Cover Story
Cultivating creativity: Standing Sun Winery owner and winemaker John Wright does more than give a home to art, he engages in it
On a recent sunny, cool Buellton morning, a bit too early to pour wine, Standing Sun Winery owner and winemaker John Wright brewed locally roasted espresso, steamed some milk, and spoke over the beeping of a forklift moving barrels of wine. They were stacked to the ceiling of the industrial warehouse that stores his aging…
Where do you go on the Central Coast for art?
Mark Booher PCPA artistic director “Mostly, I go to Pacific Conservatory Theatre. Maybe it’s because of how busy we are, but most of my art enjoyment is bound up in the life of Allan Hancock College. So, the Concert Band, the amazing ceramics that happen on campus, the design department, the chorale group; there is…
No thanks; I just ate
Here’s the deal: my wife won’t eat anything you cook. Nope. She won’t do it. It has absolutely nothing to do with being a vegetarian, a fear of GMOs, or only eating organic food. In actuality, my wife is a total foodie; she’ll eat just about anything—the more GMOs the better. Well, she’ll eat anything…
Political Watch 6/4/15
• Justin Fareed—running for the California’s 24th Congressional District seat in 2016—will be speaking at the Santa Maria Country Club on June 14 at 6 p.m. The Santa Maria Valley Republicans are playing host to a dinner and meet-and-greet. On the menu: raspberry walnut salad, a choice of beef casino roll or grilled chicken breast,…
Community Notebook 6/4/15 – 6/11/15
MONDAY, JUNE 8 • The Santa Maria City Block Grants Advisory Committee has its regular meeting at 5:30 p.m. in the City Hall Conference Room, 110 E. Cook St., Santa Maria. • The Solvang City Council has its regular meeting at 7 p.m. in City Council Chambers, 1644 Oak Street, Solvang. Agendas are available at…
Spotlight on: Amit Sarin, franchisee
If you’ve ever eaten at a Subway restaurant in Santa Maria, Orcutt, or Guadalupe, chances are it’s owned by Amit Sarin. He; his wife, Reshmi; and his father, Vishaw, are franchisees of Subway and own several restaurants in Northern Santa Barbara County. They operate as a company in Santa Maria. Immigrating with his family from…
Updated digs: The Sun takes a tour of the SMPD’s new headquarters so you don’t have to
Wearing stained yellow work boots, denim jeans with a tucked-in light blue button-up shirt, Bob Prescott recently led a group of citizens room-to-room through the Santa Maria Police Department’s new headquarters at 1111 Betteravia Road. It’s directly across the street from McDonald’s; you can’t miss it. Prescott looked more like a middle-aged construction worker than…
Two central Santa Barbara County libraries could fold into one
The Buellton library is facing an administrative shake-up to save costs and cut operating hours by combining it with Solvang’s library. “It’s been talked about for quite a while. It doesn’t make sense that they’re up there in the Santa Ynez Valley quite close to one another but they belong to two different [library] systems,”…
SMPD says teen shooting victim changed his story
The exact circumstances that led to a 17-year-old male being shot in the chest on May 31 are being investigated after the alleged victim changed his story, according to officials from the Santa Maria Police Department. According to Sgt. Eligio Lara, the victim first told police that he was shot that night after someone attempted…
Santa Maria settles a wrongful death lawsuit
The city of Santa Maria quietly settled a lawsuit with the parents of Leticia Hernandez-Sanchez, a teenager who was struck and killed by a driver in 2013. Hernandez-Sanchez was crossing the intersection of Newlove and Miller on June 29, 2013, when a car driven by 21-year-old driver, Kelsi Sullivan, hit her. Hernandez-Sanchez died a short…
DPR detects pesticide above screening levels in Santa Maria
While a recently released report from the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) shows that most of the state has pesticide levels well below those that indicate a health concern, one spot in the Santa Maria Valley gave the agency pause. “The major takeaway of this report is that even though growers in communities like…
Neverland Ranch hits the market for $100 million
Got a little cash to throw around? The 2,700-acre property north of Los Olivos that was once Michael Jackson’s Neverland Ranch is officially on the market for a cool $100 million. But the late pop superstar’s former home at 5225 Figueroa Mountain Road is listed as Sycamore Valley Ranch on real estate firm Hilton and…
