Cover Story
Santa Maria holds workshops to educate public about new mobile car washing regulations and answer questions
The city of Santa Maria held true to its promise to provide education and outreach around the recently passed mobile car washing ordinance, hosting two bilingual Zoom workshops on April 28 and 29. Local mobile washers had an opportunity get any confusion cleared up around the ordinance, and city officials said they will continue to…
TV REVIEW: EXTERMINATE ALL THE BRUTES (2021)
TV REVIEW: EXTERMINATE ALL THE BRUTES (2021) Where’s it playing? HBO Max What’s it rated? TV-MA Filmmaker Raoul Peck (I Am Not Your Negro) helms this four-part series that reexamines Western civilization and its path to the New World, revealing the truth behind our history rather than the whitewashed version we’ve told ourselves. With brutal…
Meichelle Arntz, founder of Recipes Bakery and Angels Foster Care, leads a virtual baking workshop to benefit the Lionheart Legacy Fund
Monkey see, monkey dough, as participants of an upcoming fundraiser will discover. During the virtual workshop, those who sign up will get to bake their own batch of monkey bread. Led by Recipes Bakery founder Meichelle Arntz, Baking for Angels takes place on a Sunday afternoon (May 16, from 3 to 4:30 p.m.) and pre-registrants…
Solvang’s Wildling Museum presents a new group show, Bio/Mass: Contemporary Meditations on Nature
The two artists responsible for the Wildling Museum’s dreamy window installations earlier this year have paired up once again to co-curate a new exhibit at the same venue. After getting the green light to organize a group show, co-curators Nicole Strasburg and Holli Harmon began discussing which contemporary artists they each hoped to showcase. “We…
Oak Group hosts new exhibit, Circle of Compassion, to benefit the Santa Barbara Wildlife Care Network
The Oak Group announced it will use proceeds from its 35th anniversary exhibition, Circle of Compassion, to benefit the Santa Barbara Wildlife Care Network, a nonprofit dedicated to rescuing and rehabilitating sick, orphaned, and injured birds, reptiles, and small mammals in Santa Barbara and Ventura counties. The exhibit, at the Santa Barbara Fine Art Gallery,…
Santa Ynez Chamber presents outdoor screening of Pixar’s ‘Up’
The Santa Ynez Chamber is hosting an outdoor screening of the Disney/Pixar animated feature, Up, on the corner of Highway 246 and Meadowvale Road in Santa Ynez on May 15. Gates open at 6 p.m. Admission is $30 per car, and face coverings are required. A concession stand, provided by the Santa Ynez Elks Lodge,…
Santa Maria author Tom Jolly releases new novella, ‘A Game of Broken Minds’
May 7 marks the release of A Game of Broken Minds, a new science fiction novella written by Santa Maria local Tom Jolly. The book, published through Distant Shore Publishing, follows a homeless protagonist who becomes the perfect candidate for a mysterious experimental drug. An author and retired engineer, Jolly has written several sci-fi and…
Washing away
What happens when a city passes a regulation without actually putting any thought into it? You get Santa Maria’s recently minted rules surrounding mobile commercial car washers—built to comply with an apparent environmental ask from the Central Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board without actually caring about how it would impact the industry it’s meant…
Cunningham should focus on his full-time job
It’s interesting to see Mr. Cunningham respond to a Sun letter (“Achieving sound public policy,” April 22). In addition to full-time state legislator, gym lawyer, parent, and husband, he is now newspaper commentator? It wouldn’t take a genius to notice that someone is getting the short end of the stick here. I would kindly ask…
The planet isn’t any better off today than it was 50 years ago on the first Earth Day
In Santa Maria, Lompoc, and many other areas of the country, Earth Day was observed a couple of weeks ago as it has been for several decades. It originated in 1970 to recognize and encourage world peace and honor the Earth. In more than 50 years, is the Earth doing any better peacefully or environmentally?…
May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and CenCal Health has resources for those who need it
Raising awareness for mental health during May is an annual occurrence for CenCal Health, but this year’s Mental Health Awareness Month holds particular pertinence. After the past pandemic year, more people are struggling with their mental well-being than before. “COVID-19 has certainly had an effect on everyone: National, state, and local agencies have all documented…
Political Watch: May 6, 2021
Raising awareness for mental health during May is an annual occurrence for CenCal Health, but this year’s Mental Health Awareness Month holds particular pertinence. After the past pandemic year, more people are struggling with their mental well-being than before. “COVID-19 has certainly had an effect on everyone: National, state, and local agencies have all documented…
Unemployment drops, some industries struggle more than others
As the unemployment rate in Santa Barbara County continues to improve, some industries are recovering more quickly than others, according to labor market data and local business leaders. According to the Employment Development Department’s most recent data released on April 16, Santa Barbara County’s unemployment rate was 6.6 percent in March, an improvement from 7.2…
Santa Barbara County launches mobile vaccination program
As demand for COVID-19 vaccinations slows, Santa Barbara County is partnering with willing local organizations and businesses to bring vaccines straight to community members in need. “To increase vaccine access, we have formed five mobile teams available to provide 50 to 300 Moderna vaccinations on-site at work sites, housing facilities, places of worship, warehouses,…
Solvang opposes potential micro-kitchen operations
The Solvang Chamber of Commerce urged the Solvang City Council to send a letter to the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors disapproving of the county’s proposed ordinance that would legalize micro-kitchen operations. During the April 26 council meeting, Chamber Executive Director Tracy Beard said the Chamber is adamantly against micro-kitchens, citing the health and…
Teachers union, district at an impasse in contract negotiations
After a year and a half of contract negotiations between the Santa Maria-Bonita School District and the teachers union, there were some areas where the two parties could not reach an agreement, leading the union to declare a unilateral impasse. The last collective bargaining contract reached by the district and the union was valid from…
