Cover Story
A place to grow: Locals without enough space at home find a plot of their own at the Santa Maria Community Garden
Nestled in the corner of Alice Trefts Park in Santa Maria sits a slice of heaven for those with green thumbs: the Santa Maria Community Garden. On a sunny Thursday afternoon, you might find Deanne Woodward strolling among the garden’s blooming flowers and burgeoning greens, tending after her own plot and potentially her boyfriend’s, as…
A classical gas: The Great American Melodrama presents ‘A Witless Rogue’ with sword-swishing panache
The Great American Melodrama always welcomes its audience in with a certain amount of fireside charm, from the live piano music to the warm popcorn and other treats served up by the actors in the bar line before the show even gets started. You always feel welcome and taken care of. Part of that welcome…
What’s your favorite outdoor activity?
Marissa Prado teacher “Hiking in San Luis Obispo County.” Christian Nunes cooler worker “I’m going to go with hiking.” Jordy Cardona student “Swimming, anywhere.” Yadire Barajas student “Swimming.”
A light shines through: Santa Maria artist Joseph Griffin-Janey joins SLO GALA Center’s celebration of LGBT community amid tragedy
Husbands Joseph and Jack Griffin-Janey said, “I do” three times, and each time it was to each other. While three marriage ceremonies for one couple may seem extravagant, only one of the three ceremonies was a sentimental affair with friends and family present. The other two times—one at City Hall in San Francisco in 2004,…
Bugs are way cool: Fight pests with beneficial insects for an eco-friendly garden
You can’t talk about beneficial insects without taking a moment to revel in the weirdness that is the praying mantis. That’s exactly what The Educated Gardner’s Simone Smith and I did the other day. We had to stop the interview to geek out extensively on these eccentric green helpers. I even squealed like a schoolgirl…
Right off the vine: Summerset Farms in Santa Ynez does all the work, but lets you do the picking
Let’s be real. Not all of us have the long-term planning ability/commitment to go get a community garden plot. Many of us can’t even keep the inhabitants of a planter box alive for long. So what do you do when you want an authentic, sunburn-inducing (lotion up, folks!), outdoor gardening experience? Maybe you live in…
Barrels to chairs: Barrel proprietor Pedro Meza wastes not with Eco-Wine Furniture
At 619 S. Oakley Ave. in Santa Maria, a warehouse contains rows upon rows of barrels stacked to the ceiling. The faint smell of oak permeates the air, and the forklift back-up alarms emanating from outside are punctuated by the occasional sound of power tools inside the wood shop. It’s just another day at Pedro…
Hobnobbing with Helen: Picnicking with the Pioneers
A lingering whiff of barbecuing tri-tip hung in the air. Overhead, a powder blue sky dotted with puffs of cottony clouds provided cover for the 92nd annual Santa Maria Valley Pioneer Picnic held on Saturday, July 9, at Pioneer Park, near the corner of Foster and Blosser roads. Several hundred people of all ages attended…
Man’s best friend, pest’s worst enemy: Agricultural commissioner demonstrates Santa Barbara County’s new pest detection dog
Watch a video of Doomis in action! There’s a new detective on the scene in Santa Barbara County, and he’s the real deal: efficient, effective, loyal, hard-working—and adorable to boot. The detective’s name is Doomis. He’s 2 1/2 years old, and he’s a dog. Doomis is the latest installment in California’s statewide pest detection dog…
Search and rescue team rappels stranded hikers down Cathedral Peak
On July 17, the Santa Barbara County Search and Rescue (SBCSAR) team assisted two male hikers in their 20s, who were stranded on Cathedral Peak, which is just north of Santa Barbara and several miles east of Highway 154. According to Kelly Hoover, the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office public information officer, the hikers—one of…
Lompoc files petition to take control of resident’s property
On July 13, Lompoc filed a petition for receivership in Santa Barbara County Court to take control of resident Sterling Ranft’s property located at 219 and 215 North L St., to repair portions of his house, according to City Administrator Patrick Wiemiller. In August 2015, the Sun profiled Ranft’s drawn-out battle with the city in…
Santa Maria City Council race fills out
Santa Maria’s City Council has three seats up for grabs—the mayor’s spot, and two councilmembers’—and the race to grab them is continuing to take shape. Last week, Councilmember Bob Orach confirmed in an email to the Sun that after three decades of service, he will not be running for re-election. Meanwhile, political newbie Hector Sanchez…
Chumash Camp 4 legislation moves forward
The House Committee on Natural Resources voted on July 12 to clear HR-1157, a bill that would allow the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians to take a 1,400-acre parcel called Camp 4 into federal trust. Camp 4 has created tension between the tribe—which already owns the land but claims it’s necessary to put into…
Where’s your music? The eighth annual New Times Music Awards accepts entries beginning July 28
If you aren’t already packaging up your latest album, EP, or single—or at least telling your closest musician friends to—for this year’s New Times Music Awards (NTMA), then what are you doing? Playing Pokémon Go? Bands, singer-songwriters, rappers, and composers throughout Santa Barbara and SLO counties can fill out entry forms in the Sun and…
Spotlight on: World 1-1 Games
Step into World 1-1 Games at the Santa Maria Town Center East mall and it’s like stepping back into the 1990s. There are fully functioning original Mortal Kombat and Wrestlemania arcade games flanking the main counter to the left and the right, respectively. Sitting at the counter is Rudy Ruiz, the man behind the memorabilia.…
Santa Maria Public Library’s Shepard Hall features local artists
