• U.S. Rep. Salud Carbajal (D-Santa Barbara) denounced a measure put up for a vote that would “hamstring” the executive branch’s ability to release oil from the United States’ strategic reserves, despite evidence that previous releases have helped offset gas price spikes over the past year, according to a Jan. 27 statement from the congressman’s […]
Political Watch: February 9, 2023
Posted inNews
Los Padres ForestWatch launches a web app that shows trail closures throughout the Central Coast
When the Los Padres National Forest announced a 60-day closure in four of its five ranger districts—encompassing a majority of its trails—after January’s storms, nonprofit Los Padres ForestWatch saw the need for a new informational service. Any time there’s a large closure, storm- or fire-related, many members of the public who like to recreate outdoors […]
Posted inMusic, Arts & Culture
Wildling Museum seeks environmental art proposals for upcoming 10-month installation
For the past two years, the Wildling Museum of Art and Nature has commissioned artists to develop environmentally themed art installations in the venue’s Michele Kuelbs Tower Gallery. The museum is currently seeking proposals for its next tower installation, and artists who reside in the counties of Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, Ventura, and Los […]
Posted inMusic, Arts & Culture
State recognizes three county schools for exemplary arts education
In late January, Tony Thurmond, state superintendent of public instruction, announced that three Santa Barbara County schools were selected by the California Department of Education (CDE) to receive the 2023 California Exemplary Arts Education Award. The three awardees are Los Berros Visual and Performing Arts Academy (Lompoc Unified School District), Cold Spring School (Cold Spring […]
Posted inNews
Storm disaster assistance centers open in Santa Barbara County
Santa Barbara County residents can visit a Disaster Assistance Center as a one-stop shop to get all of the resources they need while recovering from the storms that drenched the Central Coast in January, damaging hundreds of homes and businesses. These centers are a partnership between the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the Governor’s Office […]
Posted inOpinion
Ever-increasing gas bills are hardly natural
Did you notice that your natural gas bill went through the roof last month? Well, at our house we did, so I did a little research to find out why. When many of you vote, or for those who don’t vote, you may think that what goes on in Sacramento or Washington, D.C., has little […]
Posted inOpinion
Guadalupe is overdue for a real levee
Thank you for praising the Guadalupe community for coming together on the 9th and 10th of January to help the flooded-out people (“The little town that could,” Jan. 19). Since this flooding occurs periodically (as the mayor said, four times in 30 years) it should behoove the county, the state, and the feds to get […]
Posted inOpinion
Thank you, Rapid Rehousing
I would like to take this opportunity to thank Rachel M. and Melanie M. at Rapid Rehousing (as they lived up to their name), as well as Denice S. and Priscilla L. at City Net, and Mary M. and Kathy O.—all of them were on top of their game to get me quickly housed and […]
Posted inOpinion
South Coast NIMBYs
Nobody likes housing development. Except for possibly Santa Maria, which doesn’t seem to have very much opposition to building homes or apartments. That city is all-in. And its residents are too—unless, of course, the housing aims to provide shelter for folks who don’t have it. Then there’s a problem. But I digress. The point is […]
Posted inNews
Political Watch: February 2, 2023
• The California Department of Water Resources announced that recent storms will allow the State Water Project to boost deliveries to 29 public water agencies serving 27 million Californians, according to a Jan. 26 statement from the department. Based on the amount of water captured and stored, the state now expects to deliver 30 percent […]
Posted inNews
County Planning Commission denies appeal of Cat Canyon cannabis project
An appeal filed against a cannabis cultivation project—with a proposed site in the Cat Canyon area—recently met with unanimous denial from the Santa Barbara County Planning Commission. Despite county staff’s recommendations to reject the appeal, some Planning Commissioners were initially reluctant to deny the request, during deliberations at the Planning Commission’s Jan. 25 meeting. The […]
Posted inNews
New state legislation could require Narcan at schools
The Santa Maria-Bonita School District got ahead of a new state legislation by taking the steps to have naloxone hydrochloride, a medication that reverses an overdose’s effects, at all of its middle school sites, Health Program Specialist Carolyn Kleinsmith said. “I think it’s really important we have Narcan available in schools. Unfortunately, post pandemic, we […]
