The Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors recently decided to allow the Sheriff’s Office to negotiate a new shorter-term contract with the current jail health care provider, despite voicing concerns about the company’s money troubles and ability to offer quality care. “Performance is the best indication of future results,” 4th District Supervisor Bob Nelson told…
• On Jan. 16, Rep. Salud Carbajal (D-Santa Barbara) called out House Republicans for repeatedly suggesting their interest in obstructing delivery of federal disaster aid to Southern California. “What makes these families different from families we have helped after hurricanes, tornadoes, or floods? To suggest that we should hold hostage the aid we give American…
A Real Pain What’s it rated? R When? 2024 Where’s it showing? Hulu, Amazon Prime I missed this one when it played at the Palm Theatre, but it’s made many critics’ Top 10 lists for 2024. I wouldn’t put it in my top 10 (A lot of competition last year!), but this is a thoughtful…
Before Santa Barbara County Deputy James Carovano reports for duty, he gets his partner ready for patrol by helping him put on his vest and opening the car door for him. His partner, Obi, is a 2-year-old German shepherd, trained in patrol, urban tracking, and narcotics detection. Carovano and Obi recently joined the Santa Barbara…
The Santa Barbara County jails’ health care contractor has paid the county back $1 million since 2017. Why? Well. The California Forensic Medical Group—aka Wellpath—hadn’t employed all the staffers it was contracted to employ and was paid for it anyway. That $1 million in credits is Wellpath’s way of reimbursing the county for unfilled positions. …
There is a lot of criticism in the media concerning the response to the catastrophic fires in LA County in mid-January, but is it all justified? Was it the fire department’s response or the result of politicians making bad decisions? First there was the water supply. A retired Orange County fire chief correctly pointed out…
As wildfires rage across Southern California, it’s impossible not to think about how vulnerable our own Santa Ynez Valley could be in a similar scenario. Fires are unpredictable, devastating, and increasingly common in drought-prone areas like ours. Add to that the overgrowth, high winds, and the growing number of high-density developments here, and it’s clear…
We live in the “Pyrocene” era … the age of fire. Supercharged Santa Ana winds, record high temperatures, and drought have fueled the current wildfire crisis. There is death in Los Angeles County, tens of thousands have been displaced, and countless homes are reduced to ashes. In the far north of our state, massive fires…
Boutique and chic To find out more about Fess Parker’s boutique label, Epiphany, call (805) 686-2424 or visit fessparker.com. Epiphany Cellars is located at 2974 Grand Ave., Los Olivos. One couple’s honeymoon plans set in motion the creation of Epiphany Cellars, a Santa Barbara County-based boutique label celebrating its 25th anniversary this year. Had Tim…
Dune patrol The Gallery at Monarch Dunes will host an opening reception to celebrate the Trilogy Art Group’s Winter Showcase on Friday, Jan. 24, from 4:30 to 6 p.m. The show will remain on display until sometime in March. The gallery is open to the public each Saturday, from 1 to 3 p.m., and is…
Attendees of the next book club meeting at the Elverhoj Museum of History and Art in Solvang will discuss author Jussi Adler-Olsen’s novel The Absent One. The event is scheduled for Wednesday, Jan. 29, at 6 p.m. The Absent One is the second entry of Adler-Olsen’s Department Q series and follows an investigator who reopens…
Four months ago, the California Coastal Commission denied Vandenberg Space Force Base’s request for approval to increase the number of SpaceX launches. Now, the state agency is battling two lawsuits stemming from that decision. In December, a conservative nonprofit sued the agency for allegedly not complying with public records requests for emails and other correspondence…
Tickets are currently available to attend legendary R&B and funk band Tower of Power’s concert at the Chumash Casino Resort in Santa Ynez on Friday, Feb. 14, at 8 p.m. Admission to the performance, set to be held in the resort’s Samala Showroom, ranges from $39 to $79. Formed in 1968, Tower of Power is…
One year after Buellton put the brakes on bringing an In-N-Out to town, the developer behind a separate drive-through project is asking the city to consider a crucial policy change. Unlike the rejected In-N-Out development, which would have neighbored an existing McDonald’s drive-through, the Central Holding Group’s project site for its proposed drive-through coffee shop…
American Primeval What’s it rated? TV-MA What’s it worth, Anna? Full price What’s it worth, Glen? Full price Where’s it showing? Netflix Peter Berg directs creator Mark L. Smith’s Western TV miniseries set in 1857 during the Utah War and the violent clash between the Mormons, the U.S. government, early settlers, and the indigenous tribes,…
Students who were looking forward to raising chickens and turkeys for this year’s Santa Barbara County Fair will have to make other plans. The fair canceled this summer’s poultry exhibitions after the state veterinarian indefinitely banned poultry and dairy cow exhibitions at fairs and other shows because of the current bird flu epidemic. County Fair…
Landman BINGEABLE: Landman What’s it rated? TV-MA When? 2024-present Where’s it showing? Paramount Plus Score another TV hit for writer/actor Taylor Sheridan (Yellowstone, 1883, 1823, Mayor of Kingstown, Tulsa King, Lioness). Landman is another macho neo-Western, this time about the boom-or-bust oil business. The story centers on Tommy Norris (Billy Bob Thornton), a fixer for…
