Cover Story
Out of reach: Paso Robles looks to an unsuspecting place for solutions to homelessness
New Times headed to Paso Robles to find out what services are being offered for the homeless. Check out the slideshow. On a blisteringly hot day in Paso Robles, Steve Bentley walks down Riverside Avenue toward the Second Baptist Church. Not on his way to Sunday mass, Bentley, 40, is homeless and in need of…
Has the construction downtown affected you?
Mariah Marten-Ray Food Corps member “I haven’t come downtown in a really long time, so it hasn’t affected me.” Kaya Moody artist “Construction downtown … construction where?” Kazimir Pafelski caregiver “It hasn’t affected me emotionally or mentally except for the fact that there are new things coming. I did see a guy protesting it and…
Blast from the Past: Strange Days
When? 1995 | Where? DVD only | Rated? R. While it’s not a genre you hear talked about all that much, gritty science fiction noir has been around long enough to cultivate its own fairly robust lineage in film. Catapulted into movie nerds’ consciousness by the seminal 1982 film Blade Runner, these movies usually take…
Invisible Abundance video installation at Cuesta challenges perceptions
Sometimes, it’s just never enough. The money, the cars, the bling. Because a lack of shiny things reminds us that, well, we could lack even more. So we work and work to make sure we have all the things. Through a series of videos, artist Nikhil Murthy wants to challenge perceptions of time, space, empathy,…
Morro Bay Art Association to host silk painting demonstration
Ever wondered how intricate mandalas or vibrant, detailed flowers are painted on silk pillows, robes, and more? Well, wonder no more. The Morro Bay Art Association is hosting a silk painting demonstration by award-winning artist, Jackie Bradley. The process begins by washing a portion of silk and stretching it between wooden bars. Then, the artist…
Slightly Stoopid headlines on July 3rd at Avila Beach Resort
It’s officially summer, which means long, warm, sunny days and beachside concerts from the likes of Slightly Stoopid, the Ocean Beach-based ska/thrash band whose sound first developed in the skate-punk aesthetic of Southern California but has evolved into a breezy reggae style filled with phat horns and hooky melodies. This Sunday, July 3, Cali Roots,…
Zenaida Cellars 2014 ZC Reda and Grey Wolf Cellars 2015 Soul Mate
Hello juicy, perfectly rare tri-tip! Hello baked beans! Hello cheap sunglasses I’ll probably lose in the ocean! Hello summer! Meet my friend, Zenaida Cellars 2014 ZC Red, your new best friend. I know you’re going to get on like gangbusters. This well-rounded mix of syrah, petite sirah, and cabernet sauvignon is a meatavore’s dream, perfect…
Roll up your sleeves
Eye on the prize: It may be getting hotter out there, but GleanSLO volunteers are still picking produce that would otherwise wither away. Find out where the next pick will take place and prepare to learn a lot of hands on knowledge about the earth in the process (gleanslo.com) … The Paso Robles Food Cooperative…
Trifecta! Port, wine, and brandy flow from Pendray’s Distillery
Maybe it’s the striking, steam punk look of all the bells and whistles, like an old train chugging through wilderness. Maybe it’s the storied history of booze-making in America, peppered with bootleggers and gun-slinging drifters. It could be the other-worldly patina, which glows like a newly minted penny. Whatever it is, Lola and Steve Glossner…
Butterflies Alive! exhibit soars in Santa Barbara
After saying hello to Chad—the 70-plus-foot blue whale skeleton that greets visitors at the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History on May 30—I enter the museum, pay my dues, and get a bracelet for the Butterflies Alive! exhibit, on display through Sept. 5. A trail of butterfly shaped decals leads me to the backyard of…
A change in perspective: Georganna Dean’s journey to photography
Every morning before the sun rose, she could be found rolling dough and preparing cakes, pies, croissants, and Danishes to be picked up by local restaurants in Nevada City, Calif. For Georganna Dean, being a bakery owner was a fun gig, but those early wake up calls were less than ideal. “It was pretty cool,…
A light shines through: Central Coast artists celebrate LGBT community amidst tragedy at GALA’s 20 Years of Pride Show
Husbands Joseph and Jack Griffin-Janey said “I do” three times, and each time it was to each other. While three marriage ceremonies for one couple may seem extravagant, only one of the three ceremonies was a sentimental affair with friends and family present. The other two times—one at city hall in San Francisco in 2004,…
Clubs 6/30/16 – 7/7/16
Goin’ South THE CLIFFS RESORT: 2757 Shell Beach Rd., Shell Beach, 773-5000, cliffsresort.com. F. MCLINTOCKS SALOON: Two locations: 750 Mattie Rd. in Pismo Beach and 133 Bridge St. in Arroyo Grande. 773-1892 or mclintocks.com. Live music at the Pismo Beach location every Fri. and Sat. from 6-9pm. Tennessee Jimmy Harrell and Doc Stoltey play on…
Donate Justin Vineyards for homeless housing
Why not donate the Justin Vineyards’ 375-acre property to a nonprofit housing the homeless? There aren’t enough beds in the two shelters we have. Hope’s Village SLO has a plan for a campground with tiny homes built on truck beds, with group restrooms/showers and dining hall, supervision, casework, and transportation. They could have a garden…
POM Terrible!
