Thank you for this long over-due commentary (“Damage in the dunes,” June 12). I am also writing to the California Coastal Commission to plea for vehicle-free beaches. There is no excuse to ruin the dunes and the beach with noise and pollution and endangering animals, so thank you, thank you. I don’t seem to be […]
We should keep vehicles off the beaches
Posted inOpinion
Tell us your name, little bird
Suggestions for your column, “The Canary”: The writer’s name should go with the piece. Your letters to the editor require names—why not columns? The New Times Shredder/Sun Canary may have been fine when Steve Moss first started them, but no more. I am not a journalist, but newspapers have an obligation to clearly and accurately […]
Posted inOpinion
Keep your chin up, Bill
I feel so much safer now that the Off-Highway Vehicle law enforcers gave elder Bill Denneen a citation for walking his “tour” of kids in a preserve in order to protect from vehicles and “preserve” their safety (“Damage in the dunes,” June 12). I feel so much safer knowing that the OHSVRA cops are on […]
Posted inNews
Community West Bank adds new senior vice president
Sharon Brown is the new senior vice president, director of human resources, for Community West Bank, based in Goleta. She will oversee all human resource functions for the bank’s 150 employees at multiple locations. “Sharon brings over 20 years of human resources experience to Community West Bank,” Lynda Nahra, CEO and president of Community West […]
Posted inNews
Local businessman completes professional development series
Timothy Holt, president of Preservation Capital Group LLC, successfully completed level II of the Professional Development Series at the Grubb and Ellis 2008 Real Estate Symposium. The two-day event was held in Newport Beach, and sponsored by the Tenant-In-Common Association. The topics covered were recent developments in commercial real estate, specifically relating to 1031 tax […]
Posted inNews
Rice Ranch celebrates grand opening in Orcutt
The 580-acre development with a sports field, walking trails, bike paths, and, of course, houses, is now open for business in Orcutt. Western Pacific Land Group, the developer behind Rice Ranch, held a grand opening on June 7 and, according to a news release, about 2,000 people turned out to tour the new housing development. […]
Posted inNews
Hancock forum to offer solutions to gang-related problems
Allan Hancock College is offering a forum on gangs in the Santa Maria Valley on June 19 and 26, from 7 to 9 p.m. at Atkinson Community Center, 1000 N. Railroad, in Santa Maria. The forum will be offered in Spanish, and English translation will be provided. The event is free and open to the […]
Posted inNews
Santa Barbara County Planning Commission approves new Firestone event center
On June 11, the Santa Barbara County Planning Commission approved plans to use land and facilities, owned by outgoing 3rd District Supervisor Brooks Firestone, for a special events center. The commission voted 4-0-1, with Firestone-appointed 3rd District Planning Commissioner C.J. Jackson abstaining, to send the proposed rezoning and events center permit on to the Board […]
Posted inNews
Santa Maria Restorative Justice Task Force pushes for North County jail, crime prevention
In an effort to create a safer, crime-free community, the Santa Maria Restorative Justice Task Force welcomed members of the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department to its June 12 meeting, where they presented the final report and the Blue Ribbon Commission on Jail Overcrowding’s recommendations. According to the report, the Santa Barbara County jail system […]
Posted inNews
Suicide ‘destination’ may soon be no more
On June 13, a passerby who saw a man walking along the Cold Spring Canyon Bridge called for help. When California Highway Patrol officers got there, the man claimed to be out for a walk, but after further questioning, he made a break for the edge of the bridge, said Commander Dominick Palera with the […]
Posted inNews
Making cents – heads and tails – of the budget
On June 13, after a week filled with lengthy presentations and impassioned pleas from the public, the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors approved a final 2008-09 budget, which comes in at around $760 million and features millions of dollars in cuts to county-sponsored programs. The supervisors deliberated over the county’s available fiscal balance—approximately $4.1 […]
Posted inNews
Right on track
The president of Santa Maria Valley Railroad loved trains as a kid, but never laid a penny on the track to watch a locomotive flatten it. “Most of the time they just fly off,” he explained. Such no-nonsense practicality is the driving force behind management at the railroad, led by Robert Himoto, a man with […]