I have been a proponent for a win-win-win scenario to break the deadlock between the county and the Chumash tribe over the tribe’s need for housing, joining with many who have enumerated the benefits to the tribe and community of this more prudent development scenario. The solution demands that all of us truly act as […]
A renewed call to move forward in Santa Ynez as neighbors
Posted inOpinion
Experience, honesty and public service count
What’s going on in politics these days? Watching the national debates, we are reminded of a quote from Shakespeare’s Macbeth, Act 5: “To-morrow … to-morrow … it is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.” The clear trend is loud, rude, angry, disrespectful, dishonest, egotistical, name calling, know-it-all, self-appointed […]
Posted inOpinion
An inspirational approach to education
William Doyle, a Fulbright scholar, New York Times bestselling author, and award-winning TV producer, wrote a powerful essay about the “School of the Future.” First, the context. As a Fulbright scholar, Doyle spent five months as a Finnish public school father and a classroom observer. In his own words, he was “completely amazed at how […]
Posted inNews
Hancock College gets technology grant
More students in numerous design programs like graphics, multimedia, and architectural drafting at Allan Hancock College will soon see their creativity come to life thanks to a national grant. New Matter, a technology company, selected 100 schools and school districts in 28 states to benefit from its Educate and Inspire Initiative. Hancock College, the only […]
Posted inNews
Orcutt Academy robotics team finishes strong at competition
The Orcutt Academy High School robotics team recently returned from the Ventura Regional Competition March 24 through 26 at Ventura College, where the team earned a strong finish. This year’s challenge, called FIRST Stronghold, had some defensive elements that wreaked havoc on the robots. Orcutt Academy’s team FIRST3512 Spartatroniks suffered a setback when its robot, […]
Posted inNews
Spotlight on: Libertine Brewing Company
The craft beer boom has hit Santa Maria. With Santa Maria Brewing and Figueroa Mountain Brewing companies having already planted their flags in the city, Tyler Clark is hoping to do the same with Libertine Brewing Company. Clark has leased an 8,000-square-foot facility on the south end of the city, at 2325 A St.—near the […]
Posted inNews
Political Watch 4/7/2016
• A bill by Sen. Hannah-Beth Jackson (D-Santa Barbara) to monitor and cap California’s old, abandoned, and leaking oil wells passed out of the Senate Natural Resources Committee March 16. The vote was 8-1. The bill, SB 900, the Coast Oil Well Cleanup Act, now heads to the Senate Appropriations Committee.
Posted inNews
Community Notebook 4/7/16 – 4/14/16
MONDAY, APRIL 11 • The Santa Maria City Block Grants Advisory Committee has its regular meeting at 5:30 p.m. in the City Hall Conference Room, 110 E. Cook St., Santa Maria. • The Solvang City Council has its regular meeting at 7 p.m. in City Council Chambers, 1644 Oak Street, Solvang. TUESDAY, APRIL 12 […]
Posted inNews
Injured Santa Maria man rescued in La Brea Canyon
Dirt biking solo in the Santa Barbara County outback can be treacherous, if not deadly. A Santa Maria resident and U.S. Marine Corps veteran got a taste of how dangerous it could be after getting rescued on April 3 in the La Brea Canyon area, according to Kelly Hoover, the public information officer for the […]
Posted inNews
Spike in snowy plover violations push Surf Beach to the brink of closure
Hardly a month has passed since the start of snowy plover nesting season at Surf Beach and already the beach is on the brink of closure. Air Force spokesman Sgt. Shane Fibbs at Vandenberg Air Force Base told the Sun that nesting habitat violations have reached 26 as of April 1 and if that number […]
Posted inNews
Some assembly required: Four candidates run to replace Katcho Achadjian to represent the 35th District in the California Assembly
Two Republicans, a Democrat, and a Libertarian walk into a Central Coast bar and what happens next? The joke isn’t complete, but four candidates—Steve LeBard, Jordan Cunningham, Dawn Ortiz-Legg, and Dominic Rubini—are vying to represent the citizens of the 35th District in the state Assembly. It’s a district that covers all of San Luis Obispo […]
Posted inNews
Good’s caretaker sentenced to parole
Wanda Nelson, the caretaker convicted of involuntary manslaughter for the death of Solvang ALS patient Heidi Good, was sentenced on April 1 to five years’ parole. Nelson, 63, was on the job on March 25, 2013, when Good died after her breathing tube was disconnected and she was administered a toxic dose of medication. Nelson […]