the Ocean League, where she’s No. 1 in blocks, said head coach Nikki Doyle. The job of a middle blocker…
Chumash announce plans for new museum and cultural center
After decades of work and various delays, the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians recently announced plans to begin construction on a cultural center and museum by the end of this year. Tribal leadership and staff, architects, and designers gathered on Oct. 22 at the reservation’s Tribal Hall to present plans for the tribe’s Santa…
Pacific Pride says Needle Exchange Program not bringing drug addicts near kids
A social media post and a TV news segment pushed the Pacific Pride Foundation’s Needle Exchange Program, which involves a small van delivering clean needles to drug addicts, into the spotlight the week of Oct. 16. Quoting a single Facebook post, Santa Barbara-based KEYT reported on Oct. 18 that residents in Lompoc were concerned about…