The NTMAs starts accepting entries June 11
Do you hear that? It’s the sound of local singer-songwriters, cover groups, garage bands, and professional rockers prepping their albums, EPs, and demos for the seventh annual New Times Music Awards. Musical artists from across Santa Barbara and SLO counties will begin filling out entry forms when they come out in the Sun and New…
Lompoc Ten presents first exhibit
Lompoc Ten, a group of passionate Lompoc painters, presents its first exhibit titled Variations, showing at the Grossman Gallery through the month of June. The exhibit will include selections from each member of the group, as well as two composite paintings, which were collaborations including each artist. The group meets throughout the year for discussion,…
Valley Speaks features history of Knudsen Creamery
Valley Speaks—a local historical speaker series sponsored by the Santa Maria Valley Historical Society, Chamber of Commerce, and the library—will feature a talk about the legacy of Knudsen Creamery on June 13 at 11 a.m. The free event will tell a tale of Carl and Tom Knudsen, who founded the creamery nearly a century ago…
Rep. Capps announces Congressional Art Competition winner
U.S. Rep. Lois Capps (D-Santa Barbara) announced the winner of the annual Congressional Art Competition in a May 28 release, naming Cayucos resident and Mission Valley Preparatory High School junior Jenna Skiff as the recipient of the distinction. Skiff’s piece Half Dome, Half Paper depicts Yosemite National Park’s famous Half Dome dusted in snow, as…
Margie Bowker presents paintings for everyone
At first glance, the dynamic turquoise oil-painting-in-progress in Margie Bowker’s Santa Maria art studio appears to illustrate powerful waves crashing at sea. The impressionistic painting, which the artist is currently calling Turbulence, may actually be more, a window into her soul. Bowker is putting the finishing touches—a seagull here and another seagull there—onto her work…
PCPA begins work on ‘Man of La Mancha’
Pacific Conservatory Theatre (PCPA) cast, crew, and creative team assigned to the upcoming production of Man of La Mancha all assembled for a design presentation on May 26, marking the first look at the set and costume design, as well as the first time the entire team came together under one roof. PCPA’s artistic director…
Grow up, adults!
Apparently, teacher morale is low in the Santa Maria Joint Union High School District (SMJUHSD). At least that’s according to a survey the district’s faculty association told the Santa Maria Times about. Union president Mark Goodman told the Times the association decided to poll its members because of an “unprecedented” 19 grievances the association has…
Cell towers are unsightly, and your neighborhood could be next
I believe that the 80-foot-tall industrial-sized cell tower that Verizon wants to build on the corner of Kenneth Avenue and Via Santa Maria will have a severe negative impact on the property value, health, and environment of the beautiful semi-rural area. The proposed site plays host to stately eucalyptus trees, which are more than 50…
Pragmatic choices
I am currently employed as a safety coordinator at the Phillips 66 Santa Maria Refinery. I have been employed at the refinery for nearly 14 years. I was recently elected as the president of United Steelworkers Local 534, which represents 69 members of the workforce at the refinery. I have been a resident of the…
Slow and low: Rancho Nipomo BBQ knocks the pulled pork out of the cantina with smokin’ style
When you live in a barbecue town, everyone has an opinion on where to get the best barbecue. So an innocent Facebook post asking for suggestions can quickly become a heated debate. That’s not so when the first suggestion is to try Rancho Nipomo. Located at the junction of highways 166 and 101, Rancho Nipomo…
Madison McNamee
Madison McNamee, senior pitcher for the Cabrillo High School softball team, has not one but three league titles to her name. She’s been honored with League MVP multiple times and throws a mean stinkball. Just after the Sun goes to press on June 2, her teammates and she will play for the chance to enter…
Hooked on a feeling: The best on the Central Coast go toe-to-toe with an elite British university on the rugby pitch
Rugby players from Durham University in the UK will play an exhibition game in Santa Maria on June 10. They’ll match up against a team of all-stars pulled from the rugby clubs at UCSB and Cal Poly. The kickoff will be at 5:30 p.m. in Rotary Centennial Park. Julie Villalobos, who with her husband is…
