When I went off to college, I moved into the dorms, met a lot of new people, and pigged out on all-you-can-eat cafeteria food. I was living the dream. A few weeks later, I got a call from my parents. They wanted to know about my classes and my new friends—it was pretty standard stuff—until […]
RHYS HEYDEN
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Compton v. Ray: What’s next for the women running for 4th District SLO County supervisor
Coming into the June 3 primary election, the race for the District 4 seat on the San Luis Obispo County Board of Supervisors was an important, expensive enigma. Despite more than $400,000 in total campaign contributions, six public forums, and significant media attention, nobody really knew how Lynn Compton, Caren Ray, or Mike Byrd would […]
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Compton gets the edge on Ray in District 4
In San Luis Obispo County’s District 4—which includes Arroyo Grande, Oceano, Nipomo, and rural areas along Highway 166—the two mainstream supervisorial candidates made a strong statement as the professed “outsider” candidate faded away. The race for what many locals consider to be the “swing seat” on the SLO County Board of Supervisors has been contentious […]
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Three for 4: Meet the candidates vying for the crucial District 4 seat on the SLO County Board of Supervisors
This race was never supposed to happen. San Luis Obispo County’s 4th District—which includes Arroyo Grande, Oceano, Nipomo, and small communities along Highway 166—was firmly in the grasp of Supervisor Paul Teixeira. Like Katcho Achadjian before him, Teixeira was a beloved South County moderate Republican who represented his district with folksy aplomb. It was widely […]
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A lawsuit and dust-control measures aim to end the Oceano Dunes status quo
Sand dunes are complicated, unstable, constantly shifting, and abrasive—a delight to some, and a nuisance to others. Fittingly, all of those adjectives are equally suitable for describing the years-long dispute over the regulation of the Oceano Dunes State Vehicular Recreation Area. At the heart of the debate is a coarse, airborne dust called PM10 (particulate […]
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Accused Santa Maria bank robber dies in motor home wreck
Less than three months ago, Arthur “Clay” Watkins, 56, was a licensed marriage and family therapist in Arroyo Grande, a former president of the local Rotary Club, and a father of two young children. In the time since then, however, Watkins allegedly robbed a Santa Maria bank, was charged with seven felonies, spent more than […]
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Twin Cal Poly studies aim to change the fitness status quo of pregnancies
Read more about the Healthy Beginnings study (.pdf). Cori Meichtry is a mother of two and a longtime middle school teacher for the Lucia Mar Unified School District. You can imagine that when it comes to managing kids, she’s pretty confident. When Meichtry became pregnant with her third child, her doctor asked her and her […]
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Phillips 66 rail spur critics speak out at workshop
As oil giant Phillips 66 barrels forward with a fast-tracked proposal to ship oil by train through San Luis Obispo County, local citizens had their first formal opportunity to criticize the plan at a Dec. 12 workshop. At a cafeteria-cum-auditorium in Arroyo Grande’s Mesa Middle School—with a glittering disco ball and prominent “Tom Sawyer” banner […]
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Residents from Arroyo Grande and Santa Maria are arrested for a bizarre bank robbery
Arthur McClay Watkins, 55, is a licensed marriage and family therapist, a former president of the Arroyo Grande Rotary Club, a father of two young children, and—as of Nov. 16—an alleged bank robber. Police say Watkins, wearing a ski mask and brandishing a handgun, robbed the Wells Fargo Bank on East Main Street in Santa […]
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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 […]
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Fight allegedly leads to a felony fire at a Nipomo residence
What started as an otherwise normal fight between a Nipomo resident and his ex-girlfriend allegedly turned felonious, according to court records recently obtained by the Sun. According to an affidavit, on June 1 of this year, then-20-year-old Kailey Lind Chillinsky of San Luis Obispo confronted her ex-boyfriend at his workplace in Pismo Beach. The affidavit […]
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Gliding over all: Camp Roberts plays host to drones, defense contractors, and bevy of tech experiments
Locals who know nothing about unmanned drones beyond what they read in international headlines may soon be getting a closer look at the infamous flying contraptions. The Santa Maria Airport recently entered into a teaming agreement with two other airports that are applying to be a drone test site for the Federal Aviation Administration. That […]