The Santa Barbara County Planning Commission voted 4-0 (with 5th District Commissioner Vincent Martinez absent) during its May 8 meeting to push its decision on a cannabis cultivation project near Buellton to July 10 so the project could further analyze odor, viewshed, and other environmental impacts. “I’m very cognizant, because I’ve been in the middle […]
Taylor O'Connor
Posted inNews
Santa Barbara County Food Action Network offers microgrant program for those looking to innovate the food system
Shakira Miracle wants people to dream big when applying for the Santa Barbara County Food Action Network’s Food Justice Microgrant. “What I find so shocking and yet crystal clear is that we have lost the ability to dream, to be able to imagine, to have space held so we can think outside the box and […]
Posted inNews
Santa Maria Firefighters advocate for Measure U to fund salary increases
Santa Maria Firefighters Local 2020 members planned to attend the May 21 City Council preliminary budget meeting to advocate that the city use its Measure U funds to increase firefighter salaries, Local 2020 Public Information Officer Chris Robles told the Sun. “Our position is that it’s a matter of priorities,” Robles said. “It doesn’t take […]
Posted inNews
Central Coast native joins the Boys and Girls Clubs of Mid Central Coast as new CEO
After being away for more than 10 years, Maria Fabula made her way back home to the Central Coast by joining the local Boys and Girls Club team as its new chief executive officer. “There’s nowhere quite similar in the world to San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara. We’ve always been drawn to this area,” […]
Posted inNews
Santa Maria, Vernon Group negotiate development agreement for downtown
Santa Maria city staff is working on an agreement with the Vernon Group to move forward with developing four city-owned parcels, a big step toward realizing the city’s Downtown Revitalization Plan. “This is the hardest part. This is moving beyond the planning efforts into implementation and getting stuff built,” Assistant City Manager Chuen Wu told […]
Posted inNews
Santa Barbara County supervisors move forward with hybrid cannabis tax
A new cannabis tax ordinance cleared another hurdle to make the November ballot after the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors voted 4-1, with 5th District Supervisor Steve Lavagnino dissenting, to move forward with proposing a hybrid tax that considers gross receipts and a base square footage tax. Currently the county uses a gross receipts […]
Posted inNews
Housing headway: County supervisors approve rezoned sites in largest Housing Element in history, with several sites identified in Orcutt
The Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors closed the yearslong Housing Element process by rezoning several sites to make way for the needed units. “This wasn’t something that happened overnight; this was two, three years in the making,” 4th District Supervisor Bob Nelson told the Sun on May 2. “I want to make sure that […]
Posted inNews
County Planning Commission expresses concern about moving climate goals
The Santa Barbara County Planning Commission unanimously approved new greenhouse gas emissions thresholds in the county’s Energy Element to meet its Climate Action Plan goals. However, several commissioners shared concerns about frequently changing the metrics. The 2030 Climate Action Plan aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 50 percent below 2018 levels by 2030—a change […]
Posted inNews
Residents can check out seeds through Lompoc Village Library’s new seed library program
Lompoc Village Library Manager Sierra Foster started a seed library at her branch after noticing several residents checking out gardening and landscaping books. “Since we are in a small town, there isn’t a lot of things to do, so I wanted to give people some hobbies to do,” Foster said. “I wanted to support those […]
Posted inNews
Off to the races: The Santa Maria Speedway is back in business starting May 11
Editor’s note: Santa Maria Speedway General Manager David Castaneda told the Sun after the paper went to press that races have been postponed due to logistical issues, and the speedway is holding an open practice on May 11 from 4 to 9 p.m. instead. Residents can come and watch people practice, but no concessions will […]
Posted inNews
U.S. Forest Service to receive nearly $38 million in Thomas Fire settlement
Southern California Edison agreed to pay the United States $80 million to resolve claims and recovery costs associated with suppressing and recovering from the 2017 Thomas Fire—ending a nearly four-year litigation process. “Obviously, we are not happy about the fire and the cause of the fire, but we are happy to reach a settlement with […]
Posted inNews
State completes Santa Barbara County cannabis business licensing audit
Santa Barbara County will change its cannabis licensing application as it implements suggestions from the State Auditor’s Office. “To my knowledge, this is the first time cannabis has been audited at the state level. It’s relatively new with recreational level,” Deputy County Executive Officer Brittany Odermann told the Sun. “It’s typical that the Legislature will […]
