Cover Story
Religious misperceptions: Local Muslims work to educate the public about Islam
Signs that say, “we love our neighbors” (written in crayon) and, “we support you, we love you, we embrace you,” decorate the open metal gates of the Mosque of Nasreen in San Luis Obispo. Men young and old are chatting behind the big glass doors that lead to the main room for prayer. Others take…
Atascadero City Council still discussing marijuana
Correction: May 1, 2017 An earlier version of this article incorrectly attributed Councilmember Brian Sturtevant’s opinion and quote. While Atascadero city staff believes that beginning with tighter restrictions on marijuana is best, the City Council is taking its time making a decision on a new ordinance. On Apr. 25, the council discussed the results of…
Lawsuit claims ASH ignored employee concerns prior to patient’s murder
Atascadero State Hospital has been accused of trying to cover up its role in the 2014 murder of one patient by another, according to a lawsuit filed by one of the institution’s former staff members. In the lawsuit, former ASH clinical social worker April Grundfor claimed the hospital officials ignored her warnings about patient Adam…
Micky & The Motorcars bring their Americana sounds to BarrelHouse in Paso
It’s should be clear, mild, and maybe a little bit breezy when Americana band Micky & The Motorcars takes the stage at BarrelHouse Brewing Company’s Paso Robles location at 6 p.m. this Thursday, April 27, for a Numbskull and Good Medicine Presents show (all ages; $15 presale at ticketfly.com or $18 at the door). Founded…
What is your opinion on people who don’t pay taxes as a form of protest?
Norm Corwin resident “As a taxpayer, I’d like to be able to state an area where my taxes would or would not go to. If that’s not in effect already, I think it’s a perfectly legitimate protest to not pay taxes because it may be going into areas with nefarious purposes.” Andrea Derrick student “It’s…
What’s brown and runs downhill?
Remember the good old days when people pooped wherever was handy and wiped their behinds with leaves? Yeah, me neither. Humans have had sewer systems since Asia’s Indus Valley Civilization circa 2,350 BCE. You’d think in the intervening 4,367 years we’d have this shit figured out (sadly, pun intended). Well, apparently not. Morro Bay’s current…
Save a life with jazz
On May 7, two local nonprofits will come together for an evening of jazz hosted by the Atascadero Community Band. Jazz Horns-A Plenty will take over the Atascadero Bible Church from 3 to 5 p.m. and will be accepting donations to benefit the event’s chosen nonprofit, Project Lifesaver San Luis Obispo. The volunteer-based band plays…
Snubbing Uncle Sam: Local resident touts tax resistance as protest
This year, San Luis Obispo resident David Gross signed and mailed his tax return forms just like any other red-blooded American citizen. The only thing he didn’t sign or send the IRS? A check. Gross, who is a self-employed technical writer in the software industry, hasn’t paid federal income tax for the last 18 years…
The funding game: After decades of work, the Bob Jones Trail needs a little more money to get it ready for construction
To really understand the Bob Jones Trail, you need to start with the man who had the vision: Bob Jones. Jones, who passed away in the mid-1990s, was a champion of San Luis Obispo Creek habitat restoration in the 1980s, according to Brian Stark, who’s followed and worked on the trail for more than two…
Offshore energy: A state task force is in the preliminary stages of creating a wind farm off the Central Coast
Off the coast of Morro Bay, you may be able to one day see (far out in the distance) the blades of wind turbines moving in the breeze. At least that’s what a state task force is working to accomplish, so it might be a few years. Trident Winds—a developer interested in creating a wind…
Trump directives target the Carrizo Plain, offshore drilling
This spring, the Carrizo Plain National Monument’s super bloom is drawing visitors from near and far, but now it’s under review by a Trump administration looking to limit its boundary lines or revoke its protection altogether. President Donald Trump signed an executive order on April 26 directing U.S. Secretary of Interior Ryan Zinke to revisit…
