The economy, increasing crime, illegal immigration, and growing pains—the city of Santa Maria faces a host of challenges for the balance of 2010 and beyond, and a crowded field of candidates will be looking for the chance to make the tough decisions as city councilmembers come November. Two seats on the council are up for […]
The rest of the field
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Council contenders
They say seven is a lucky number. When it comes to the Santa Maria City Council race, however, only two of the seven candidates vying for council positions will end up winners come November. The two seats opening up this fall currently belong to council members Hilda Zacarias and Alice Patino. Zacarias announced earlier this […]
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What’s your least favorite back-to-school memory?
Chris Avila salesman “Eating on campus. When I was in school, the food wasn’t good at all.” Chris Cavazos plumber “Every first day of school, all of the fights with my mom about laundry, shoes, food, and so on.” Garrett Rice youth minister “It was the first day of school at Pioneer Valley High School. […]
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Political Watch 08.26
California will soon be receiving $487 million in additional American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funding, according to a press release from U.S. Rep. Lois Capps (D-Santa Barbara). The money is expected to be used to preserve education jobs throughout the state during the upcoming fiscal year. More than $53 billion in stimulus funding has been […]
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Community Notebook 08.26
WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 1 • The Santa Barbara County Planning Commission has its regular meeting at 9 a.m. in the Planning Commission Hearing Room, 123 E. Anapamu St., Santa Barbara. The agenda is available at co.santa-barbara.ca.us. • The Santa Maria Planning Commission has its regular meeting at 6:30 p.m. in the City Council Chambers, City […]
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Hobnobbing With Helen
Tres Hermanas Winery was the site of Marian Medical Center’s (MMC’s) big annual fundraiser, “Waiters Night.” Saturday, Aug. 7, boasted a beautiful afternoon and evening on which to celebrate the successful completion of MMC’s “Cornerstone Campaign,” co-chaired by Georganne Ferini and Ann Foxworthy Lewellen. These two intrepid ladies helped MMC pull in a whopping $15 […]
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Sides take shape in the jail tax debate
Where three of his predecessors have failed, Santa Barbara County Sheriff Bill Brown is determined to succeed. For more than 20 years, officials, judges, and grand juries have deemed the county’s jail capacity inadequate, and Brown is stumping heavily for what would be the largest public works building project in the county’s history: an $80 […]
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Be PetSafe
On Aug. 29, Santa Barbara County Animal Services will be giving away some free swag to dogs and their people at the Project PetSafe Outreach Clinic. The event will be held from 9 to 11 a.m. at the Wags n’ Whiskers Festival 2010 at Girsh Park in Goleta. The clinic could be worth the drive […]
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Oceano CSD discovers mysterious bank accounts
Officials of the Oceano Community Services District are struggling to uncover how almost $368,000 in district funds were kept secret from the district’s board of directors and even the general manager. General Manager Raffaele Montemurro recently discovered five certificate of deposit accounts, the earliest of which was opened in 1991. The most recent account was […]
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Who composted?
After hundreds of neighbor complaints about smelly composting operations at Cold Canyon Landfill in San Luis Obispo, the landfill operators are planning to shut down an 11-year-old recycling program. Though the California Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery (CalRecycle) hasn’t mandated the closure of composting at Cold Canyon, landfill officials said the department will instead […]
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Lompoc City Council gives new community center the go-ahead
After several years of uncertainty, Lompoc is finally getting a new community center. And now it will bear the name of longtime mayor and city advocate Dick DeWees, who passed away last year. On Aug. 17, the Lompoc City Council authorized city staffers to award construction and management contracts to two different companies. They also […]
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Los Padres Bank is seized by federal regulators and acquired by Pacific Western
The prolonged banking crisis hit close to home on Aug. 20 as the federal Office of Thrift Supervision shut down branches of Los Padres Bank, a financial institution headquartered in Solvang. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) was named temporary receiver of the failed bank, in turn selling it to San Diego-based PacWest Bancorp—parent company […]