Marigolds, colorful paper banners, traditional foods, candles, and memories. These and other meaningful elements will come together to create a community altar at this year’s Lompoc Unified School District (LUSD) Dia de los Muertos event. The district invites community members to celebrate their ancestors and culture on Nov. 2 from 2 to 7 p.m. at […]
Lompoc Unified School District invites the community to celebrate Dia de los Muertos
Posted inNews
Political Watch: October 31, 2024
• Santa Barbara County Registrar of Voters Joe Holland reminds voters that as Election Day approaches, voters have several options for returning their ballots, according to an Oct. 24 statement from the county. “All registered voters in Santa Barbara County were mailed an official vote-by-mail ballot and voting materials in early October,” Holland said in […]
Posted inNews
Santa Maria Joint Union school board candidates address school safety
In the face of student violence, discrimination allegations from students, leadership changes at Pioneer Valley High School, and behavioral issues, high school district board candidates Gabriel A. Morales and Alma Hernandez see communication from the district as a key component to addressing these issues. Morales and Hernandez are facing off in the Santa Maria Joint […]
Posted inFood & Drink
Sta. Rita Hills’ Alma Rosa Winery launches first open-air tram tour
Now boarding Find out more about Alma Rosa Winery’s new open-air tram tour, visit almarosawinery.com. The tour is offered daily, between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m., for parties of up to seven people. Admission is $100 per person. Reservations are required in advance. The tram begins and ends at Alma Rosa Winery’s historic Ranch House, […]
Posted inMusic, Arts & Culture
BLAST FROM THE PAST: Halloween
Halloween What’s it rated? R When? 1978 Where’s it showing? Thursday, Oct. 31, at 7 p.m., at the Palm Theatre of San Luis Obispo Writer-director-composer John Carpenter helms this classic slasher film about mental patient Michael Myers, committed to a sanitarium at age 6 for stabbing his teenage sister to death with a chef’s knife. […]
Posted inNews
Solvang amends its 2024-26 city priorities after progress report
Six months into its projected two-year duration, Solvang’s list of city goals is split between projects underway and those dormant since April. City staff recently drafted a status update that outlines some of the campaign’s improvement projects in progress, while stamping others as “on hold” or “no work completed.” Originally labeled as a consent item, […]
Posted inNews
County and cities face health, safety concerns with unpermitted food vendors
Al pastor meat sitting in a 5 gallon, dirty plastic bucket on the side of the road. Beans, tamales, and/or fruit resting in coolers with no hint as to where the food’s been prepared. Grease from what’s been cooked dumped into gutters, storm drains, and transportation paths. These are some of the food health […]
Posted inNews
Home base: Local students could soon earn four-year degrees at Allan Hancock College—but the program awaits CSU approval
For the 12 years Kevin Walthers has been with Allan Hancock College, he has tried to work with the California State University System to make obtaining four-year degrees an opportunity for students on the Santa Maria campus. He’s so close to making that long-awaited dream a reality. Hancock recently received provisional approval from the California […]
Posted inFood & Drink
Local roaster Zaca Coffee makes its coffee shop debut in Buellton
Roast host Visit zacacoffee.com or call (805) 698-4540 to find out more about Zaca Coffee’s new coffee shop, located at 240 E. Highway 246, unit 109, Buellton. It’s not every day that you see a llama riding a surfboard, unless you’re spending every day at Zaca Coffee—which opened its first brick-and-mortar shop in Buellton in […]
Posted inSpecial Issues
Santa Barbara County received a state grant to explore ways to keep pet families together
With their unconditional loyalty, big eyes filled with nothing but love, and snuggles that bring endless comfort, pets can be the biggest support system for people going through tough times. But that support system can morph into the biggest barrier when trying to access services to improve their circumstances. “One of the things we talk […]
Posted inMusic, Arts & Culture
NEW FLICKS: Megalopolis
Megalopolis What’s it rated? R When? 2024 Where’s it showing? The Bay Theatre of Morro Bay Auteur Francis Ford Coppola’s decades-in-the-making fable-like passion project has finally arrived with a resounding clunk, but does it deserve being panned? I mean, this is the director of The Godfather trilogy, Apocalypse Now, and The Conversation we’re talking about. […]