Solar farm at Paso Robles airport gets approval
Paso Robles is getting its first bonafide solar farm. On April 25, the city Planning Commission signed off on the permits and environmental documents for a 25-acre, 4-megawatt solar farm to go on the Paso Robles Municipal Airport property. The facility will be financed, built, and operated by Onyx Renewable Partners. Paso officials told New…
Anti-rental inspection petitioners seek compromise with SLO city
The leaders of an initiative to replace San Luis Obispo’s rental housing inspection ordinance with a “non-discrimination in housing” ordinance are now lobbying the city to work collaboratively with them to avoid an “all-out battle.” In March, the City Council repealed the rental housing inspection program. But a petition launched last August by former City…
Clarifications
• In the April 13 news brief, “SLO city manager, fire chief fined for offensive video,” City Manager Katie Lichtig and Fire Chief Garret Olson both received one-time $2,000 bonuses on April 4 along with 91 other management employees. • The April 13 article titled “Fit to print” New Times misstated the length of Bill…
San Simeon bar sued after flaming drink burns man
A San Simeon bar is under legal fire after a patron claimed he was burned and severely injured by a flaming drink, according to a recently filed lawsuit. The lawsuit, filed in SLO County Superior Court April 18, alleges that the San Simeon Beach Bar & Grill failed to act responsibly when one of its…
Cambria woman faces charges for allegedly embezzling $1 million
A 68-year-old woman is facing serious jail time for allegedly embezzling more than $1 million from her employer. The SLO County District Attorney’s Office announced that it filed 12 felony grand theft charges against Elizabeth Edith Shaw on April 19. She allegedly stole more than $1 million over a 12-year period from her employer, Cambria-based…
Saunter through the super bloom
Chances are, everyone and your grandma has now posted an amazing wildflower pic on social media. You might think this trend is getting old, but I promise you, these expanses of yellow and purple colored hills are something to behold in person. Even from space, they are truly amazing (Google it). Whether you head out…
Seasonal zing
Minty fresh: Welcome, Mint + Craft! The latest restaurant concept from Robin and Shanney Covey, owners of Robin’s restaurant, Novo restaurant, Luna Red, and Café Fiero, is now open at 848 Monterey St. offering up a casual cafe and artisanal goods mercantile (open daily from 7 a.m. until 9 p.m. Visit mintandcraft.com for more information)…
What’s Kraken? Sea adventures and lattes await at Avila’s new nautical coffee shop
Behind every so-called “tourist” town, there lies a real, thriving life force. This is something Avila Beach residents know well. Beneath the façade of this perfect little beach getaway, you’ll find a quirky place where artists, surfers, winemakers (and yes, retirees) mingle. Look out onto the white, sandy beach and you’ll see longtime local Colleen…
Blast from the Past: Apollo 13
When? 1995 | What’s it rated? PG-13 | Where’s it available? DVD, Streaming on Amazon. Houston, we have a problem.” That famous line uttered by Tom Hanks playing astronaut Jim Lovell in Apollo 13 is about to turn 22 years old. I know, can you believe it? It doesn’t feel like that long ago that…
Maker magic
What could be better than science, art, and food? Head on down to Templeton High School on May 3 to enjoy all three at the THS Engineering and Art Maker Faire. This year’s faire will have more than 200 engineering and art projects, including demonstrations of 3-D printing, laser cutting, virtual reality, drones, go-karts, electronics,…
Lunch with a side of art
Elevate your simple PB&J lunch by bringing it (and yourself) to Art High Noon at the San Luis Obispo Museum of Art on May 4. Everyone is welcome to bring their own lunch to the museum at noon for a one-hour talk on contemporary California photography with Lana Z. Caplan. The photographer, filmmaker, and interactive…
Nearly picture perfect
Oh, the things we do for love. The San Luis Obispo Little Theatre is serving up a tale of trying to please the people who love us most: our parents. In a staged reading of Beau Jest on April 28 and 29, meet Sarah, whose parents are delighted that she’s found love. Sarah is finally…
