The final walk in a series of six community walks hosted by the city of Santa Maria Recreation and Parks Department takes place April 28 at the Santa Maria River Levee. The free walk, titled “Rollin’ on the River,” starts at 10 a.m. by the multi-purpose trail off North Preisker Lane. Upon completion of the […]
JEREMY THOMAS
Posted inMusic, Arts & Culture
‘Box Off’ to pack a punch
The Central Coast Boxing Club is holding its first-ever “Box Off” on April 28, showcasing both local and out-of-town amateur prospects. The action takes place inside the Santa Maria Athletic Club. Doors open at 6 p.m. with the first bout scheduled for 7 p.m. Presale tickets are $7; adults pay $10 at the door, and […]
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California Supreme Court stays the release of a sex offender into Santa Barbara County
Responding to an appeal by Santa Barbara County District Attorney Joyce Dudley, the California Supreme Court on April 23 issued a 60-day stay on the placement of a sexually violent predator in Santa Barbara County. Dudley said she immediately filed the appeal April 19 after the Third District Court of Appeals in Sacramento denied her […]
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Left behind
When parents get deported, what becomes of their children?
A graduate of a local high school, “Rosa” is a full-time student at Allan Hancock College, boasting a grade point average that would make fellow students blush. She has high hopes for her academic future, planning to transfer to Cal Poly next semester. At 20, Rosa—whose name has been changed to protect her identity—is the […]
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Athlete(s) of the Week
Sometimes good things come in pairs. It’s certainly true for the boys’ and girls’ basketball teams of tiny St. Mary of the Assumption School, a Catholic school in Santa Maria. Both teams—made up of sixth through eighth-graders—recently completed perfect 17-0 league seasons and won their respective Central Coast Small Schools League Championship Tournaments. According to […]
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Spotlight on: OhFancyBaby
Laura Weiting, owner
Every Earth Day, people worldwide turn their attention to finding simple ways to be a little more eco-friendly. For Orcutt mom Laura Weiting, her sensible solution was switching over from disposable to cloth diapers, and getting others to do the same. Last year, Weiting started researching the benefits of cloth diapers after finding her second […]
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Lompoc’s La Purisima Golf Course is up for sale
Yet another victim of the down economy, La Purisima Golf Course, an award-winning 18-hole championship course in Lompoc, is officially on the market with price tag of $6.25 million. Course owners have quietly searched for a buyer since last fall, but recently made the sale public to squash rumors of its imminent closure, management said. […]
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Top Santa Maria employer, C&D Zodiac Aerospace, expands its facilities
Flanked by city leaders, executives with C&D Zodiac Aerospace—one of the largest private employers in Santa Maria—announced April 12 the company is expanding into a new 82,000-square-foot building. Tony Guy, C&D Zodiac Aerospace’s vice president and general manager, said the addition of a facility on Skyway Drive comes as a result of the airplane interior […]
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Spotlight on: Nirvana Hyperbaric Institute
Roger Hunter and Kelly Schreiner, co-founders
Nirvana. In the traditional sense, the word describes a condition of liberation and healing. At the Nirvana Hyperbaric Institute in Solvang, holistic health practitioners and therapists seek to replicate that blissful state through a mixture of Eastern medicine, Western technology, and fitness. The day spa-like institute opened in 2010, and is celebrating its two-year anniversary […]
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Pulling teeth?
One of the Santa Maria’s top employers, DenMat, seems to be seeking greener pastures
Cosmetic dental manufacturer DenMat, a fixture in Santa Maria since 1974 and one of the city’s largest private employers, appears to be on the verge of leaving town—likely to Lompoc. Internal e-mails from DenMat CEO Steve Semmelmayer to employees reveal the company is in the process of introducing new product lines, necessitating a move to […]
Posted inMusic, Arts & Culture
Weighted numbers
What’s the skinny on obesity in the North County?
Are Santa Marians getting skinnier? The answer appears to be yes—if you’re to believe a Gallup-Healthways obesity survey released in March. In fact, the survey ranks Santa Maria, when combined with Santa Barbara and Goleta, as one of the “skinniest” metro areas in the country for 2011. At 16.4 percent, the region is the fifth-least […]
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Pesticide manufacturer pulls strawberry fumigant from U.S. markets
After years of pressure from environmental groups, Tokyo-based pesticide manufacturer Arysta LifeScience agreed on March 20 to yank a controversial strawberry pesticide containing methyl iodide out of the American market. “This is a tremendous victory, where scientific integrity has outweighed pesticide industry pull when it comes to food and farming,” Paul Towers, spokesman for the […]