Forget making a trip to the veterinarian’s office—animal care organization C.A.R.E.4Paws is fundraising for a larger mobile vet clinic that’ll come to you. The organization provides affordable veterinary services to low-income, senior, disabled, and homeless pet owners in Santa Barbara County. However, its recent expansion of services to SLO County in February 2022 and the […]
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Supervisors propose temporary housing on county property in Santa Maria to address the homelessness crisis
There never seems to be a perfect place for a homeless shelter, Santa Barbara County 5th District Supervisor Steve Lavagnino said. “There’s no golden choice, it’s not one [location] is better than the other, but I can’t live with the status quo,” Lavagnino told the Sun in February. More recently, Lavagnino said he felt like […]
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More adoption needed with overcrowding concerns at Animal Services
Calls for adoption and fostering rang out from Santa Barbara County Animal Services after its kennels recently reached capacity. “We see an increase in adoptions and fostering as well as people bringing in surrenders because the holidays bring many things for many people,” said Sarah Aguilar, the director of Animal Services. “The holidays may bring […]
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Santa Maria teens are invited to help paint the city’s next mural
Young artists in Santa Maria will have the chance to dip their paintbrushes and leave their mark on the community as the city seeks help from its youth to work on a new mural that will be displayed at the city’s civic center. “We really hope the teens take the opportunity to learn not just […]
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County’s low-income communities still need infrastructure help
Almost 3,000 Santa Barbara County residents live in areas officially labeled as “disadvantaged unincorporated communities.” Casmalia, Garey, Sisquoc, Los Alamos, New Cuyama, Cuyama, and Ventucopa first received the label in 2015—and not much has changed since then. “There haven’t been any improvements,” county Senior Planner Zoe Carlson told the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors […]
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Santa Barbara County certifies election results
There are no more ballots to count, no more campaign flyers filling mailboxes, and no more candidate debates being held as the Santa Barbara County Clerk-Recorder’s Office certified the 2022 election on Dec. 7, allowing the new or returning elected officials to step into their roles. In Santa Maria, Gloria Soto—the incumbent for the City […]
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Political Watch: December 15, 2022
• The U.S. House of Representatives approved the Protect Patriot Parents Act, a measure authored by Rep. Salud Carbajal (D-Santa Barbara) that would make parents of U.S. military service members eligible for lawful permanent resident status, preventing potential deportation or separation of military families, according to a Dec. 8 statement from the congressman’s office. “I […]
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Santa Barbara County Fire received a $144,000 grant to support mental health services, but firefighters and nonprofit leaders worry about the program’s sustainability
Sam Dudley replayed the Montecito debris flow over and over in his head driving to and from work for months after the 2018 disaster. “A lot of things really stacked up that made that experience really hard,” the Santa Barbara County firefighter said. “Finding children severely injured, and specifically we found one child deceased. That […]
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Last Minute Gift Guide 2022
’Tis the season to spend some money on loved ones, friends, and possibly frenemies—if you’re into that kind of thing. But let’s not be boring. No socks, ok? Having trouble coming up with something else? We’ve got you covered with our annual Last Minute Gift Guide, which keeps the focus hyper local and very fun. […]
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The county Public Defender’s Office needs sleeping bags, warm clothes for its annual Sleeping Bag Drive
Hypothermia kills about 700 people experiencing homelessness in the United States annually, according to the National Health Care for the Homeless Council. This year, Santa Barbara County counted more than 1,900 people who were homeless during its Point-in-Time Count. Although specific data about homeless, weather-related mortalities couldn’t be verified, Erica Bottorff—a holistic defense advocate at […]
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County OKs first community workforce agreement
In an effort to hire more community members for large construction projects and set terms and conditions for project owners, the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors voted 3-2 (with 4th District Supervisor Bob Nelson and 5th District Supervisor Steve Lavagnino dissenting) to pass a Countywide community workforce agreement during a Dec. 2 special meeting. […]
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Buellton reevaluates In-N-Out
Traffic concerns are slowing down a fast food chain’s efforts to bring a new drive-through restaurant to Buellton. On Dec. 15, the Buellton Planning Commission will decide whether to grant the In-N-Out Burger corporation a conditional use permit to commandeer the site of the vacant Parks Plaza Theatre on McMurray Road. The Planning Commission originally […]