Cover Story
To rail, or to rail against?: As decision time approaches, the Sun examines the pros and cons of a controversial Phillips 66 oil-by-rail project
When viewed from the proper angle, the central conflict here bears a peculiar type of poetic symmetry: A local refinery would like to transport much of its crude oil into San Luis Obispo County via train, while opponents would prefer such plans to be driven out of the county on a rail. Many stakeholders adamantly…
North County ag industry showcased in photo exhibit
View a slideshow of photographer Lee-Volker Cox’s work. Local photographer Lee-Volker Cox is a retired Air Force operations commander who served at Vandenberg Air Force Base beginning in 2008; his attention was immediately grabbed by the colorful rows of flowers cultivated in the Lompoc Valley. He began shooting photos of the fields from a distance,…
How do you prevent your car from being stolen?
Irene Camarillo student “Lock my doors and make sure my windows are up.” Matt Barcus assistant band director “First of all, I park my car in a well-lit area, then I lock it. I have no after-market security system in my car.” Christian Bird student “If the garage is an option, I’ll definitely use that.…
D’Vine Wine Bar features regular jazz, hip-hop, funk, and soul mash-ups
Watch a video of Andrew Beal and VineLyte. The saxophone is an enigmatic instrument. A member of both the brass and woodwind families, the saxophone is revered across genres for its unique voice, which can be subjectively manipulated based on an artist’s whims. One local artist, Lompoc resident and music teacher Andrew Beal, doesn’t blow,…
God of Speed
There is absolutely nothing in the world that gives me greater joy than go-karts. I love the squealing of the little tires, the feeling of wind in my face, and the sound of my front bumper smashing into an unsuspecting competitor’s car. It just doesn’t get any better than that. It’s pure childhood pleasure. Since…
Hancock professor to appear on Jeopardy!
Allan Hancock College English professor Jim Read will be appearing on the Jan. 30 episode of the popular trivia game show Jeopardy! The episode will show on the local NBC affiliate KSBY-TV at 7 p.m. Read, a longtime fan of the show and games like Trivial Pursuit, is contractually obligated to not reveal the winner…
Santa Maria Valley Open Space announces new board, upcoming public hike
The Santa Maria Valley Open Space has announced its newly elected board of directors, which includes new president Chad Hinkle, treasurer Will Cronan, membership and events coordinators Donna Evangelista Beal and Gayle Vyenielo, and communications director Kandie Miller. The five began serving Jan. 1, joining the 10-person volunteer board in establishing and maintaining public trails…
Local author debuts new graphic novel
Local author and art instructor E. Monks Hack will be signing the first edition of her new graphic novel The Eyes Eshnunna Part I on Feb. 7 in Lompoc. The event will include light refreshments, a book signing, and a question-and-answer session with the author from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at The Bookstore in…
Lompoc Mural Society puts out a call for artists
The Lompoc Mural Society is holding a call for artists in anticipation of its 2015 mural, slated for placement in the downtown area’s Art Alley. Interested artists are required to submit a concept sketch to be considered by the Lompoc Mural Society’s Artistic Criteria Committee by March 15. Submission should also include a résumé and…
Ro Snell explores the expanse of nature at the Elverhoj Museum
The work of an artist is colored by a lifetime of experiences. Thoughts, memories, and emotions swirl together in an alchemical dance, crystallizing into a creation that could potentially color the experiences and inhabit the minds of others. Abstract artist Ro Snell is no different, and when wandering her acres-wide property in Santa Ynez, taking…
Municipal Wines remembers the Alamo: You don’t need to be a visitor to enjoy their hip tasting hangout in Los Alamos
Dusk is falling in sleepy Los Alamos, but the Alamo Motel is just beginning to heat up. Motel visitors and locals alike spread out colorful Mexican blankets on the front lawn, soon to be dotted with picnic suppers sourced from nearby Bell Street Farm. Some settle into rocking chairs, while others sprawl out and consider…
Spotlight on: CovenTree Books and Gifts
Where can you find dragons, chain mail, and idols of ancient gods all in one place? At CovenTree Books and Gifts, which recently opened a location in the La Brea Plaza at 722 E. Main in Santa Maria. CovenTree is an obligatory stop for anyone who has an affinity for the mythological and the metaphysical.…
Middle-class scholarships available for UC and CSU students
California university students left more than $50 million in state scholarship funds untouched in the 2014-2015 school year, according to Diana Perez with Central Coast Cal-SOAP (Student Opportunity and Access Program). The state set aside $107 million in scholarship funds for middle-class students last year, and only handed out an estimated $54 million. “It didn’t…
Southern Santa Barbara County water agencies get state drought funding
State Sen. Hannah-Beth Jackson and Congressman Das Williams (D-Santa Barbara) announced on Jan. 23 that $2 million in state funding for water agencies that depend on the flow out of Lake Cachuma. The money is allocated for construction, operation, and maintenance of an emergency pump recently installed by the Cachuma Operations and Maintenance Board. Should…
