Cover Story
Protect it or profit? The struggle continues over the future of Tranquillon Ridge
Miles of undeveloped coastline runs along the Central Coast creating a desirable place to live and recreate, but what isn’t immediately apparent is an ongoing struggle between preserving what we see and tapping what lies beneath that land. At the heart of the struggle is Tranquillon Ridge, an area that sits off the coast of…
Lompoc makes it easier to get permits for solar panels
It’s not easy bein’ green, according to Kermit the Frog. But that’s what California is hoping its residents will be with its new solar panel law that the Lompoc City Council officially adopted on Sept. 1. Passed into state law in September 2014, Assembly Bill 2188 mandates that cities in California streamline the process of…
Learn to play and make a didgeridoo at CovenTree in Santa Maria
Watch a video of Neil Miyamoto explaining the technique of circular breathing. CovenTree Books and Gifts in Santa Maria played host to an informal gathering for those interested in the didgeridoo on Aug. 29. It was a meet up to gauge interest in the possibility of a didgeridoo crafting event, lessons, and possible “didge circle”…
Santa Maria high schools get bus cameras
A new student tracking system and cameras are being installed on Santa Maria Joint Union High School District’s entire school bus fleet this year. The $200,000 monitoring system, called vMax Trac, will track students electronically—with an RFID reader (radio frequency identification)—when they swipe their ID cards as they get on and off the district’s 31…
Allan Hancock College ranked in top 10 safest schools in the nation
If students feel confident walking the Allan Hancock College campus there is a reason why: It was listed the seventh safest campus in the U.S. by homeinsurance.com. The college got the ranking because of its zero instances of violent crimes and a walkability score of 48. Homeinsurance.com looked at more than 400 colleges and universities…
Spotlight on: Healthy but Good
Before 2001, Helen Bloom noticed that she had an “office body.” This is not a good thing, according to Bloom, who describes it as a condition of excess weight and poor posture she acquired after years of working as a financial manager and doing most of her work while sitting at her desk. She gained…
A crystal anniversary
I’m celebrating an anniversary. No, not my wedding anniversary; I can never remember when that is exactly. I’m celebrating “Man Overboard’s” 15th anniversary with the Sun. Yes, I was able to continually write this column while our Earth orbited the actual sun 15 different times, and somehow I wasn’t fired. There were 391 separate “Man…
Saintliness is in the eye of the beholder
Junipero Serra: “Is he saint material?” asks the Sun in its Sept. 3 cover story, “Mission to sainthood.” What a fitting question for Santa Maria, the most venerated Saint, Mother of God, and home of the Saints! But is a saint, as the subtitle suggests, and the church and history experts quoted in the article…
Tacos Lupe’s serves lunch in the ghost town of Betteravia
If you’re looking for tacos—tripe or tongue—follow Horace Greeley’s advice, and go west, young man. Specifically, go west on Betteravia. And keep going west. Stay right when it peels toward Guadalupe; keep going west, through the broccoli and the spinach, until you see the tanks. They’re hard to miss: 6 miles outside of Santa Maria,…
Autumn Arts Festival now includes scarecrow contest
Santa Maria businesses and organizations wishing to celebrate the upcoming Autumn Arts Festival can do so by making a scarecrow for consideration in the festivals’ scarecrow decorating contest, a new addition to the festivities this year. Scarecrows and harvest-themed scenes can be set up in local storefronts or window displays in preparation for the festival.…
Xombiewoof Records raising funds for benefit album
Xombiewoof Magazine, and its new record label Xombiewoof Records, currently has a crowd funding campaign open on Indiegogo.com for an album set to raise funds for St. Jude Children’s Hospital, the Heartbeat4Kids Foundation, and the Central Coast Diabetes Foundation. The album, titled Black Winter, will feature 20 tracks, each by a different heavy metal band.…
The Santa Ynez Valley Historical Museum holds Arabian horse farm tour
Four local Arabian horse breeding and training farms are included on the tour, which ends with a wine reception back at the museum. Arabian horses are known for their ability to form close bonds with their masters, and the event will include demonstrations of the breed’s versatile skills. Local veterinarians will also be on site…