The Santa Maria Public Library’s Shepard Hall is a beloved showing space for local artists, and the library just announced how it plans to show art there through next year. The hall will showcase the art of several local artists year round, and some exhibits will rotate out every two months. The artists included at…
PCPA announces 2016-2017 season
The Pacific Conservatory Theatre (PCPA) announced its 2016-2017 season, issuing a release in which Artistic Director Mark Booher called it the “season of massive humanity.” The season includes family favorites, award-winning musicals, Shakespeare, comedy, and deep drama. The season opens with the family friendly production of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast showing Nov. 3 through…
Neal Taylor Nature Center invites kids to ‘Go Batty’
Cachuma Lake’s Neal Taylor Nature Center invites local families to two events featuring local bats, titled Go Batty, on July 23 and 30 at 8 p.m. The event happens at dusk, when the flying mammals come out to feed, and will include a talk by Santa Barbara Natural History Museum biologist Paul Collins. The Go…
Nipomo resident receives continuing education award
The UCI Division of Continuing Education (DCE) announced that Nipomo resident Barbara Maddox was honored at a recent graduation ceremony for the completion of continuing education programs during the 2015-2016 academic year. Maddox earned a certificate in Spa and Hospitality Management, and was honored because she went out of her way to help fellow classmates…
Lompoc offers free lunch for kids in city parks
The city of Lompoc’s Recreation Division is collaborating with the Lompoc Unified School District (LUSD) in its Free Lunch for Kids program, available at several city locations during the summer. The Lompoc Recreation Division and the LUSD is working with with other community organizations as well, according to a release from the city of Lompoc,…
Political Watch 7/21/16
• The chair of the California Legislative Women’s Caucus, Sen. Hannah-Beth Jackson (D-Santa Barbara), issued a statement on behalf of the Caucus after the passing of Sen. Sharon Runner (R-Antelope Valley) on July 14. “The California Legilsative Women’s Caucus extends its deepest condolences on the passing of our colleague, Sen. Sharon Runner,” Jackson said in…
Community Notebook 7/21/16 – 7/28/16
MONDAY, JULY 25 • The South County Advisory Council has its regular meeting at 6:30 p.m. at the Nipomo Community Services District Headquarters, 148 S. Wilson St., Nipomo. • The Solvang City Council has its regular meeting at 7 p.m. in City Council Chambers, 1644 Oak Street, Solvang. agendas are available at cityofsolvang.com. TUESDAY,…
Ashley Reynoso
Ashley Reynoso, an incoming junior at Righetti High School, said she sometimes feels like the new kid on the basketball block. Despite being the starting power forward for the Righetti varsity basketball team, Reynoso is quick to remind us that she’s only been a basketball player for three years. In eighth grade, she joined her…
Protecting pitchers: California to set pitch count limit for high school baseball players in nationwide rule change
It was the fourth inning of a CIF playoff baseball showdown between Santa Ynez and Riverside Woodcrest Christian High School on May 26, and decorated Pirates ace Zachary Torra was on the mound. Torra went into his windup, unleashed a slider, and … pop. “I felt a sharp pain in my elbow,” Torra recalled. “Then…
Trying to catch them all
This week as I was flying around catching Pokémon (by the way, it’s so much easier to catch them all from my perspective) a thought occurred to me: I think I’d like to see how many Pokémon might exist on the 1,400-acre parcel owned by the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians called Camp 4. …
Decommissioning Diablo is a bad idea
Your recent article by Editor Shelly Cone titled “Decommissioning Diablo,” July 14, leads off with Mothers for Peace as if they had something to do with it. While these anti-nuclear groups are pesky and a waste-of-time nuisance, they had no direct impact on this decision. Neither of their claims of fault dangers or radiation have…
Boycott choke chains and shock collars
In order to add some joy to my totally deaf dog’s life I have been looking for a vibration collar with a remote control. The idea is to teach this precious dog sign language. I was disgusted to find that most training collars are electric-shock types. Although dog trainers do not receive any degree to…
Opinion around the clock
Today people have zeroed in on many of the causes of growing violence in our American society, such as unrestricted access to military-grade weapons, mental illness, and terrorism. No one, however, has mentioned our obsession with around-the-clock opinion-news babble. This obsession seems to correspond to the growing violence in our country and around the world. So-called news…
So much wine, so little time: Sip your way through the rest of summer with wine parties on the Central Coast
Hey guys. I’ve got some bad news: Summer is one-third over. If you’re anything like me, that news brings to mind a flurry of panic: But my body’s still not summer ready! or But I still haven’t started on that summer reading list! or But what happened to all that wine tasting I was going…
Pearls of wisdom
Mom has two younger sisters, Lorna, the older of the two, and Sharon, the baby of the family. I have written about each of these remarkable ladies in this column on several occasions. Each one has had a unique influence on me, for which I am both blessed and grateful. I have never thought about…
Wildling Museum presents nature photography competition exhibition
The Wildling Museum of Nature and Art in Solvang announced the winners of its annual nature photography competition, which all show together July 23 through Oct. 17 at the museum. The theme for the competition was “Where Land Meets Water,” and more than 100 photographers submitted their work. The competition also included a junior category…
