A resolution to acknowledge National Immigrants Day hit the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors’ desk nearly 24 hours to the minute after Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detained a father of five in Santa Maria. “While dropping his daughter off at Allan Hancock College, he was taken into ICE custody. The circumstances of his […]
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County urges residents to prep for winter flood risks
Amid early October’s heat wave, excavation work at Mud Lake—one of Orcutt’s designated stormwater basins—remained ongoing, in preparation for a potentially much different forecast this winter. “We’re doing a massive earthwork project where we’re excavating the Mud Lake basin to improve its capacity,” Santa Barbara County Flood Control and Water Resources Director Matt Griffin said […]
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Political Watch: October 8, 2026
•Gov. Gavin Newsom approved Assembly Bill 1448—authored by Assemblymember Gregg Hart (D-Santa Barbara)—on Sept. 29. This legislation prohibits the use of existing oil infrastructure in state waters to support new offshore oil drilling in federal waters. Hart’s office described the bill as the product of two years of collaboration with community stakeholders and statewide ocean […]
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Mobile hat bar Flame Kissed puts down roots in Los Olivos
Upon opening her new hat shop in September, Flame Kissed founder Natascha Ruiz installed a curtain to cover a vacant door frame that leads to the venue’s storage room. Ruiz felt giggly about repurposing that curtain, leaving it as an inside joke for those familiar with the Los Olivos video store that once graced 2922 […]
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Unfinished business: Stalled hotel construction in Solvang remains inactive amid yearlong litigation
More than a year after Solvang red-tagged his unfinished hotel, Ed St. George said he has no intention of raising a white flag over the dormant development. “We’re already 90 percent done. If we were 40 percent done, I would be willing to tear it down. But we are literally 90 percent done,” the developer […]
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Solvang Teamsters strike moves into third week
Two weeks into the first city employee strike in Solvang’s history, labor negotiators met in closed session with the City Council on Sept. 28. The following morning, Solvang’s unionized members of Teamsters Local 986 made good on their word to remain on strike until the city offers a contract they agree to ratify. “The strike […]
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Despite parking concerns, Guadalupe City Council unanimously approves new housing
Builders got a green light to put up seven new apartments with eight parking spots on an empty lot in Guadalupe. On Sept. 22, City Council members approved the affordable housing project at 855 Pioneer St., which was proposed by the Housing Authority of Santa Barbara County. However, some concerned residents believe there isn’t enough […]
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Buellton spots food truck gap in zoning rules
On average, Buellton allows food trucks to set up shop within city limits between three to five times a year, according to Planning Director Andrea Keefer. It’s no coincidence, she told the City Council, that those rare sightings align with Buellton’s Fall Festival, Wine and Chili Festival, and other annual gatherings. “The city does not […]
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Political Watch: October 1, 2026
•On Sept. 22, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bipartisan bill with more than $66 million in federal funds for Central Coast-based water projects. “Now that the House has passed the Water Resources Development Act, this bill is heading to the Senate carrying key investments I secured for our local infrastructure,” U.S. Rep. Salud […]
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Laurie Tamura is the Santa Maria Valley Chamber’s Citizen of the Year
Chamber cheersNext year’s gala is scheduled for Aug. 27. To register or become a sponsor, visit santamaria.com. Submit nominations for the 2027 awards online at santamaria.com/connecting/annual-awards. For the more than four decades that Laurie Tamura has lived in the Santa Maria Valley, she’s donated her time to organizations like Scouting America, the Santa Maria Police […]
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No deal: Solvang staffers strike after rejecting City Council’s ‘last, best, and final’ pay raise offer
Not long after showing up to his cubicle for an 8 a.m. shift on Sept. 15, engineering technician Cole Phillips hit the pavement with around 30 other unionized Solvang employees to participate in the first labor strike of its kind in city history. Before heading out that morning to protest the City Council’s recent handling […]
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Tie vote blocks Lompoc from censuring Steve Bridge
Three hours into the Lompoc City Council’s Sept. 15 meeting, Councilmember Steve Bridge asked his peers to remember the oath they recite in unison ahead of every agenda. It’s the same oath many schoolchildren have already memorized by kindergarten. “We started today the way we start every meeting. We stood up and said the words—the […]
