With the Fourth of July approaching, some local cities are attempting to deter the widespread use of illegal fireworks and the use of legal fireworks outside of designated times. Santa Maria is the most recent city to make changes after Arroyo Grande and Guadalupe amended their firework ordinances earlier this year. During the May 7 […]
ZAC EZZONE
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Cal Fire awards Santa Barbara County grant funding for fire prevention
Next year, the Santa Barbara County Fire Department will begin removing shrubs and trees in the Lompoc Valley to reduce fuel for wildfires. This effort is part of a four-year project estimated to cost $2.5 million, most of which will be covered by grant funding from Cal Fire. The state agency is covering $2.2 million, […]
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Santa Barbara County update on dispatch center
Almost two years after receiving a report on ways to improve its emergency dispatch services, Santa Barbara County is still narrowing down which option to pursue. At a county Board of Supervisors meeting on May 7, supervisors directed staff to report back to the board on the cost and staffing analysis for two different options […]
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Spotlight on: Natural History Museum
Virginia Perry Souza, Mike Lehane
Virginia Perry Souza and her mother first opened the Natural History Museum in Santa Maria as a tribute to Souza’s late father, who was fascinated by the Central Coast’s nature and wildlife and passed that appreciation on to his daughter. Despite her genuine enjoyment of wildlife, Souza said she’d had no intention of acting on […]
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Spotlight on: Natural History Museum
Virginia Perry Souza, Mike Lehane
Virginia Perry Souza and her mother first opened the Natural History Museum in Santa Maria as a tribute to Souza’s late father, who was fascinated by the Central Coast’s nature and wildlife and passed that appreciation on to his daughter. Despite her genuine enjoyment of wildlife, Souza said she’d had no intention of acting on […]
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Lompoc’s main fire station faces structural, budget issues
Firefighters with the city of Lompoc are working 24-hour shifts in a fire station that may not be able to withstand an earthquake. The fire department’s most recent attempt to fix this problem was rejected earlier this year. In March, the department was informed that the Federal Emergency Management Agency denied a grant application to […]
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State agencies consider aquifer exemption in Cat Canyon Oil Field
Oil companies may have more space to build injection wells in the Cat Canyon Oil Field if the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) approves a potential recommendation from various state agencies. The California Department of Conservation’s Division of Oil, Gas, and Geothermal Resources (DOGGR)—along with the State Water Resources Control Board and the Central Coast […]
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Firefighters union sues Santa Maria city, employees
The Santa Maria Firefighters Union is accusing the city and three of its current and former employees of illegally retaliating against labor union executives for opposing a proposed hiring policy. A lawsuit filed in March, shortly after a Public Employment Relations Board (PERB) hearing found that the city violated the state law on collective bargaining, […]
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Spotlight on: WALI
Eddie Taylor, Vicki Conner, co-leaders
In 2012, the United Way of Northern Santa Barbara County embarked on a campaign to improve literacy skills in the region, while the Santa Maria-based nonprofit EconAlliance was working on a workforce development program. After noticing how connected the two issues are, the organizations combined their efforts to create the Workforce and Literacy Initiative (WALI). […]
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Residents of manufactured homes are pushing for rent control in Santa Maria
During a statewide affordable housing shortage, the practical option of living in manufactured, or mobile, homes is becoming less affordable for many residents in Santa Maria. Because of this, a group of residents living in manufactured home parks in Santa Maria is urging the city to implement a rent control ordinance to keep annual rent […]
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Tree removal to continue in Los Padres forest
The U.S. Forest Service is moving forward with its second forest-thinning project within the Los Padres National Forest in the last six months. On April 26, the Forest Service announced its plans to remove trees near Tecuya Ridge, which follows its November 2018 plans to remove trees in Cuddy Valley. Both of these projects are […]
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Plains All American fined $3.3 million for 2015 oil spill
On April 25, Santa Barbara County Superior Court Judge James Herman ordered Plains All American Pipeline to pay $3.3 million in fines for the 2015 pipeline rupture that spilled thousands of gallons of oil into the ocean and onto the shoreline of Refugio State Beach. The fines were imposed following a September 2018 trial where […]
