Cover Story
Autumn Arts Annual 2019
The first day of fall was Sept. 23, and everything is noticeably chillier on the Central Coast. Well, at night at least. San Luis Obispo still hit about 100 degrees on Sept. 24, so I don’t really know what to tell you other than fall in California isn’t like the “fall” you read about. The…
Homelessness is an epidemic
Just look around at our riverbeds—in fact everywhere—there are pockets of homeless encampments. The problem seems to be growing exponentially. Since the last census on homelessness, it is up 30 percent in SLO County. Simply put, what we are doing is not working. The 5Cities Homeless Coalition started with one employee and now has six,…
Nibbles and bits
Paso Market Walk, slated to open in October at 1803 Spring St., recently announced the addition of Paso Robles Wine Merchant to its list of businesses at the Central Coast’s new public market. The Wine Merchant is a neighborhood wine shop, bar, and kitchen inspired by locally-sourced food and wine, family, and community. Merchants already…
A difference of opinion
The many pieces you’ve recently printed on climate change make it clear how different perspectives are about our new reality. Well-meaning, informed people heatedly disagree, supporting their beliefs with disparate facts pulled from dissimilar sources. Finding and discarding the propaganda and evaluating the proposals is so exhausting it’s tempting to give up on understanding despite…
Five candidates are running for Sen. Bill Monning’s District 17 seat, two are part of the LGBTQ community
John Laird, 68, sits at a coffee shop off Foothill Boulevard in San Luis Obispo, enjoying a drink and observing the people walking by. He just wrapped up his eight-year term as secretary of the California Natural Resources Agency under Gov. Jerry Brown at the beginning of the year. But he’s not slowing down any…
Climate Strike! Paso Robles
I attended my local Climate Strike! in Paso Robles on Friday, Sept. 20—as did 10 million people, locally and around the globe. Our event was one of several on the Central Coast in San Luis Obispo County. It was organized by local high school students and attended by 60-plus people, about half seniors and half…
Dignity Health, locals prep for massive French Hospital expansion
In 2004, Alan Iftiniuk faced a tall task coming in as the new CEO of French Hospital in San Luis Obispo: to revive an old, decrepit hospital that was on the verge of bankruptcy. “It was a very broken hospital,” Iftiniuk recalled of French at the time of his arrival. “There was even consideration of…
A six-story building on Marsh?!
Yet another massively oversized building is currently being reviewed by the San Luis Obispo City Council for the historic core of downtown SLO. This proposed six-story building on Marsh street looks like one building sitting on top of another. Granted, it’s less worse than the developers’ first proposal, but it is still awful in so…
Blast from the Past … Under Siege 2: Dark Territory
When? 1995 What’s it rated? R Where? YouTube, Amazon Prime This isn’t so much a movie review as it is a love letter to Steven Seagal. Let me start by saying that even though I love Seagal, the dude is not good at acting. Less than not good. Undoubtedly not good. He’s got this weird…
The sky isn’t falling
The elitist SLO City Council continues the progressives use of fear and lies to punish the middle class. Every 10 years, starting with Al Gore, we are told the Earth only has 10 years for us to act. How did they come up with these dates? The biggest reduction in CO2 in the U.S. has…
Ad Astra is a slow but fascinating exploration of loneliness and existentialism
AD ASTRA What’s it rated? PG-13 What’s it worth, Anna? Full price What’s it worth, Glen? Full price Where’s it showing? Downtown Centre, Galaxy, Park, Stadium 10 Co-writer James Gray (The Lost City of Z, The Immigrant, We Own the Night, The Yards, Little Odessa) directs this sci-fi mystery about astronaut Roy McBride (Brad Pitt),…
Speaking of Earth in crisis
My friend and I sat parked outside of a strip mall yesterday. In the distance, a man was smoking—we caught just a whiff of looming miasma, but that was enough. Hurriedly, we shut the windows. Recently, someone questioned my view on smoking. A reluctant debater, I merely said, “Cigarettes stink!” I didn’t mention those 300…
Film Listings, 9/26/19 – 10/3/19
Editor’s note: Listings for Rodkey Theaters—Fair Oaks of Arroyo Grande (805) 489-2364 and Sunset Drive-In of SLO (805) 544-4475—were not available at press time. ABDOMINABLE What’s it rated? PG Where’s it showing? Downtown Centre. Galaxy, Park, Stadium 10 New Writer Jill Culton (Open Season) co-directs this animated adventure/comedy with Todd Wilderman about Yi (Chloe Bennet),…
Sound off
New Times readers took to Facebook to share their thoughts on our Sept. 19 news story, “Facebook fight over meme leads to a local business’s first negative reviews on Yelp.”
