Cover Story
Start your batteries: Die-hard radio-controlled car enthusiasts meet up to race, jump, and kick up some dirt on the Central Coast
Rain usually cancels the regular meetup of Central Coast radio-controlled (RC) car enthusiasts at a home on the Nipomo Mesa. But it wasn’t quite raining on April 7, more of a drizzle, and plenty of diehards still made it out. The heavy fog didn’t slow down Tony Drake or his black and red-striped Traxxas RC…
Chef James Gentry shakes things up at Rooney’s Irish Pub
Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes (turn and face the strange). It seems appropriate to hum a few bars of David Bowie’s iconic song “Changes” if you’ve made a recent trip to Rooney’s Irish Pub in Orcutt. Nothing from the outside would tip you off that something is different, but once you’re seated and presented with a menu, it becomes…
Nipomo cartoonist Leigh Rubin designs signs for SLO Botanical Garden, launches new show
Famed Nipomo-based cartoonist Leigh Rubin is a cowman. Heifers make regular appearances in Rubes, his daily cartoon that’s syndicated in 400 media outlets worldwide. He even co-created a life-sized cow sculpture with a cape (dubbed Adventure Cow) for the CowParade in SLO a few years back. But when the SLO Botanical Garden asked Rubin to…
Firefighter Andrew Klein documents the work of battling blazes
An orange rage tears through a smoky sky. Silhouetted in black are two figures, frozen in the moment, seemingly transfixed by what lies before them. It takes the eye only a moment to recognize the figures as firefighters, their signature bell-shaped hats piercing the horizon. The graceful brutality of the moment was captured by Orcutt…
The Central Coast Guitar Show welcomes guitar lovers from far and wide who are looking to buy or sell
There’s no other feeling that compares to when you’ve finally found the right guitar. The way the neck feels cradled in the palm of your hand, how your fingertips slide across the fretboard, and the warmth you feel when the sound comes—everything has to be just right. Locals searching for the perfect axe for their…
Santa Barbara County and Lompoc cannabis regulations cater to industry while eyeing it as revenue source
Jan. 1, 2018, marked the first day California welcomed recreational cannabis to the legal market. Since then, municipalities across the state have passed laws either to regulate the product or, as in conservative counties like Kern, ban it entirely. That southern Central Valley county stands in stark contrast to its neighbor to the west, Santa…
Sun and New Times receive California Journalism Awards
Both the Sun and its sister paper New Times have received several awards from the California News Publishers Association’s (CNPA) California Journalism Awards for reporting done in 2017. The CNPA announced on April 14 that Sun Arts and Lifestyle Writer Rebecca Rose won first place with her humor column “Generation X-It,” Staff Writer Kasey Bubnash…
Class certification hearing in Santa Barbara County Jail lawsuit extended to May
A hearing on class certification was extended to May 31 by a U.S. District Court judge on April 12 as part of a federal class action lawsuit against Santa Barbara County and the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office. The complaint, which was originally filed on Dec. 6 last year, includes detailed accounts of the county’s…
EPA’s Pruitt targets Casmalia site for expedited work
The Casmalia Resources Superfund Site topped U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Scott Pruitt’s April 16 emphasis list out of all other similar superfund sites. The agency released the list with a note explaining that it represented sites identified and targeted by the EPA for “immediate and intense attention.” Casmalia in particular was chosen to…
Wildling Museum hosts fundraiser barbecue
Solvang’s Wildling Museum hosts its 15th annual spring barbecue on April 28 from 3 to 6 p.m., to raise funds for the museum’s work. The barbecue is scheduled to take place at Creekspirit, on the banks of Mission Creek in Santa Barbara’s Mission Canyon area. Creekspirit comprises more than 2 acres of native oak trees,…
Allan Hancock College hosts creative entrepreneurship symposium
A one-day symposium at Allan Hancock College is planned to connect notable arts consultants with local leaders in arts education, students, and community members to explore best practices in the emerging creative economy. The symposium will take place April 20 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. in building M, Room 310, at Hancock’s Santa Maria…
Policy and PR
You can tell a lot about an issue based on how the agency or organization surrounding it approaches the topic, and nobody writes better press releases for themselves than government. Take the recent announcement by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that the cleanup of the Casmalia Superfund Site was added to an “emphasis list”…
