The Santa Maria City Council voted 4-1 on April 21 to raise water and sewer rates 5 percent annually for the next three years. The increase goes with the flow set by the city over the past 30 years, which have seen annual rate hikes of 5 percent. Starting on July 1, single-family households will […]
SEAN MCNULTY
Posted inMusic, Arts & Culture
Cameron Rea
On April 22, gymnast Cameron Rea signed to join Southern California United, an association that offers NCAA level training and competition for collegiate gymnastics. He plans to attend Allan Hancock College and eventually transfer to a CSU. He signed the pledge at KT’s All Star Gymnastics in the Santa Maria Town Center Mall. David Eckenrode, […]
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Blake Jaekels
St. Joseph High School
Blake Jaekels, a junior at St. Joseph High School, runs track to cross-train for the football season, where he starts as quarterback for the Knights. His goals for the upcoming season are to throw more than 2,000 yards and to rush 1,000 yards. “I’m trying to work on my speed,” he told the Sun. “It’s […]
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Olive Grove submits appeal to the state Board of Education
Olive Grove Charter School submitted an appeal to the California Board of Education in a bid to keep four of its campuses open. The Olive Grove team will travel to Sacramento for a hearing before the board in early July. The appeal is the latest trial for the charter school program, which the Los Olivos […]
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Lucia Mar teachers ratify the new contract, averting a strike
The Lucia Mar Unified School District’s teachers union ended a year of contentious negotiations and averted a potential strike by finally approving a two-year contract with the district the week of April 16. The district struck a relieved tone in a press release, hailing the ratification as “welcome news” and congratulating the union “for bringing […]
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Spice problems: Guadalupe City Council recently outlawed the possession of synthetic cannabinoids, but how dangerous are they, exactly?
Police officers see a juvenile in a small alleyway of a residential neighborhood in Guadalupe. Thinking he might be tagging, they stop to check for vandalism. The young man isn’t vandalizing property, but he isn’t complying with their instructions, either. He is sweaty, agitated, and strangely aggressive with the officers. In the weirdly flat language […]
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Lucia Mar reaches a tentative agreement with teachers
The Lucia Mar Unified School District reached a tentative agreement with the Lucia Mar Unified Teachers Association on April 8 in an effort to avoid a teachers strike. The agreement is for a 6 percent raise in teachers’ salaries over the next three years. Before the agreement is finalized, it’s subject to ratification by the […]
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Alec DeLeon
Alec DeLeon, a senior at Ernest Righetti High School, is a stalwart of the middle- and long-distance squads on the Warriors’ track team. He can run a mile in 4:26. His record for the 400-meter hovers slightly above 50 seconds. At the outset of his running career, however, DeLeon was not a distance runner. “I […]
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12-year-old video game prodigy preps for international Street Fighter tournament
One of the best Street Fighter IV players on the planet is a 12-year-old who lives in Lompoc. Noah Solis, who isn’t in middle school yet, will travel to Las Vegas this summer for an international tournament with thousands of dollars in prize money on the line. He plays for Empire Arcadia, celebrated by the […]
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Olive Grove’s charter struggles continue
Santa Barbara county’s Board of Education denies a charter school’s appeal, pushing the decision to the state level
The Santa Barbara County Board of Education unanimously voted on April 2 to block an appealed charter petition filed by a group of parents and teachers from Olive Grove Charter School. The vote aligned with with the county Office of Education’s staff recommendation that the Cuyama Unified School District’s Feb. 19 denial of the petition […]
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Lucia Mar teacher’s association authorizes strike
The Lucia Mar Unified Teacher’s Association (LMUTA) voted to authorize a strike on March 26 in the midst of deadlocked salary negotiations with the district. The vote enables the union’s executive board to call a strike if a settlement with the school district isn’t reached during the next mediation session and the district opts to […]
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Trick-less speed: Santa Maria BMX racing is alive and well
Ben Pirkl, operator of the Santa Maria BMX track that’s tucked away at the Elks Events Center, did not grow up loving BMX. His interest in the sport began when his kids built a jump ramp outside of his house and started riding their bikes off of it. “Took them out to the track and […]
