Cover Story
How to move mountains: Volunteers collaborate to build Lompoc’s River Bend Bike Park
A coastal breeze made its mid-morning rounds on Nov. 2, and Dave Baker breathed in the aroma of fresh, wet dirt. Wearing a black hooded sweatshirt, cargo shorts, and work boots, Baker stood on top of a 12-foot mound inside the nearly completed River Bend Bike Park in Lompoc. From the tallest point in the…
Challenge thy neighbor: Santa Maria’s Pennsylvania Street lies at the heart of a 40-year-old dispute
Pennsylvania Street is a dead-end, unpaved street with a few potholes. Among the half-a-dozen evenly divided properties that line the street branching off of Newlove east of Miller Road is one that boasts a 7-foot-high wooden fence bordering a backyard overflowing with lush greenery punctuated by purple morning glories. A small, dried-up flowerbed sectioned by…
Musicians help shape the cultural landscape with their art
When Chuck Berry cut his debut single “Maybellene” at Chess Records in 1955, it’s hard to say whether he or Leonard Chess knew exactly what was about to happen. The song was recorded while black Americans were still fighting for basic civil rights and the same year that Rosa Parks refused to give up her…
What do you like to do for fun? What does this area need to improve recreation-wise?
Manuel Magana manufacturing “I go to the gym. Go-karts that go over 10 mph.” C.J. Galindo shipping “Jogging. Better playgrounds for kids” Kathleen Johnston grandmother “Come to Waller Park. There needs to be a teens’ center.” Miguel Gamboa electrical engineer “I like fishing. Water, the lakes are pretty low.”
Snow angels, snow men, snow way!
I adore this time of year. Starting in September, my autumn mood switches into overdrive. I wear sweaters and fleece shirts with fall and winter themes embroidered on them. I dress the dog in holiday sweaters and hoodies. I add cinnamon to everything and buy holiday issues of Martha Stewart Living. I find excuses to…
Fiber artists showing at the C Gallery
The C Gallery in Los Alamos is currently showing the exhibit Natural Tendencies, which is a showcase of works by members of the group Fibervision, a location coalition of artists who use fiber to create their fine art pieces. Opening Nov. 15 and showing through Jan. 14, Natural Tendencies includes works by Fibervision artists and…
Local dance teacher to judge prestigious competition
Local swing dance teacher John Wheaton has been invited to judge the US Open National Swing Dance Championships, which is largely considered to be one of the most prestigious swing dance events in the world. Wheaton began dancing in the late 1980s and began teaching the ’90s. He teaches and emcees dance events around the…
Altrusa announces fall grants
The Altrusa International Foundation of Santa Maria has announced the recipients of its fall grants, which totaled $17,000. The group has a long history of donating and supporting local literacy, education, and arts programs. The recipients of the fall grants include the Friends of the Guadalupe Library, Oasis Senior Center, Court Appointed Special Advocates, Santa…
Lompoc Museum shows paintings by Carol J. Oliveira
The Lompoc Museum is currently showing an exhibition of paintings by local artist Carol J. Oliveira with a theme focusing on happiness. Things that Make Me Smile features paintings of subjects that Oliveira enjoys, like faith, family, friends, children, animals, scenery, and missions. Oliveira moved to Lompoc in 1969 without ever having painted, but that…
It’s only natural: Daytripping to the UCSB Sedgwick Reserve and the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History
I won’t say it was easy for my wife and I to wake up at 7 on a Saturday morning, but once we made it to the UCSB Sedgwick Reserve in time for registration and the 9 a.m. interpretive hike departure, we had no regrets. The UCSB Sedgwick Reserve—which serves as a field station and…
PCPA addresses community thoughts in a theatre production
Words are so easily forgotten. Most of us speak with the hopes that what we say will be remembered, but there’s no guarantee of it. The Pacific Conservatory Theatre (PCPA) is presenting another production in the Community Speaks series, which seeks to give voice to locals by performing their words verbatim, but without revealing the…
