TUESDAY, MARCH 17 • The Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors has its regular meeting at 9 a.m. in the Board of Supervisors Hearing Room, 105 E. Anapamu St., Santa Barbara. Agendas are available at bos-agenda.sbcgov.net. • The Guadalupe Planning Commission has its regular meeting at 6 p.m. in the City Council Chambers, City Hall, […]
Community Notebook 3-12
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Hobnobbing with Helen
It was all kind of, well, very Hollywood—but in a down-home Santa Maria way. It was the Orcutt Children’s Art Foundation’s (OCAF’s) Sixth Annual Winter Gala, this year honoring CafeFX, a homegrown visual effects studio, and its founders, Jeff Barnes and Dave Ebner. On Feb. 20, more than 200 people flocked to the Radisson Hotel […]
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Website connects contractors with clients
Homeowners and industry professionals looking to hire contracted construction work have a new local resource available to them: Jobtrio.com. The Santa Barbara-based website allows users to search a database of more than 250,000 statewide contractors. Results can be sorted by union and non-union labor, and individual cell phone numbers are available for specific employees. Contractors […]
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Country radiothon raises funds for children’s hospital
For the 10th straight year, radio station Sunny Country 102.5 will hold a radiothon to raise money for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. The event is set for March 12 and 13. The donations benefit children afflicted with cancer and other debilitating illnesses. The station has raised more than $500,000 for children in past radiothons. […]
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Nominate your favorite farmer
The Santa Maria Fairpark is accepting nominations for people who have made significant contributions to the agricultural industry of Santa Barbara County. Submit nominations for Agri-Business Person of the Year, Farmer of the Year, and Livestock Producer of the Year until April 17. Applications should provide background information to support the nomination, as recipients will […]
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Help For Mommy connects families to caregivers
Parents who want babysitting or tutoring for their children need look no further than Help For Mommy, an organization dedicated to connecting families with skilled childcare workers, nannies, and tutors. Now at a new location—515 E. Clark Ave. in old Orcutt—Help For Mommy places local job ads for families seeking child or pet care services […]
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Still fighting it
As the sun went down and temperatures dropped on March 4, people gathered at the corner of Main and Broadway to take part in a candlelight vigil and march on Santa Maria City Hall. In a matter of hours, the California Supreme Court would hear arguments in the legal challenges against Proposition 8, that divisive […]
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Oh, baby
The Suleman family—33-year-old Nadya and her octuplets—has been at the center of a raging media storm ever since the babies’ controversial birth a little more than a month ago. On Jan. 26, Suleman gave birth to six boys and two girls—weighing between 1 pound, 8 ounces, and 3 pounds, 4 ounces—at Kaiser Permanente Bellflower Medical […]
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Stop that drip-drip-dripping
March 16 through 20 is national “Fix a Leak Week,” and Santa Barbara County is on board to celebrate it to the fullest. A press release from the county announced that sbwater.org is linking directly to the Environmental Protection Agency’s “WaterSense” program’s campaign to encourage people to repair “dripping faucets, running toilets, leaky showerheads, and […]
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Santa Marians can discuss proposed water rate increases
Water. Everybody uses it. It flows from faucets and down drains—all of which costs money. But how much money? That depends. The City of Santa Maria Utilities Department will be host to a March 23 public workshop to discuss proposed water and sewer rate increases. Residents received notices in their utility bills throughout February. According […]
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Santa Barbara County supervisors consider a change to CEO’s job responsibilities
The Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors is one step closer to reassuming the power to hire and fire county department heads. On March 3, the board voted 3-2, with 4th District Supervisor Joni Gray and 5th District Supervisor Joe Centeno dissenting, to temporarily take back that duty from County Executive Officer Mike Brown. Brown […]
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Food lovers rejoice at Trader Joe’s long-awaited opening
The wait is over for Santa Maria’s foodies and veggie-heads as the city’s first Trader Joe’s opens its doors on March 16. Headquartered in Monrovia, the quirky grocery chain is known for its Hawaiian-themed ambiance, its stock of California wines, and its selection of specialty and organic food products sold under the company’s private label. […]