Cal Poly to discontinue its noncredit Life and Culture classes
Spring 2020 will be the last semester to enroll in one of Cal Poly’s noncredit Life and Culture classes—courses in art, religion, and food that the university plans to cut in an effort to further align its programs with industry and vendor certifications. The Life and Culture classes—drawing and painting, food and wine, metal arts,…
Of Trump and tribalism
One of the most amusing charges that we conservatives often have leveled against us is that we are all “unwavering supporters” of President Donald Trump and view him as some sort of “rock star.” Essentially, that we are Trump “groupies.” In reality, if real rock ‘n’ roll groupies viewed the objects of their adoration with…
Judge rules in favor of Grand View owners, tenants will have to leave
A SLO County Superior Court judge granted Grand View Apartments’ request to go out of business and evict its tenants. Grand View’s tenants’ attorney and legal director for the SLO Legal Assistance Foundation, Stephanie Barclay, said the court’s Sept. 23 ruling disappointed her and her clients. “We were hoping to get more time for the…
SLO Repertory Theatre’s production of The Fantasticks hits all the right notes
On the stage SLO Rep’s production of The Fantasticks shows Wednesday through Saturday at 7 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday at 2 p.m. until Oct. 13. Find tickets and showtimes at slorep.org/shows/the-fantasticks. To say the opening weekend of SLO Repertory Theatre’s The Fantasticks was a success would be an understatement. Every last seat of the…
Vineyard owner files second lawsuit challenging a cannabis project
A recently approved cannabis farm north of Paso Robles faces a legal challenge in San Luis Obispo County Superior Court—and one of the plaintiffs is a familiar face. Stephanie Shakofsky, a North County vineyard owner, is listed alongside Save Rural SLO as plaintiffs on the Sept. 17 lawsuit, which seeks to reverse SLO County’s approval…
Morro Bay panel highlights arts and entertainment leaders
The next Women Making Waves event takes place at The Siren in downtown Morro Bay on Monday, Sept. 30, from 5 to 8 p.m. This entry in the ongoing series will feature six women—Sarah Santana, Wendy Eidson, Lee Ann Vermeulen, Shawna Mox, Sabrina Pratt, and Janice Peters—who work in the arts and entertainment industry and…
The ‘candy man’ is back, but still no evidence of related crime
Who can take a sunrise and sprinkle it with dew? The candy man, of course, and apparently he’s out to take your laptops, too. That’s right, San Luis Obispo, the notorious “candy man” is back and in action, and rumors are resurfacing about a candy salesman who is actually using the solicitation scheme as a…
Cuesta College hosts Central Coast Writers Conference
The 35th annual Central Coast Writers Conference takes place at Cuesta College on Sept. 26, 27, and 28. Sponsored by SoCreate, the event was named Best Conference in the West by The Writer magazine earlier this year. Forty presenters will offer more than 100 classes in screenwriting, poetry, memoir, nonfiction, and several other categories. The…
New bill requires law enforcement to revise use-of-force policy
On Sept. 12, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 230 to modernize the state’s use-of-force policies and reduce its overall use, something the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office believes it already upholds. “The SLO County Sheriff’s Office continues to hold its employees to the highest standards regarding the appropriate use and reporting of force,…
Monarch Club holds annual Fashions for a Purpose show
The fifth annual Fashions for a Purpose Fashion Show and Silent Auction takes place at the Monarch Club at Trilogy in Nipomo on Saturday, Oct. 12, from 9:30 a.m. to noon. The show features fashions by White House Black Market, Adore, and Cage. Tickets start at $35 and are available in advance at my805tix.com. Δ
Sheriff’s Office to add 12 officers to curb overtime