Recognizing Reuben: This is the season when a hot and hearty sandwich really hits the spot
Maybe it’s my humble Midwestern roots. Or maybe it’s the crisp chill in the air this time of year. Or maybe it’s the gooey cheese and salty meat. Or maybe, just maybe, it’s the sauerkraut, which I recall my German immigrant relatives serving on every holiday table. Whatever the reason, I find great comfort in…
Discovery Corner: Giving thanks around the world
The month of November is best known for Thanksgiving. Soon it will be time to come together as a family to feast and give thanks for the blessings in our lives. Of course, giving thanks isn’t just an American thing; numerous holidays across the world are dedicated to the art of being thankful. This month…
Lompoc Fire Department teaches children how to be fire safe
Volunteers from the Lompoc Firefighters Foundation joined members from the Lompoc Fire Department on Nov. 10 to give children in the Chumash Learning Center lessons on emergency preparedness and what to do if a fire occurs. The department visited the Reservation with a Community Risk Reduction training trailer funded in part by the Santa Ynez…
Human trafficking presentation coming to Hancock
The Central Coast Branches of the American Association of University Women and the Santa Barbara County Commission for Women will play host to a program on human trafficking on Nov. 20. The free event will feature Opal Singleton, president and CEO of Million Kids and director of development for Rapha House International, and Megan Rheinschild,…
Righetti students honor their own
In a ceremony based on the National Renaissance Recognition Program, more than 350 Ernest Righetti High School students received awards on Nov. 5 for earning a minimum 3.0 GPA or improving their GPA by 0.5. The national program is sponsored by Jostens and is designed to acknowledge student success. Seniors, juniors, and sophomores had to…
Spotlight on: Wine Country Airlines
Forget about Napa. Santa Barbara County is becoming more of a wine destination, attracting enthusiasts from every pocket of California, and even visitors from out of state. Patricia Kerrigan, a former airline industry consultant and long-time resident of the county, found a niche market and established Wine Country Airlines, which could be making flights out…
Political Watch 11/13/14
• The city of Santa Maria is accepting applications for residents who want to serve on the All-American City Committee, the Landmark Committee, the Measure U2012 Citizen’s Oversight Committee, the Planning Commission, the Recreation and Parks Commission, and the Santa Maria Community Television Committee. Applications will be accepted until Jan. 2, 2015, and the appointments…
Community Notebook 11/13/14-11/20/14
TUESDAY, NOV. 18 • The Lompoc Unified School District has its board meeting at 5:30 p.m. at the Education Center Board Room, 1301 N. A St., Lompoc. • The Solvang School District Board of Trustees has its regular meeting at 6 p.m. in the lower campus Multi-Use Room at Solvang Elementary School, 565 Atterdag Road,…
Hobnobbing with Helen
Election Day is over, but the memory lingers on. Hobnobbing hit the campaign trail at the tail end of the process and went to check out the action at two election-night City Council election celebrations—one each for incumbent Jack Boysen and council newcomer Etta Waterfield. The night was pitch black and dark as mud, but…
Community Corner: The giving season begins with Thanksgiving food drive
The Food Bank of Santa Barbara County kicked off its annual community Thanksgiving drive on Nov. 3 with a generous donation of 100 frozen turkeys from Stu and Jan Bartleson. Wells Fargo is sponsoring the food drive this year with a $15,000 one-to-one challenge grant, which will put the Food Bank that much closer to…
People’s Self-Help gets a USDA loan for low income units
The low-income housing situation in Santa Maria comes down to this: the vacancy rate for income-restricted residences is 0.1 percent and the waitlist is five years long. Once people get into a unit, they stay. And it’s hard to get into a unit in the first place. According to market study done by People’s Self-Help…
A Lompoc extortion case suspect is still missing
