Canary

 I never understood the point of the California Coastal Commission’s attempt to regulate federal agencies. Who reigns supreme?  Well, if it’s the Coastal Commission vs. the U.S. Department of Defense, I’ll let you guess the agency that gets to call the shots. If you think the commission is more powerful than the largest taxpayer-funded agency […]

Every time the Santa Barbara County jails get critiqued, Sheriff Bill Brown is ready with one of his classics: We need more money.  He’s uttered an iteration of that line more times than I can count. With any whiff of constructive criticism, Brown’s armed and ready with his defenses. The county jail is short-staffed, has […]

For everyone who’s yammering on about how California is such a strict state to do business in, we sure are lax when it comes to holding oil companies accountable for their messes.  Texas has stronger laws than California does. Texas. The state all the RINO’s are leaving us for. Texas state law requires oil field […]

The cannabis industry isn’t what it was cracked up to be in California.  With bigtime dispensaries like MedMen going down, legal grow operations not raking in the amount of money they were projected to, and a thriving illegal market—what gives?  Hey, word on the street is that it’s still illegal at the federal level, which […]

Who do we blame for voter turnout? The election itself or voter apathy or both? I’m going to say both. And Lompoc Mayor Jenelle Osborne might just agree with me.  She challenged 3rd District Santa Barbara County Supervisor Joan Hartmann in the primary alongside Republican Frank Troise. Hartmann won, according to the uncertified election results, […]

It sounds like San Luis Obispo County wants the Santa Maria Riverbed cleanup remnants to land squarely in the lap of Santa Barbara County.  And by cleanup, I really mean clear-out. As in, a clear-out of the miniature cities that have popped up in the riverbed since last year’s flooding pushed them out, visible from […]

A recent Solvang Planning Commission meeting gave us proof that artificial intelligence will take over human jobs.  Instead of drawing names out of hat, the city relied on ChatGPT to tell it the commissioner who would remain on the dais to decide on whether to recommend rezoning city land for housing purposes. Three commissioners lived […]

I’d almost rather pay for a wedding than vote in the primary election. I might not be the only person who feels that way. There isn’t a lot of exciting stuff on the ballot. The choices are almost predetermined.  But, hey, at least no one is running unopposed!  You’ve got incumbent conservative 4th District Santa […]

What can I say about Proposition 1?  It’s hard to know how to vote—unless you’re adamantly against the state taking out a $6.4 billion bond to build more places where people can get mental health care and substance abuse treatment and more housing for people with health and substance abuse challenges.  Sounds like a problem […]

Tennis players and pickleball players are frenemies who simply cannot share a court—and the battle over volleying space is getting tense in Solvang.  Hans Christian Andersen Park hosts the city’s only two pickleball courts but they’re on the verge of closure with cracking and drainage issues.  “The current courts are getting to the point where […]

Water’s a hot commodity in the Cuyama Valley. So when someone says the word “drill,” people’s ears perk up.  This time around, it’s not water they’re looking to store in “frost ponds” on Harvard University’s North Fork Vineyard property in Cuyama. They’re looking for oil. West Bay Exploration Co. wants to drill a probing solitary […]

As if the campaign for Santa Barbara County’s 3rd District supervisor wasn’t already a little weird—with Frank Troise holding his own candidacy hostage by threatening the other two candidates to agree to his budget terms or else he’ll continue running—the race’s finance filings are weirder still.  Lompoc Mayor Jenelle Osborne, who surprised everyone with her […]