A survey of 400 Santa Maria residents showed that 60 percent of them would vote yes on a half-cent sales tax increase, as long as the extra funds—approximately $13 million a year—went toward essential city services. While 31 percent of participants answered no to the survey, which assured all hypothetical funds would stay local with […]
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Solvang bans public urination, defecation
Constant giggling bled into the Solvang City Council’s discussion of a recent incident that inspired officials to formally ban public urination and defecation within city limits. A sighting of the latter specifically prompted the legislation, City Manager Randy Murphy explained. “I don’t think ‘number one’ was the issue here,” Murphy said at the council’s May […]
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Political Watch: May 14, 2026
• On May 8, U.S. Sen. Adam Schiff (D-California), U.S. Rep. Salud Carbajal (D-Santa Barbara), and Assemblymember Gregg Hart (D-Santa Barbara) joined Environmental Defense Center Chief Counsel Linda Krop and other local environmental leaders to rally against the Trump administration’s restart of offshore oil platforms owned by Sable Offshore Corporation along the Gaviota coastline. During […]
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Santa Maria approves a package delivery warehouse to be built on West Stowell
Two Santa Maria planning commissioners thought last week’s meeting drew the biggest crowd they’ve experienced at a hearing. The only item on the May 6 agenda occupied the bulk of the nearly three-hour discussion. Following three study sessions that date back to 2024, the Santa Maria Planning Commission approved a project that would bring a […]
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Buy aesthetic home goods from a Lompoc candlemaker
Listen for the whisperFind Esperanza Jimenez’s candles at the Oceano Seabreeze Market (410 Air Park Drive) on May 30 and at the Route One Farmers Market. Discover all her products online by visiting whisperingwoodsboutique.com and on Instagram @whisperingwoodsboutique. The warmth of a yellow flame. The crackles of a wooden wick. The enchantment of a scented […]
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Home plight: St. Joseph High School’s neighbors ask county to penalize unpermitted softball field for alleged hazards
Keeping count of how many softballs land in their backyards became an accidental hobby for several residents of Knollwood Terrace, a townhome community near St. Joseph High School in Orcutt. Some condo dwellers make an effort to return stray balls to the school, while others keep them stored away in a bag or box. Eleanor […]
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Trial for alleged Santa Maria court bomber set two years after explosion
Full of black powder, a can the size of a coffee tin wrapped in duct tape and glued-on nails was inside of Nathaniel James McGuire’s backpack the day he was arrested on terrorism charges in Santa Maria, according to law enforcement. On Sept. 25, 2024, McGuire allegedly threw his backpack into Santa Maria Superior Court’s […]
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Guadalupe adopts its first food truck ordinance
In the name of public health and safety, the city of Guadalupe now has a concrete set of regulations that operators of food trucks and trailers must abide by. The food truck ordinance saga in Guadalupe has lasted more than seven years, city contracted Planning Director Larry Appel said at a Feb. 24 City Council […]
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County approves Los Alamos’ Cottonwoods housing development
Yellowtail Lane. Pargo Drive. Gopher Gulch. Naming a few newly proposed private roads in Los Alamos after fish and rodents fell into the Santa Barbara County Planning Commission’s purview at its final hearing of April. County Planner Tina Mitchell assured the commission on April 29 that the road names before them were cleared by the […]
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Political Watch: May 7, 2026
• Following the Trump administration’s announcement that Morro Bay’s Golden State Wind project will recover $120 million in taxpayer dollars as part of its cancellation arrangement, U.S. Rep. Salud Carbajal (D-Santa Barbara) issued a statement on April 28. “I am outraged by this backwards decision to sabotage the Morro Bay Wind Energy Area. In Congress, […]
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Longtime hearing aid specialist takes on practitioner role with Santa Maria’s Beltone office
Constant ringing. Buzzing. Swishing. Hissing. Tinnitus can take on many different sounds for those who suffer from the condition, commonly due to hearing loss. Local hearing care practitioner Remy Salazar said one seldomly reported form of tinnitus she’s observed over the course of her career is kind of like having a song stuck in your […]
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Fatal DUI case closes with probation sentence over District Attorney’s call for state prison time
Convicted of vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, 29-year-old Katelyn Fultz will serve less than 300 days in Santa Barbara County jail, followed by five years of probation. At around 6:50 a.m. on May 1, 2025, Fultz crossed over double yellow lines on Highway 154 and crashed head-on into 24-year-old Carly Howard’s vehicle. Howard died within a […]