“We’re so sorry, Uncle Paso. We’re so sorry if we caused you any pain.” By now you’ve no doubt heard about the bulldozing of ancient native oaks at Justin Vineyards. The winery is owned by Beverly Hills shiny, happy, plastic, über-billionaire power couple Lynda and Stewart Resnick, owners of The Wonderful Company, which also owns…
The Senate has been hijacked
I write this with a heavy heart as I have witnessed the U.S. Senate display completely its loyalty to neither the majority of citizens nor representative democracy. I am even more certain of its dysfunction as reasonable efforts to enforce rational gun control fail, even with overwhelming support from “we the people.” In my past…
Good riddance, Diablo
Diablo Canyon is finally shutting down. It should never have been built, especially over two earthquake-prone fault lines. In fact, as we can see now, no nuclear power plants should ever have been built. Sooner or later, they always leak radiation, and nuclear fuel waste takes 250,000 years to decay into lead—a massive and mounting…
The haves vs. the have-nots
I’m confused. Will someone please explain to me the difference between people who are homeless and sleep in their vehicles and the half-million full-time snowbirds who sleep in their vehicles? People who suffer from homelessness have no homes, very little money, and receive tickets for “illegal lodging,” which they oftentimes can’t pay and end up…
So glad Bob Cuddy’s back
Thank you, New Times, for bringing Bob Cuddy back into our lives. I missed him when he left The Tribune. His commentary, “Guts are important,” in the June 23 issue is pure grab-your-guts Cuddy and right on. — Evelyn Cole – Arroyo Grande — Evelyn Cole – Arroyo Grande — Evelyn Cole – Arroyo Grande
More urban sprawl in Paso Robles
On June 21, the Paso Robles City Council voted 4-0 to add another 271 homes to the city on what was originally zoned agricultural land. Since the whole area, as well as all of California, is already seriously overshooting its bio-capacity, the additional homes will have a negative effect on the quality of life for…
Increase the on-call wage for social workers
I was surprised to learn that the average salary at Diablo Canyon is $157,000. This is about three times the average for a county employee. Federal regulations, I am sure, require a certain number of technicians to be on duty at any given time, with a certain number being “on call” in case an employee…
Lamest movie review ever
Your write-up of the movie Vaxxed: From Cover-Up to Catastrophe was the lamest synopsis I have seen in your Film section. I appreciate you allowing me to flesh it out and describe what the movie is actually about. Vaxxed details the story of a Dr. William Thompson, a senior scientist with the CDC who turned…
Violence and the illusion of safety
With the tragic killing in Orlando fresh on our minds, there is again another push to ban and limit firearms. Let’s shelve firearms for a moment and look at what Orlando was about. Can we safely sum it up with “violence and the illusion of safety?” That is what we are really talking about, right?…
California spirit: Barrel-aged rum gets a West Coast twist from Calivore Spirits
You know you’re in for a treat the moment they open the briefcase. Inside the specially molded case is where Aaron Bergh and Luke Beaton, the minds behind Calivore Spirits, keep product that they are ready to sell. There is a blonde rum and a spiced rum, and both feature nature-inspired artwork that looks as…
Cougars & Mustangs
We here at Cougars and Mustangs tend to speak about four main topics: Cuesta College, Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo in general, and Zombies. It’s not often we get to talk about more than two at once, but sure enough, Cuesta, Cal Poly, and SLO itself have all been honored with a combined award. Let’s…
Out of time: Mother accused of abusing terminally ill daughter speaks out, denies allegations
Susanne Krout’s daughter is dying. The 28-year-old, a former Cal Poly graduate, suffers from a rare genetic disorder that leads to the build up of iron in her brain. The disease is incurable and progressively degenerative; leading to dementia, motor decline, and eventually death, according to medical experts. But Susanne hasn’t seen her now hospitalized…
Cannabis valley: The sudden proliferation of marijuana grows in the California Valley worries residents
There are many words that could be used to describe the California Valley: flat, hot, sunny, rural, remote, lawless, desolate, dry. Soon, a new descriptor can go on that list: marijuana-growing mecca. The sparsely populated community rests along Highway 58 in the southeastern corner of San Luis Obispo County, one of the last stops before…
Morro Bay bans new secondary dwelling vacation rentals
In an effort to preserve a supply of affordable housing, the Morro Bay City Council on June 28 introduced an ordinance that prohibits the use of secondary dwelling units as vacation rentals, with exceptions to units that were already licensed with the city as vacation rentals prior to March 1, 2016, as long as those…
Arroyo Grande city manager ousted
Arroyo Grande City Manager Dianne Thompson found herself out of a job after less than a year when the City Council voted to fire her June 28. The City Council voted unanimously in closed session to fire Thompson after placing her on paid administrative leave the week before. Thompson’s ouster followed a tense working relationship…
SLO Superior Court says Pasolivo must prepare EIR
A year after the controversial decision from the San Luis Obispo County Board of Supervisors gave Pasolivo the go ahead to expand its olive oil production and host events, a recent court ruling may send the project back through the wringer. SLO Superior Court Judge Ginger Garrett ruled June 23 that the company must prepare…
Busy courts in SLO County mean more cash for public defender firm
The local law firm charged with providing public defender services will see an increase in its multi-million dollar contract with SLO County, thanks to an increase in its workload from the county’s criminal justice system. The SLO-based Maguire and Ashbaugh law firm will get an additional $300,309 as part of the renewal of its longstanding…
Justin Vineyards halts vineyard project amid widespread outcry
After becoming Public Enemy No. 1 following a massive clear cut of native tree habitat, the owners of Justin Vineyards and Winery apologized for what happened on their property and asked for the community’s forgiveness. Public outcry erupted in early June after aerial photographs documented the clearing of several acres of oaks, manzanitas, and madrones…
