The Canary

Raising your own salary is never a good look.  But it’s something we task many elected decision-making bodies with, from city councils and community services districts to boards of supervisors and sometimes even the Legislature—although not in California. In California, our legislators’ salaries are determined by an independent commission. I bet that the Santa Barbara […]

Droves of local residents are speaking up in fear of the past repeating itself, in opposition to a present danger, and in defense of the future. They’re speaking out at local government meetings, making demands and expressing concerns. Their public comments and protests are not falling on deaf ears, but local leaders’ hands are tied.  […]

Is re-encampment the same as an oil pipeline restart?  Can’t unhoused people just get a waiver to restart their lives in the Santa Maria Riverbed? After all, the system that aims to provide resources, housing, and help to these folks isn’t quite working for them.  So we should all collectively shrug, right? Live and let […]

There were no literal weapons in the recent skirmishes on battlefields at the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors hearing room and Superior Court. Just sharp words, pointed memos, unassailable lawsuits. This was “lawfare.”  Fourth District Supervisor Bob Nelson used that term to describe what American Medical Response (AMR) “deployed” to get its new four-year […]

Testy and zesty. That’s a good way to describe some of 3rd District county Planning Commissioner John Parke’s exchanges on Jan. 29.  With cannabis odor on the agenda and potential ordinance changes set to come back—again—to the commission, he managed to take over the entire discussion. His insistences left commission chair, 2nd District Commissioner Laura […]

If things weren’t spicy in Buellton before the November election—with a sitting City Council member running against the sitting mayor—they are now.  The council is split down the middle, with two council members on one side and the newly elected mayor and another council member on the other. They couldn’t decide on who to appoint […]

The Santa Barbara County jails’ health care contractor has paid the county back $1 million since 2017. Why?  Well. The California Forensic Medical Group—aka Wellpath—hadn’t employed all the staffers it was contracted to employ and was paid for it anyway. That $1 million in credits is Wellpath’s way of reimbursing the county for unfilled positions.  […]

Santa Barbara County is finally doing something about an issue that’s garnered 3,700 complaints since 2018, and zero enforcement.  Can you guess what got residents so fired up that they sent what amounts to almost two complaints a day to their elected officials over the past six years? Here’s a hint: It’s green. It’s legal. […]

In Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors news, the changing of the guards is complete!  Second District Supervisor Laura Capps took the chair’s gavel from 5th District Supervisor Steve Lavagnino, and new 1st District Supervisor Roy Lee took his seat on the board on Jan. 7.  I don’t know about you, but I’m going to […]

In 2020-21, an estimated 2,000 Western monarch butterflies were counted at overwintering sites. In 2022-23, that count hit 300,000.  But this winter is expected to be super low, with the count ongoing and a little less than 200 counted at Pismo State Beach Monarch Butterfly Grove this year—and more than 10,000 counted last year. So […]

This past year was a bit of a rough one. Starting in Guadalupe—the littlest city that could, but only if the deadline is tomorrow and staff has to overnight something to a state agency after City Council approves it tonight.  Talk about last minute! That city is flying by the seat of its pantaloons.  The […]

Old Town Lompoc is about to grow up. At the ripe age of 150 years old, the city is primed for a good ol’ fashioned growth spurt—from 45 feet to 50 feet tall. Lompoc is aiming for increasing its housing density, both to comply with state law and some city goals. To do that, the […]