The Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department recently reported that they had arrested 29-year-old Matthew Lee Hill, a Lompoc Police officer, on suspicion of assault. According to a press release from department spokesperson Kelly Hoover, sheriff’s deputies assigned to the Lompoc substation responded to a call made by Vandenberg Village residents concerned about a domestic disturbance […]
RYAN MILLER
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Canine lives: Santa Barbara County Animal Services is getting reports of dog owners taking their contagious animals home without treatment
There’s one section of the Santa Maria Animal Center dedicated to sick dogs. While animals with contagious diseases are often isolated, this section of the facility has a few indications that the virus being contained is a bit more serious than most. One telltale sign? A tub of bleach and water, with which visitors must […]
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Vandenberg protester gets a rehearing
The gears of the judicial system keep turning in the case of John Dennis Apel, a local man who’s seen legal proceedings against him slowly make their way up to the U.S. Supreme Court—and now, as of Sept. 22, back down. Apel’s long legal ride most visibly began in 2003 when he threw some of […]
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Community Corner: Give back to Santa Barbara County
The 22nd annual Day of Caring event in Santa Barbara County welcomed men, women, and children who together contributed an estimated $375,000 worth of volunteer hours to a variety of local causes and organizations in 2013. This year, in advance of the 23rd annual event, United Way of Santa Barbara County announced that organizers have […]
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Community Corner – Say aloha to a new park in Nipomo
The Olde Towne Nipomo Association is inviting locals to help raise funds for the town’s future Jim O Miller Memorial Park, proposed to sit on 1 acre on the southeast corner of Tefft and Carillo streets. An inaugural luau event is set to fill the Edward’s Barn with sights, sounds, and tastes of the islands […]
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What kid’s are reading
Octopus Alone by Divya Srinivasan recommended for ages 3 to 5 Octopus is a solitary creature, more of an observer than a participant. She prefers to lurk in her cave and watch the activity unfold around her—and in her reef home, there’s plenty to see: Fish dart in and out of anemones, eels extend from […]
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The final mystery
Local author Wendelin Van Draanen talks about the end of her 18-book series and an upcoming documentary about her popular girl sleuth, Sammy Keyes
It starts with a wave. The Sammy Keyes book series opens with a girl assuring the reader she wasn’t trying to get in trouble. This about-to-be-junior-higher is merely bored on account of being trapped in the seniors-only apartment where she’s illegally living with her grandma while her mother tries to succeed in Hollywood. Due […]
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Community Corner: Camp Fire’s historic cabin gets a fresh look
Organizers of the local Camp Fire group have been intending to freshen up the building where they meet in Santa Maria’s Buena Vista Park, but a crime sped up their timetable. “A recent tagging of the building has fast forwarded our plans to paint the historical cabin,” Ken Miles, executive director of Camp Fire Central […]
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Community Corner: Drought disaster loans are still available
California is dry, which is why the U.S. Small Business Administration is offering loans to small, nonfarm businesses that have endured economic losses because of dwindling deals with farmers and other agriculture workers who themselves are financially struggling through the current drought. The SBA announced a deadline of Sept. 15, until which eligible businesses in […]
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Dry vegetation’ ups fire restrictions in Los Padres
Los Padres National Forest officials announced that effective Aug. 26 Level IV fire restrictions will be enacted throughout the forest. That means wood and charcoal fires are prohibited everywhere in Los Padres—even in sites designated for campfire use. Such sites will still allow for the operation of portable stoves and lanterns, assuming they’re not powered […]
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Man with contagious tuberculosis is at large
On Aug 22, the Santa Barbara County Public Health Department asked county residents for information on the whereabouts of Augustin Zeferino, a 24-year-old man diagnosed with contagious drug-resistant tuberculosis. He had not been located as of press time on Aug. 27. “Without proper treatment,” a press release reads, “Mr. Zeferino’s condition poses a serious health […]
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Community Corner: Restored ReStore
Habitat for Humanity operates a shop where home-builders, DIY types, and anyone working on a project from full-on construction to remodeling to some light sprucing up can find new and used building materials, fixtures, and more—but, truth be told, the physical store is a bit difficult to locate. That’s part of why volunteers are holding […]