Santa Maria-Bonita talks school boundaries for new campus
When Santa Maria-Bonita School District’s new elementary school opens at the beginning of the 2015-2016 school year, an estimated 850 students will be attending. But where exactly those students will come from is still under consideration. It’s not as simple as drawing a boundary around the campus and slating all the kids in that neighborhood…
Political Watch 1/29/15
• The California Transportation Commission recently announced the allocation of $174.8 million to 85 transportation projects that will repair aging roads and bridges and hopefully alleviate traffic delays. Nearly $19 million from the Active Trasportation Program is included in the allocations and will go toward 50 biking and pedestrian projects throughout the state. “Preserving, rebuilding,…
Community Notebook 1/29/15-2/5/15
MONDAY, FEB. 2 • The Solvang Planning Commission has its regular meeting at 7 p.m. in City Council Chambers, 1644 Oak Street, Solvang. TUESDAY, FEB. 3 • The Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors has its regular meeting at 9 a.m. in the Board of Supervisors Hearing Room, 105 E. Anapamu St., Santa Barbara. Agendas…
The Santa Maria Police Department forms task force to combat auto theft problem
Editor’s note: Darlene Carpenter is the mother of Sun Arts Editor Joe Payne. For our story, she recently opened up about her experience of having her car stolen. On the night of July 31, 2012, in a suburb near McCoy and Miller, Darlene Carpenter decided to park her dark red, pristine 2005 Chrysler 300C on…
Santa Maria High School teacher arrested in child porn possession case
A Santa Maria High School teacher was arrested on Jan. 22 for alleged possession and distribution of child pornography, according to a press release from the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office. Detectives with the Sexual Assault Felony Enforcement Team arrested 53-year-old Michael David Smith of Santa Margarita after receiving a tip on Jan. 14…
California tightens regulations on a popular strawberry fumigant
After two years of public conversation surrounding chloropicrin, the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) announced on Jan. 14 that it strengthened the regulations governing the fumigant’s use. Chloropicrin is used to rid soil of funguses and diseases before planting and is predominantly applied on strawberry fields—accounting for 70 percent of the fumigant’s use in…
Allan Hancock College won’t be offering a four-year degree
Allan Hancock College was not among the 15 colleges selected on Jan. 20 by the California Community College Board of Governors to begin pilot programs offering bachelor’s degrees to students. “I can’t say we’re not disappointed,” Hancock Superintendent/President Kevin Walthers said in a statement shortly after the official word came out. “The selected degrees represent…
County appeals BIA’s Camp 4 fee-to-trust decision
Santa Barbara County isn’t the only entity that filed a recent appeal to the Bureau of Indian Affairs January decision to place the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians Camp 4 property into fee-to-trust with the federal government. The Preservation of Los Olivos (POLO) also filed and appeal along with at least three other community…
Attorneys in Ibarra trial cross-examine a crime scene technician
Now in its third week, the trial for the alleged murder of Anthony Ibarra resumed in Santa Maria Juvenile Court the morning of Jan. 27 with defense attorneys cross-examining a crime scene technician videographer. Angela Jorge, a crime scene tech with the Santa Maria Police Department, testified that on March 18, 2013, she filmed inside…
‘Illegal’ is just fine
I just wanted to comment on your piece in the Santa Maria Sun (“(Un)documented rift,” Jan. 15). I disagree with Maya’s comment: “offensive to the Latino community at large.” I do not care to be lumped in with the “Latino community” at large. I have spoken to several family members and friends who are “Hispanic…
In for a penny, in for a sovereign
Santa Barbara County Supervisor Peter Adam is not known for quietly mumbling softball opinions to himself and then sitting quietly while twiddling his thumbs. When he has something to say, he says it. Some of his critics—and probably more than a few of his friends—might go so far as to describe him as someone who…
Higher education: location, location, location!
Recent news that Allan Hancock College competed unsuccessfully for a four-year viticulture degree speaks loudly of the undaunted future vision that Hancock President Dr. Kevin Walthers and his staff have for higher education in our valley. Hancock competed well in a field of heavyweight multi-campus schools. In the end, we can be proud of Hancock’s…
Larry Wiemers
What makes an athlete? Is it skill, dedication, perseverance? All of the above? No matter which of those criteria you pick, it’s clear that Larry Wiemers meets the standard. At the time of his retirement, the Lucia Mar School District administrator could lay claim to a whole closetful of hats, the first of which he…
A family game: A local father-son duo takes their love of water polo to the Olympic Training Center in Colorado
Over winter break, 14-year-old Layne Porter spent a week playing water polo for eight hours a day with the best youth water polo players in the nation. He trained from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. more than 6,000 feet above sea level, and he isn’t even in high school yet. As part of USA Water…