A warrant is still out for a Lompoc woman who’s a suspect in an extortion case that includes six other defendants. She’d yet to be arrested on the evening of Nov. 6. On Nov. 3, the grand jury returned criminal indictments against all the suspects in the case, alleging five counts of extortion and a…
Former Taco Ranchero employee files a lawsuit
Teresa Lopez, a long-time employee of Taco Ranchero in Santa Maria, wants her wages and tip money back. In a lawsuit filed in Santa Maria Civil Court in early November, Lopez alleges that her former employer, Francisco Fernandez, garnished her wages and tips and denied her proper rest periods during her shifts. Under California law,…
Judge dismisses lawsuit against Chumash tribal leaders
In the same week that Santa Barbara County supervisors directed county counsel to pursue appeals and litigation opposing the potential Bureau of Indian Affairs decisions regarding a 1,400-acre property owned by the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians, a judge dismissed a lawsuit against Tribal Chairman Vincent Armenta that had to do with the same…
Classified Delta 4 Rocket arrives at Vandenberg
Vandenberg Air Force Base received its new Delta 4 rocket on Nov. 5. The delivery came via cargo ship from a manufacturing plant in Alabama, according to a press release from the base. The Delta Mariner cargo ship brought the rocket, which was manufactured at the United Launch Alliance plant in Decatur, Ala. The harbor…
A horse of a different color
Last week I wrote–not for the first time–about the bizarrely uphill battles the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians fight every time they want to do anything more than merely continue existing the way they currently do in the county. Of course locals are wary about any proposals that might make their pocket of paradise…
Measure P opponents and proponents coming together
Measure P failed, with 62 percent of voters opposed to the proposition, with the economy on the forefront of people’s minds. As with most decisions in politics, both sides were entrenched in their views, believing the other side to be wildly wrong. Now oil drilling will continue and certainly expand in the county, bringing in…
Whooping cough outbreak: A public health perspective
While today’s headlines in the media highlight the threat of Ebola and our local health care community has appropriately been planning and preparing for months should this risk materialize, we have a real infectious disease danger already here in Santa Barbara County. Thirteen cases of pertussis, or “whooping cough” have been identified just in the…
What’s On Deck 11/13/14-11/20/14
Friday, Nov. 14 Men’s Soccer AHC vs. Oxnard College @ AHC, 3 p.m. Women’s Soccer AHC vs. Ventura College @ Ventura College, 6 p.m. Women’s Volleyball AHC vs. LA Pierce College @ AHC, 6 p.m. Cross Country CIF Southern Section Preliminaries @ Mt. San Antonio College, 7 a.m.
California scorpionfish fishery will close on Nov. 15
The California Department of Fish and Wildlife will close both the commercial and recreational fishery for California scorpionfish on Nov. 15, and it will remain closed statewide through the end of the year. The CDFW predicts that the California scorpionfish’s annual catch limit for 2014 will be exceeded unless the fishery is closed. Fishing for…
Elementary schools duked it out for the flag
Tunnell Elementary School took on Ralph Dunlap Elementary School in the Boys and Girls Club All-Valley Flag Football Super Bowl championship on Nov. 6. The Tunnell Thunderbirds overtook the Dunlap Dolphins, 30-0, under the lights at the Pioneer Valley High School football field. The Thunderbirds were victorious for the second year in a row. The…
Justin Murillo
The Ernest Righetti High School varsity boys’ water polo team won the Pacific Athletic Conference 8 championship on Nov. 7. The Warriors sunk the Arroyo Grande High School Eagles 12-7 in their home waters. Righetti held the lead the entire game. At one point, the Eagles scored three unanswered goals, which brought them within two…
Santa Ynez High gets ready for CIF after winning the LPL
Four legs move almost in unison. Two feet hit the dirt trail as two feet swing up and back. One pair runs just inches behind the other as Santa Ynez Valley Union High School juniors Brian Illes and Johnny Jimenez pace themselves on the backside of the Mills’ property, a few acres of open fields…