Facing multi-million-dollar overruns of its overtime budget, the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office is hoping a pilot program can fix the problem. On Sept. 17, the SLO County Board of Supervisors approved Sheriff Ian Parkinson’s request to add 12 full-time deputy positions to the department. The move is expected to reduce the need for…
Summer rush: Cerro Alto makes for reliable, no-frills camping
Trying to reserve campsites on the Central Coast during the summer is almost so fruitless that it makes the prospect of camping inherently less fun. Big Sur? Try looking six months earlier! Even local favorites like Montaña de Oro and San Simeon State Park are booked weeks in advance. Yes, there are many walk-up campsites…
Chef Steve is cooking up delicious eats in Avila at Louie’s at the Beach
Just opened Blue Moon Over Avila’s new sister restaurant, Louie’s at the Beach, is located steps from the sand on 468 Front St., Avila Beach. The dog-friendly, breezy California-style beach bistro serves shareable snacks, artisan sandwiches and flatbreads, fresh salads, homestyle desserts, local beer and wine, cocktails, and adult root beer floats. Louie’s is open…
Butterfly Ball screens short films on monarch butterfly endangerment as kickoff to Wild and Scenic Film Festival
On Sept. 14, the Central Coast State Parks Association welcomed another year of the Wild and Scenic Film Festival, an annual fundraiser dedicated to inspiring environmental activism and a love of nature with film screenings across America. But this year, the opening night in San Luis Obispo marked a first: the Butterfly Ball, an evening…
Iconic punk act Dead Kennedys play the Madonna Inn Expo Center on Oct. 3
Dead Kennedys are returning to SLO Town next Thursday, Oct. 3, just under 34 years after the last time I tried to see them but instead got a nightstick in the torso during what was a classic case of riot-by-police. On Oct. 10, 1985, the San Francisco punk quartet led by Jello Biafra was scheduled…
Savor the flavor
Free food is something Mustangs can easily swallow. Grab free Cal Poly-grown produce at the Pop-Up Poly Produce booth on the Cal Poly Campus Dexter Lawn on Thursday, Sept. 26, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. (and each Thursday thereafter). The produce is donated by the Cal Poly Horticulture and Crop Science Department with the…
Organic street tacos
One of my favorite things going on at Nature’s Touch health food store in Templeton is its food window, where you can order a hot lunch, fresh pressed juices, smoothies, and root beer floats. Not many places serve up organic street tacos, so hats off to Nature’s Touch owner Melanie Blankenship, who offers three street…
Rigged!
If you’re a tenant who lived among the rats, cockroaches, bed bugs, peeling paint, and leaky faucets at the Grand View Apartments in Paso Robles—the rigged justice system just screwed you over. You’re about to get kicked into the mean, unaffordable streets of SLO County, where rents are too damn high and the vacancy rates…
Alternatives are out there
The recent opinion piece by Mark Henry (“A convenient untruth,” Sept. 12) suggesting a conspiracy between the fossil fuel interests and renewable energy proponents to thwart nuclear power is a reach that is difficult to square with reality or to read with a straight face. I had no idea that ExxonMobil and the Sierra Club…
SLO Sheriff’s Office offers SmartWater CSI to help farmers, ranchers trace stolen property
Getting smart on theft Farmers and ranchers interested in SmartWater CSI can call the SLO County Sheriff’s Office at (805) 781-4540 to sign up. The Sheriff’s Office is also offering SmartWater to the general public at a discounted price. Visit smartwatercsi.com and enter promo code RB1617 to purchase a discounted kit. If you’re in the…
For a cause
SLO Brew is kicking off a month of Beer for Boobs, a nonprofit that supports breast cancer awareness, cancer research, and recovery organizations, with a Pink Party Pint Night at SLO Brew Rock, 855 Aerovista Place, from 5 to 9 p.m., on Oct. 1. Custom pint glasses will be available for purchase along with fills…
