• Approximately 190 million barrels of recoverable oil reserves are estimated to remain in the area off the coast of Santa Barbara County, according to the federal Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement, which announced on July 25 that it was working with Sable Offshore Corporation to bring a second Santa […]
Caleb Wiseblood
Posted inSpecial Issues
Explore Ecology and One Cool Earth show Central Coast students the value of a garden-to-table lifestyle
Reading. Writing. Arithmetic. Cauliflower. Alongside the three Rs, growing minds are learning the ins and outs of growing food at local schools with gardening programs like Explore Ecology. “I think one of my favorite things to grow with kids is cauliflower, which may sound like one of those vegetables that a lot of times they’ve […]
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Gifford Fire scorches more than 82,000 acres east of Santa Maria
Less than a week after the Madre Fire was declared 100 percent contained, it was dethroned by the Gifford Fire as California’s largest wildfire of the year. Both wildfires impacted several areas along Highway 166, prompting evacuation warnings and orders across different parts of Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties. While the Madre Fire […]
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Santa Barbara County Planning Commission green-lights Lompoc Valley apartment project for moderate income levels
To make way for 60 apartments and 87 hotel rooms proposed for the Vandenberg Village area, Santa Barbara County needs to approve the removal of about 3 acres of chaparral—or chaparral in name only, 3rd District Planning Commissioner John Parke explained. “I guess you could call it Burton Mesa Chaparral, but it really isn’t,” Parke […]
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Political Watch: August 7, 2025
•On Aug. 4, U.S. Sens. Alex Padilla (D-California) and Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) announced the adoption of a bipartisan resolution to celebrate National Farmers Market Week (Aug. 3 through 9). The resolution recognizes the vital role that farmers markets play in bringing communities together, supporting livelihoods, and enriching the lives of millions of Americans, from farmers […]
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Santa Maria’s Central Coast Orthodontics celebrates 30th anniversary
Sunsets and cups of coffee are among the units the musical Rent suggests measuring a year in the life with. For local orthodontist Dr. Kirk Specht, the amount of patients he’s seen since opening his first office in Santa Maria helps sum up the past three decades. “It could be 6- to 8,000 maybe,” he […]
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Safety first: Caltrans increases roadwork protections for workers
The whooshing breeze of freeway traffic “whizzing by” is occasionally powerful enough to fling Caltrans workers’ hard hats from their heads, District 5 Maintenance Manager Micah Gammons said. Once while crack-sealing a stretch of U.S. 101 near King City, Gammons said that a car skidded into the construction enclosure he was working in, but no […]
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Buellton City Council overturns Planning Commission’s denial of Waldorf school project
Less than an acre in size, a vacant sliver of Dairyland Road in Buellton bookended the month of July for city officials who couldn’t agree on a private school proposed for the site. During its July 3 meeting, the Buellton Planning Commission voted on back-to-back motions for the Hundred Hills School project’s approval or denial, […]
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Guadalupe considers improving oversight on the Royal Theater project’s progress
In Guadalupe Councilmember Whitney Furness’ experience, the only way to get clear info on the Royal Theater project’s status is with “quite a bit of pointed questions,” she told the council during its July 22 meeting. The kind of questions that sparked a heated discussion between her and the multi-year renovation effort’s project manager Tom […]
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Political Watch: July 31, 2025
• On July 25, U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla (D-California), ranking member of the Senate Judiciary Immigration Subcommittee, announced legislation to expand a pathway to lawful permanent residency for millions of long-term U.S. residents, according to Padilla’s office. Section 249 of the Immigration and Nationality Act, also known as the Registry, gives the secretary of homeland […]
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Kiwanis Club of Santa Maria raises funds for youth programs through its annual Bunco Bonanza
Regardless of where the dice fall during an upcoming bunco tournament in Santa Maria, the real winners are the beneficiaries the annual event supports. Proceeds from Bunco Bonanza and other programs hosted by the Kiwanis Club of Santa Maria throughout the year benefit several local causes, scholarships, and groups, including Children’s Resource and Referral of […]
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Lompoc dissects new arrangements with chamber of commerce and TBID
Local artists, educators, and business owners were among the 40-plus public speakers who protested the Lompoc City Council’s initial decision to cut the Chamber of Commerce’s annual budget down from $108,000 to $60,000 in late June. Their efforts swayed the council to maintain the former allocation, via a newly revised contract that became the focal […]
