The Land Conservancy of San Luis Obispo County is inviting volunteers to give thanks this Thanksgiving season by helping to plant 500 native shrubs and plants at the Black Lake Ecological Area in Nipomo. On Nov. 22, from 9 a.m. to noon, Land Conservancy staffers, members, and volunteers will plant native flora as part of […]
AMY ASMAN
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Santa Maria: This is only a test
The city of Santa Maria will conduct a citywide call on Nov. 24 at 10 a.m. to test its emergency alert notification system, which allows city officials to record and send personalized voice messages to thousands of residents and businesses through a single phone call. According to a press release from the city, the goal […]
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Police issue hundreds of citations during weekend checkpoint
The Santa Maria Police Department’s traffic bureau was busy on Nov. 15 and 16, conducting two Driving Under the Influence (DUI) checkpoints and a driver’s license checkpoint. The first DUI checkpoint took place on Nov. 15, from 5 p.m. to 1 a.m., at the intersection of Main Street and Western Avenue, and later moved to […]
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‘King of Pop’ gives up his castle
Pop star Michael Jackson recently sold his Santa Ynez ranch, Neverland, transferring the property deed to the Sycamore Valley Ranch Co. LLC. The singer filed a grant deed on the ranch on Nov. 10, according to documents posted on the Santa Barbara County clerk-recorder website, sbcrecorder.com. Jackson went into default on a $24.5 million loan […]
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Gap Fire arson suspect arrested
Progress has been made on determining the cause of another recent fire. On Nov. 17, U.S. Forest Service and Santa Barbara County Fire Department investigators announced that they had arrested a suspect believed to be responsible for starting the Gap Fire. As of press time, the 16-year-old suspect was in custody at the Santa Barbara […]
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Tea fire contained, believed to be ‘human-caused’
South Santa Barbara County’s Tea Fire is now totally contained, but the cause of the blaze, which destroyed 210 Santa Barbara residences and injured 25 people, remains under investigation. On Nov. 17, a joint investigation team made up of staff members from the Santa Barbara County Fire Department, Cal Fire, and the U.S. Forest Service […]
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From Broadway to Broadway
One Sun reporter tracks a musical star from his PCPA roots to his stay on the Great White Way
When the Sun’s ode to geekdom, “Let your geek flag fly,” hit stands in July, we reveled in the chance to gush about our favorite sci-fi and fantasy obsessions. In describing fantasized outer space adventures or wizarding world fixations, that issue pretty much announced to the greater Santa Maria area that the Sun’s editorial staff […]
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Santa Maria Public Library tech team wins city’s GEM award
The Information Technology Division team at the new Santa Maria Public Library was recently named Santa Maria’s Going the Extra Mile (GEM) Award winner for the third quarter of 2008. The award recognized the team’s ability under deadline pressure to install a fully functioning computer network at the library. Team members honored include Teri Maa, […]
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Join a public hearing to discuss Union Valley Parkway
Community members interested in discussing the future Union Valley Parkway project are invited to a public hearing to be held on Nov. 19 at the Santa Maria City Council Chambers, 110 E. Cook St., at 6:30 p.m. The Santa Maria City Planning Commission will host the meeting, and will also consider making recommendations to the […]
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Local Circuit City branch is closing its doors
On Nov. 11, technology chain Circuit City announced that it’s filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. On top of that, the chain said it will close approximately 20 percent—about 155—of its more than 700 stores in the United States by Dec. 31. Santa Maria’s Circuit City, located at 1535 South Bradley Road, is scheduled to close, […]
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City of Santa Maria eyes a new location for the police department
The Santa Maria Police Department is about to get an upgrade. The city recently announced that escrow is expected to close in mid-November on land and a building on West Betteravia Road, near the intersection of Blosser and Betteravia roads. In a release to the media, Santa Maria City Manager Tim Ness said that the […]
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Local complaints of voter fraud link to a statewide investigation
Election Day may be over, but trust in the political process could be slow in returning for some Central Coast residents. When Lompoc resident Carolyn Garrett was asked to sign a petition strengthening sentencing for child molesters in October, she never imagined what would happen next. “I got a call from the Republic National Convention […]