Cover Story
WEDDINGS 2019
Love at first sip One woman serves up elegant boozy drinks at an affordable price at weddings or any event on the Central Coast BY KAREN GARCIA Weddings have so many details that are similar to puzzle pieces. Each play a big part in creating the picture-perfect day for a couple that’s ready to…
Wine Country Weekend promises sneak peeks at some new wines
As we say goodbye to Valentine’s Day, the world’s most romantic holiday, we eagerly anticipate the next most romantic holiday—President’s Day. OK, well maybe that’s not exactly true. But we can look forward to spicing up President’s Day by celebrating Wine Country Weekend from Feb. 15 through 18. (Can I do a segue or what?)…
Fossemalle Dance Studio to perform in honor of legendary performer Marta Becket
When dancer, artist, musician, and choreographer Marta Becket passed away in 2017, Christine Fossemalle was heartbroken. Fossemalle, the director of the Fossemalle Dance Studio in Santa Ynez, was a longtime friend and admirer. “I think the bond was both our passion for ballet,” she said. “I wanted to do this anniversary celebration because of…
So many questions about Russia and Trump
Vladimir Putin’s goal is to weaken the United States by using President Donald Trump. In order to propel Trump into the White House, Russian hackers infiltrated United States political organizations. The Kremlin used sensitive information to undermine Hillary Clinton. In addition, Russian hackers used American social media to influence the American electorate to vote for…
An idea to deal with sand in Oceano
This letter is in response to Lucia Casalinuovo: “The removal of Oceano Beach” (Jan. 10) and in response to Cheryl Bennet, “We don’t need to cram the beach in Oceano with Tourists.” I agree with both Lucia and Cheryl, we are losing the beach to all those cars, and also just to Mother Nature.…
We don’t need to cram the beach in Oceano with tourists
I was impressed with the article by Lucia Casalinuovo (“The removal of Oceano beach”) in the Jan. 10 issue of the Sun. I also want to say that there are other factors—wind, storms, and sea tides—that can also effect the sand levels, too. I believe our beaches have become smaller in that they are areas…
Open Streets comes to Santa Maria
The city of Santa Maria’s Main Street will close for a day on March 31 to make for a new event called Open Streets Santa Maria. The event is scheduled from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. between Broadway and Blosser Road. The car-free event will provide a variety of safe and fun activities for…
Elverhoj’s Between Light and Dark features Paul Roark’s stunning black and white images
It is easy to describe Paul Roark as one of the country’s most captivating photographers, especially after seeing pieces from his latest exhibit. But Roark has never had difficulty cementing his place on the photographic landscape. With decades of experience and a wealth of technical expertise, he is a timely and keen artist, with an…
Free nature lecture at Cachuma Lake
The Neal Taylor Nature Center invites the public to a free lecture on conservation efforts for vultures on March 3 at 2 p.m. Saving the Planet’s Vultures, part of the center’s speakers series, will feature Dr. Estelle Sandhaus, director of Conservation and Science at the Santa Barbara Zoo. Sandhaus is a graduate of Georgia…
Santa Barbara arts master plan seeks community input
The Creative Communities Cultural Arts Master Planning Project is seeking community input during workshop sessions. Community members are asked to participate and offer their ideas for the upcoming Santa Barbara County Cultural Arts Master Plan. The plan involves a number of initiatives in collaboration with different city and county stakeholders in public, nonprofit, and…
Angie and the Nightmares promote debut album at Naughty Oak in Orcutt
Don’t forget to bring your Inception totem to the Angie and the Nightmares performance on Friday, Feb. 15, at 6 p.m. at Naughty Oak Brewing Co. in Orcutt. The real nightmare would be if that spinning top of yours just keeps spinning, uh-oh! You realize you’re not even at the show, you’re asleep on the…
C.A.R.E.4Paws
Low-income, senior, and homeless community members can receive a range of affordable walk-in services for their dogs and cats at the C.A.R.E.4Paws mobile clinic, which hosts its inaugural Furever Valentine’s Pet Wellness and Adoption Day on Feb. 14 and an additional clinic on Feb. 21 in Santa Maria. “While income level is by no…
Taylor Martinez
With 17 wins this so far this season, the Orcutt Academy High School girls’ soccer team is having a record-breaking year. Much of that success is thanks to student Taylor Martinez, the team’s unstoppable junior forward. In recent games against Dunn High School and Templeton, a team that was previously undefeated, Martinez scored the only…
Taylor Martinez
With 17 wins this so far this season, the Orcutt Academy High School girls’ soccer team is having a record-breaking year. Much of that success is thanks to student Taylor Martinez, the team’s unstoppable junior forward. In recent games against Dunn High School and Templeton, a team that was previously undefeated, Martinez scored the only…
Lompoc students discuss school violence at Speech Trek
Lompoc High School junior Karla Paniagua was leaving the restroom and making her way back to class when it happened: An administrator’s voice came over the intercom and announced that her school was going into a lockdown. It was not a drill. She knew she needed to get back to her classroom immediately,…
North County hotels offer discounts to emotionally and financially drained South County evacuees
You don’t really know what it’s like to have to leave your home during a mandatory evacuation until you’ve experienced it yourself, according to Barry Prescott, general manager of Solvang’s well-known hotel, The Landsby. As a resident of the Santa Barbara area, Prescott was forced to evacuate during the Thomas Fire in December 2017.…
County changes local vendor preference policy
A divided Board of Supervisors approved a change to a 14-year-old policy that gave preference to local business that bid on contracts to provide supplies, equipment, and other tangible goods to Santa Barbara County. Supervisors voted 3-2 at a Feb. 12 meeting to amend the county’s local vendor preference policy in a move that…
Storms likely to blame for high number of oil-covered seabirds
Oil-covered seabirds are washing up on Santa Barbara County beaches in large numbers this year, likely a result of the continuous heavy rainstorms on the Central Coast throughout the past few weeks. The vast majority of injured birds, which are being impacted by naturally occurring ocean oil seeps off the Central and South Coast,…
SBCC ignored student’s complaints of sexual harassment, lawsuit alleges
A former Santa Barbara City College student is claiming that the school’s faculty and administrators failed to properly investigate her complaints of sexual harassment at the hands of a fellow student. In her lawsuit against the college, the student, Santa Ynez resident Christian Dungey, claimed that the college failed to take the appropriate…
Lompoc to allow residents to keep chickens as pets
The chickens have finally come home to roost in Lompoc, and some of the city’s residents couldn’t be happier. After more than three years of debate and wrangling, the Lompoc City Council voted to amend a municipal ordinance to allow residents to keep chickens and other small animals as pets. The item was…
Political Watch Feb. 14, 2019
• On Feb. 8, U.S. Rep. Salud Carbajal (D-Santa Barbara) reintroduced the Corporate Political Disclosure Act, House Resolution 1053, which was co-authored by Citizen’s Congress Director Bill Ostrander. Campaign finance reform was a major platform in Ostrander’s unsuccessful run against Assemblymember Jordan Cunningham for the 35th District state Assembly seat in 2018, when the bill…
We need progress
Both the 3rd and 4th District Santa Barbara County supervisors seem to have been ignoring Lompoc’s homelessness problem. Let’s examine the issue carefully and place current actions in context with history. The homeless encampments have been in the riverbed for more than 30 years. At the start of these encampments, the entirety of the…
Chickens in, humans out
Well Lompoc, you finally did it. Chickens are officially allowed to be man’s best friend within city limits. It only took you three years to figure it out. Chickens have been hip since, like, at least 2015. Even Lompoc City Councilmember Victor Vega knows how hip they are: “This has been a pretty…
