A former Allan Hancock College instructor is facing criminal charges of committing sexual assault. The San Luis Obispo County District Attorney’s Office accused Kevin Daily, 29—an engineer and one-time instructor of industrial technology at the Santa Maria community college—of rape by use of drugs and unlawfully manufacturing a firearm and an assault weapon, according to […]
Former Allan Hancock College instructor is charged with sexual assault
Posted inMusic, Arts & Culture
Santa Maria Public Library holds club for Pokémon enthusiasts
The Pokémon Club at the Santa Maria Public Library will hold its next public meeting on Saturday, July 8, at 11 a.m. Fans of the trading card game, video games, and television show are encouraged to attend. Call (805) 925-0994 or visit cityofsantamaria.org for more info. The library is located at 421 S. McClelland St., […]
Posted inMusic, Arts & Culture
Central Coast Creative Corps awards grants to local artist-led groups, initiatives
Twenty-three organizations were recently selected through a competitive regional call to receive $140,000 grants as part of the Central Coast Creative Corps, a pilot grant program funded by the California Arts Council. Grantees were selected from a pool of more than 100 applicants by a panel of Central Coast-based artists and community leaders. Organizations in […]
Posted inMusic, Arts & Culture
Emma Enchanted
Sunset showings The Pacific Conservatory Theatre (PCPA) presents its production of Emma at the Solvang Festival Theater through Sunday, July 2. The company’s next production, Bright Star, will open at the outdoor venue on Friday, July 7, and run through Sunday, July 23. Visit pcpa.org or facebook.com/pacificconservatorytheatre for tickets and show times. For more info, […]
Posted inOpinion
Could this be ‘weather weirding’?
There is no doubt that the weather we have had this year has been weird, culminating in rare June rain. Can we attribute these record highs and lows, droughts and floods to a newly unstable climate? Might that be because a century of greenhouse gas emissions has trapped solar heat, magnified the shifts of the […]
Posted inOpinion
RIP latecomers
Being in or adjacent to the cannabis biz right now has got to stink. The Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors has gotten the short end of the stink, I mean stick, for too long, and it’s taking action. During its June 27 meeting, the board voted to implement the “death penalty” for cannabis businesses […]
Posted inOpinion
Politicians allowing ‘broken windows’ has led to a surge in quality-of-life crimes
Back in September 2017 in a locally published commentary, I observed “Broken windows; Lompoc is full of them”; this commentary was based on a theory by social scientists James Q. Wilson and George Kelling in 1982 that used broken windows as a metaphor for disorder within neighborhoods. Expanding on the theory, they wrote, “If the […]
Posted inNews
Central Coast cities host panel discussions and screenings of new film, American Hospitals, Healing a Broken System
See for yourself To request a showing of American Hospitals, Fixing a Broken System, visit fixithealthcare.com/host-a-screening to sign up to host a free screening of the film in your community. While he doesn’t believe the current hospital industry is wholeheartedly corrupt—and in fact, he’s proud to see the innovations the industry has made over the […]
Posted inNews
Political Watch: June 29, 2023
• State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond and state Sen. Monique Límon (D-Santa Barbara) are calling on textbook publishers to diversify their instructional materials and work with the task force they co-chair, a special Task Force on Inclusive Education. “As our nation grapples with book bans and literary exclusions, it is critical we ensure […]
Posted inNews
County to implement ‘death penalty’ for late cannabis tax payment
Cannabis businesses that don’t pay their quarterly taxes or file the accompanying report within the 30-day grace period could lose their license to operate in Santa Barbara County starting in August. “It’s that severe,” Deputy County Executive Officer Brittany Odermann told the Board of Supervisors on June 27. “You are late. … You cannot renew.” […]
Posted inNews
Study examines the future of Oceano Dunes with OHV ban
An independent study is attempting to dust off an image of the Oceano Dunes’ future should off-road vehicle (OHV) use be permanently reduced or stopped at the state park. Called the Oceano Dunes Stewardship Study, the 105-page document released on June 1 detailed 20 recommendations as a blueprint for prospective development, management, and promotion of […]
Posted inMusic, Arts & Culture
Great American Melodrama presents Under the Boardwalk
A whimsical rivalry between two groups of beach dwellers is explored in the Great American Melodrama’s latest production, Under The Boardwalk, which opened in late May and is scheduled to run through mid-July. According to press materials, the plot of the show, set at Pismo Beach, follows an “unthinkable” romance between a clam and a […]