Rooting for the game: A day to honor Jackie Robinson at Dodger’s Stadium
It’s been a while since I’ve made my way down the 110 freeway and exited on Dodger Stadium Way. It’s April 15, a monumental day for all baseball fans—the 70th anniversary of Jackie Robinson breaking the color barrier and entering into America’s favorite pastime. In his honor, the Dodgers unveiled a statue depicting Robinson sliding…
Earth 2.0: Author T.C. Boyle to talk ‘Terranauts’ novel and writing at Cal Poly
Willingly signing up to start a new colony of humans on say, Mars, seems pretty crazy. But volunteering to give it a go living in a re-created Earth, which is actually under a glass dome being monitored by scientists in the real world, seems like the stuff of sci-fi. But it really happened. Prolific novelist…
Palm Theatre hosts sneak previews of comedy-drama ‘Welcome to the Men’s Group’
What does it mean to be a man in the 21st century? Has feminism emasculated men? How can men be both authentically male and authentically sensitive? And what happens when eight men gather in a support group and end up baring both their souls and their bodies? These questions are at the heart of the…
A hidden gem
Sometimes you find a hidden gem just around the corner, and this is the case at 1060 Palm St., San Luis Obispo. The GALA Center is a nonprofit organization offering support and meeting space for many progressive organizations and people, including the local LGBTQ population. The GALA Center Art Gallery offers unique shows currently featuring…
Leave the EPA alone
I am opposed to any EPA regulatory reform that sacrifices public safety, health, and environmental protection. Making such sacrifices goes against the EPA’s mission and purpose. I think the presidential executive order directing repeal of two existing regulations for every new regulation is very foolish. This policy does not take into account negative program impacts…
Dear supervisors and fellow citizens,
I support the Bob Jones Trail Expansion Project, and I encourage you to keep supporting it as you have done in the past. It is an enchanting walk through spectacular countryside, which is our duty to protect, enhance, and make available for everyone’s enjoyment. My sister visited me from Italy, and we walked it together.…
A lot of nothing
Blah, blah, blah is all I get from Michael Latner’s 700-plus word rambling commentary (“Safeguards against insurrection,” April 20). Nothing new, sadly misleading, and valueless except as stimulus to share my opinion. Among other nonsense, Mr. Latner states that President Trump made “the outlandish claim that President Obama personally tapped his phones …” But if…
The racist roots of Earth Day
We’ve just celebrated another “Earth Day,” an annual event requiring the political class to demonstrate their commitment to protecting the environment from humanity. On the surface, it’s a public exercise promoting conservation but its origins and legacy have a much darker past with an even darker future. The early 1960s produced several tomes on the…
A different internment lesson
While it’s easy to see the link between Eva Ulz’s internment history presentation and the bias put into the New Times article about Japanese internment (“Imprisoning our own,” April 6), the propaganda that was neatly tucked in was a foregone conclusion. It shouldn’t take a 75-year milestone to bring up internment history lessons, because the…
Yes, call me a snowflake
The irony of the massive snowfall in California this winter and the trend of calling liberals snowflakes, won’t melt. In a season where divisiveness continues its exponential name calling concurrent to California’s historic snowfall is as if nature’s mystic power wants to showcase how it works: A snowflake is one part of many snowflakes, so…
Clubs 4/27/17 – 5/4/17
Goin’ South THE CLIFFS RESORT: 2757 Shell Beach Rd., Shell Beach, 773-5000, cliffsresort.com. FIGUEROA MOUNTAIN BREWING CO.: Singer/Songwriter Night every Wed. from 8-10pm. 1462 E. Grand Ave., Arroyo Grande, 474-8525, figmtnbrew.com. 4/29: Noach Tangeras Band from 8:30-11pm; 5/5: Kenny Taylor Band from 8:30-11pm. HARRY’S NIGHT CLUB AND BEACH BAR: Cypress and Pomeroy, downtown Pismo Beach,…
