Cover Story
Deep clean: PG&E needs to dredge Diablo Canyon’s cove to unclog the intake system that helps the nuclear reactors stay cool
Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) is on standby to conduct the first deep clean of the Diablo Canyon Power Plant’s seawater intake cove in nearly 40 years. “We frequently survey the area and haven’t needed to dredge in the past,” PG&E spokesperson Suzanne Hosn told New Times. “Maintenance of the intake system is performed…
Take a drive along the Central Coast to visit the newly rebranded California Nature Art Museum
Worth the drive Call (805) 686-1082 or visit calnatureartmuseum.org for more info on the California Nature Art Museum (Cal-NAM), located at 1511 Mission Drive, unit B, Solvang. The word “wildling” can apply to a variety of wild plants or undomesticated animals. But its use in pop culture is often streamlined, as it almost always refers…
Flying high: The Santa Maria Family Kite Festival is seeking sponsorships
The Santa Maria Family Kite Festival is one of Jenn Malone’s favorite days of the year. “There’s something about hundreds of kites in the air flying harmoniously at the same time. It’s a miracle they don’t get tangled, but I love the joy these kids are expressing [during] their fun and learning,” said Malone, the…
The Bunker hosts upcoming variety show with the Reboot
The Reboot presents Speak Easy, a curated variety show, at The Bunker in San Luis Obispo on Friday, March 22, from 7 to 9 p.m. Although the show is currently sold out, hopeful attendees are encouraged to register on the event’s waitlist at my805tix.com. Admission is free, but registration is required to attend. All ages…
By the Sea Productions presents Talk Radio
For one weekend only, the St. Peter’s by the Sea Episcopal Church in Morro Bay will host By the Sea Productions’ next staged reading, Talk Radio, which will open on Friday, March 22, at 7 p.m. Additional performances will be held on Saturday, March 23, at 7 p.m., and Sunday, March 24, at 3 p.m.…
I’m happy to see Eskimo Pie again
I have been watching the painting and refurbishing at High Street Deli for some months now. I was very sad when I saw the iconic landmark Eskimo Pie picture disappear, painted over, boards replaced. I thought it was a protected piece. Yesterday I was driving by and decided to stop and ask the workers about…
We don’t want your cell tower
Verizon Wireless is relentlessly pushing to place a 55-foot cell tower in a back parking lot at 789 Valley Road, close to seniors’ homes in Arroyo Grande. After a public hearing on Feb. 6 when senior citizens packed the chambers in opposition, during a four-hour meeting, where at least 10 of the seniors contracted COVID-19,…
We need to end the death of Palestinian children and families
I am profoundly moved by United States soldier Aaron Bushnell who recently burned himself to death in front of the Israeli Embassy in Washington, D.C. I feel deeply grieved but also all the more determined to preserve life. Aaron Bushnell self-immolated, saying he could no longer be complicit in the U.S.-backed genocide against the Palestinian…
Do the right thing
Winston Churchill famously observed that “Americans will always do the right thing, only after they’ve tried everything else.” It seems that San Francisco may be trying to emulate Churchill’s pithy observation. Yes, this is another rant about San Francisco’s descent into dysfunction and squalor. Criticizing the mess in San Francisco is so easy that I…
Preliminary results show incumbents lead in state races, Prop. 1 evenly split
While both sets of candidates in southern SLO County’s state Senate and Assembly races will march forward to the November general election, preliminary results show incumbent Assemblymember Gregg Hart (D-Santa Barbara) and state Sen. Monique Limón (D-Santa Barbara) in the lead. “I’m gratified and humbled by the results, and I’m excited about getting back to…
Beso Cocina in Nipomo plates up fusion with a Mexican twist
Skip the rush Grab dinner and cocktails at Beso Cocina, 1050 Willow Road, Nipomo. Beso is open Thursday through Monday from 11:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. It’s open until 10 p.m. on Friday and Saturday. Reserve a table at (805) 931-7177. Follow it on Instagram @besonipomo. The red flame insignia of Beso Cocina glowed invitingly…
SLO County gauges voter support for potential bed tax increase