Give Jimmy Paulding a chance
The Hollands’ donation to Jimmy Paulding and his not telling is not an issue. Lynn Compton grabbed it as such because she has nothing else to grab on against Paulding. She fears that he will replace her. During the years of her administration, she has done nothing for Oceano. She never came to ask us…
Compton’s critics are off-base
It’s fascinating reading the drumbeat of nasty letters launched by [SLO County] Supervisor Lynn Compton’s critics in their efforts to demonize her for the many good things she’s done. Consider the park funding issue. Last year, after discovering that Supervisors Adam Hill and Bruce Gibson had studiously diverted nearly $10 million worth of South County…
Recusal
Just since 2016, county Supervisor Steve Lavagnino has taken well over $10,000 in campaign contributions from companies with business before the county. Specifically, three companies are seeking permits to drill more than 750 new oil wells in Cat Canyon. There are legitimate concerns about the inevitable problems with drilling, and spilling, and the insertion under…
Gloege hit the nail on its head
I admit I was thrown off track when I first read the headline to William Gloege’s letter: “Capitalism needs your help!” (April 5). However, his perfectly written letter straightened that out for me. He pointed out the only form of logic with a snowball’s chance of getting through the entrenched belief among adherents to unfettered…
Olmstead for sheriff, here’s why
At a time when the relationship between our public safety agencies is paramount, we need to consider who is best suited to work cooperatively as leader of our Sheriff’s Office going forward. Sheriff Bill Brown, without a doubt, has had a long and distinguished 40-year public safety career. However, the sheriff has lost the support…
Fighting for a profitable future in Central Coast agriculture
From passing a strong Farm Bill, to addressing the critical labor shortage and drought conditions, Congress must take these opportunities to step up and support our local agriculture industry. The Central Coast provides families across the nation with nutritious food, and I’m fighting to even the playing field for our local producers. The president’s recently…
Allan Hancock College works to update harassment policies but denies changes were spurred by employee who said she was sexually harassed
Allan Hancock College revisited its nondiscrimination and harassment policies on April 10, two months after a longtime employee publicly described to the board of trustees her experience of being sexually harassed and retaliated against. Mathematics, Engineering, Science Achievement Program (MESA) Coordinator Christine Reed said at a meeting on Feb. 13 that the harassment she endured…
Cold weather and rain to blame for low strawberry production
California’s strawberry production is off to a slow start this year after recent cold weather and rain damaged some of the state’s crops. Southern California’s total strawberry production as of April 14 was down 6 percent from the same time last year, according to shipment data compiled by the California Strawberry Commission, and down nearly…
Vandenberg plugs in to massive new solar array
As of Jan. 8 of this year, Vandenberg Air Force Base will receive about a third of its power (over the next 25 years) via solar energy. On April 10, the base held a dedication ceremony for the 65,000 panel, 129-acre solar array. “This is a really big event for the base, and for the…
Political Watch 4/19/18
• A public forum for Santa Barbara County Sheriff candidates is scheduled for April 26 at 7 p.m. at the Joseph Centeno Betteravia Government Center, Board of Supervisors Room, 511 E. Lakeside Parkway, Santa Maria. Current Sheriff Bill Brown, along with candidates and current Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office lieutenants Eddie Hsueh and Brian Olmstead,…
Spotlight on: Paradise Trading Post
Don’t call it a pawn shop. At least not in front of Paradise Trading Post’s owner, Mike Alexander, 57, who will quickly remind the offender what the store really is. “We’re not a thrift shop either. I like to refer to us as kind of an antique store for men,” he said in early April,…
Youth Sports Comittee holds first meeting
More than 30 youth sports leagues in Santa Maria Valley provide kids with ample athletic opportunities, but rundown fields, overpopulated facilities, and a general lack of communication have become major issues for local coaches. “I think probably it’s the No. 1 thing I hear from the people I represent, is the need for access to…
Marcos Hillje-Enthoven
After four years on Orcutt Academy High School’s varsity swim team, breaking numerous school records, and a currently undefeated season, senior Marcos Hillje-Enthoven plans to continue his swimming career at the University of Tampa in Tampa, Florida, next year. As captain of his team, Hillje-Enthoven often leads meetings and acts as a mentor to younger…