Los Alamos Branch Library opens thanks to years’ worth of concerted community support
Folders of paperwork were laid open on the bar in the Bedford Winery tasting room on the sunny morning of Sept. 1 as owner and Friends of the Los Alamos Public Library President Stephan Bedford poured over the reams of information-laden documents, all pertaining to the nearly ready-to-open Los Alamos Branch Library. The library is…
Descendants of Julian Ritter showcase his paintings in Guadalupe
The incredible story of the German-born painter Julian Ritter includes art and adventures that span the globe, his son Mike Ritter told the Sun. But his talent was apparent even at an early age, when he received guidance from an artist in Germany when he was a small child. Ritter’s talent bore him across oceans,…
Santa Barbara supes weigh renewal of Corizon Health contract after inmate death in county jail
Representatives from Corizon Health Incorporated, the Tennessee-based company that provides health care in Santa Barbara County’s correctional facilities, made the case for a two-year renewal of its contract during a contentious hearing before the Board of Supervisors Sept. 8. The board ultimately agreed to extend the contract 18 months with Corizon, and the Santa Barbara…
Group of Santa Maria mothers fight mandatory vaccine law
Even with the passage of SB 277—a California law that removes all personal and religious vaccination exemptions for schoolchildren—those who oppose the new law aren’t giving up without a fight. A group of Santa Maria mothers is involved in a statewide effort to get voters to sign a referendum that would “negate the mandatory vaccine…
Santa Maria police officers stop knife-wielding suspect with beanbag rounds
While headlines about police shootings continue to dominate the American news in 2015, such a tragedy was avoided during the early morning hours of Sept. 4 when police from the Santa Maria Police Department neutralized a knife-wielding man with a couple of beanbags instead of bullets. According to SMPD Lt. James Ginter, officers responded to…
Santa Maria pararescuer Mike Maroney finds Katrina girl
U.S. Air Force pararescueman and Santa Maria native Mike Maroney woke up to some really good news on the morning of Sept. 2. Maroney’s son told him that he found the identity of the little girl Maroney rescued from the floodwaters of New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina 10 years ago. The Sun profiled Maroney for…
Do you think minimum wage should be increased to $15 in Santa Barbara County?
Ika Chuck caretaker “I think so, because cost of living is going up. The price of common things like milk, eggs, and gas are more expensive.” Azuba Jaime sales representative “Definitely, because everything’s more expensive.” Nancy Martinez military wife “I think so. And leave the cost of living the way it is.” Jesse Ramirez worker…
Rylee Sager
“Many coaches told me that playing different sports would get me worn out,” Rylee Sager said. The Lompoc High School senior disagrees. She ran cross country for two years before taking up golf for the next two. During the winter, she “plays everywhere” for the Lompoc basketball team—on varsity from her freshman year onward. And…
Guadalupe resident Tetsu Furukawa remembers baseball and internment during World War II
Guadalupe native Tetsu Furukawa, now 88, grew up playing baseball on the local grammar school diamond. In February of 1942, at age 14, Furukawa was told he had to leave to town. “My parents got two suitcases for each kid,” he recalled. “When we went to camp, I opened my suitcase, and right on the…
Lawsuits galore
In the sleazy underworld of corporate criminals taking advantage of one another, it would seem Albertsons reigns supreme. And not because it spawned a grocery store or two in every town on the Central Coast. Sometimes, I just want a local grocery store, you know, not some mad dash into a corporate store where it…
Political Watch 9/10/15
• On Aug. 31., Gov. Jerry Brown signed an executive order to bolster California’s preparedness and response to destructive cyber-attacks, which increase the state’s vulnerability to economic disruption, critical infrastructure damage, privacy violations, and identify theft. The order directs the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services to establish the California Cybersecurity Integration Center (Cal-CSIC), which will…
Community Notebook 9/10/15 – 9/17/15
Monday, Sept. 14 • 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…