Lackluster support from residents and a need for more public outreach stopped San Luis Obispo County’s attempt to increase its transient occupancy tax in its tracks. “You should be informed that vacation rental and hotel occupancy is currently trending downward,” Toni LeGras-Price of Beachside Rentals Inc. in Cayucos wrote to the Board of Supervisors on…
Cleanup conundrum
It sounds like San Luis Obispo County wants the Santa Maria Riverbed cleanup remnants to land squarely in the lap of Santa Barbara County. And by cleanup, I really mean clear-out. As in, a clear-out of the miniature cities that have popped up in the riverbed since last year’s flooding pushed them out, visible from…
SLO and Santa Barbara counties work together to address Santa Maria Riverbed homeless encampments
San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara counties are teaming up to address a growing number of homeless encampments in the Santa Maria Riverbed. A $6 million grant Gov. Gavin Newsom awarded to Santa Barbara County in 2023 aims to clean up encampments, including in the Santa Maria Riverbed between Santa Barbara and SLO counties that’s…
William Fitzsimmons plays a Numbskull and Good Medicine show on March 15
Some artists are just really good at making you feel all the feels. Think John Moreland or Sufjan Stevens or Elliott Smith. Add William Fitzsimmons into that category. The multi-instrumentalist singer-songwriter knows how to go right to the tear ducts. Case in point, his songs “Passion Play” and “Please Don’t Go” were used in emotionally…
New SLO County sales tax measure could make the November ballot
SLO County residents could see a transportation sales tax on general election ballot if the SLO Council of Governments (SLOCOG) votes to pass a countywide self-help sales tax measure and transportation investment plan. Currently in the drafting process, the transportation investment plan (TIP) proposes a half-cent transportation sales tax measure that would generate $35 million…
Rising Tides Morro Bay holds driftwood plant hanger workshop
Tied and True Goods will host a macramé plant hanger workshop at Rising Tides Morro Bay on Saturday, March 16, from 4 to 6 p.m. Participants of the class will create their own plant hangers with locally collected driftwood and natural cotton cord. Admission to the upcoming workshop is $55, which includes all materials needed…
LA Superior Court rules on Cuyama Valley Groundwater Basin boundaries
A Los Angeles County Superior Court judge confirmed that the Cuyama Valley Groundwater Basin is one connected basin—not separate subbasins—allowing for the groundwater adjudication to move forward following a year and a half of delays and litigation. “The court has been scrupulous to confine phase 1 of this adjudication to the boundaries of the court’s…
Death and Other Details is an old-fashioned whodunit with a modern twist
DEATH AND OTHER DETAILS What’s it rated? TV-MAWhat’s it worth, Glen? Full priceWhat’s it worth, Anna? Full priceWhere’s it showing? Hulu Creators Heidi Cole McAdams and Mike Weiss helm this Agatha Christie-style mystery set on a restored vintage ocean liner touring the Mediterranean Sea. When a murder occurs, famed detective Rufus Cotesworth (Mandy Patinkin) and…
Supervisors shoot down appeal against newly proposed Los Osos home
Los Osos’ tension between preserving its groundwater basin and building more development continues to find its way before the San Luis Obispo County Board of Supervisors. “Housing is an industry that’s vital to the economic health of the region,” county project manager Nicole Ellis said at the March 12 meeting. “The proposed project would provide…
Can I Tell You a Secret?
What’s it rated? TV-MA When? 2024 Where’s it showing? Max Three women recount their ordeal involving an online stalker who seems to be out to destroy their lives. All three have a very active social media presence that gets infiltrated by a mysterious figure who will go to mind-boggling lengths to torture his victims. The…
Grover Beach gets a new police chief, more public safety funding
With a federal cash infusion worth $543,000, Grover Beach can update public safety cameras around the city. “It will allow us to put some new reader systems to help solve crime and allow us to put some new cameras up—both license plates and just straight-up video cameras because some cameras have been up for several…
Do the Right Thing
What’s it rated? R When? 1989 Where’s it showing? The Palm Theatre in SLO on March 16 and 17 (1:30, 4:15, and 7 p.m.), and March 18 (7 p.m.) Writer-director Spike Lee (Jungle Fever, Malcom X, BlacKkKlansman) scored an early hit with this twice Oscar-nominated dramedy about race relations in the Bedford-Stuyvesant section of Brooklyn.…
