Cover Story
Breathing new life into the past: The rebuilding of the tiny town of Harmony
A little red house is tucked away on the outskirts of a tiny town nestled between San Luis Obispo and Cambria. An old, white picket fence outlines the perimeter and a fragrant overgrown rose bush beckons passersby to stop and smell its yellow flowers. Open the rundown gate, and there are cracks in the concrete…
Alle-Pia Emporio in Atascadero is a charcuterie lover’s paradise
Get your Italian meat fix! Take a photo tour of Alle-Pia in Atascadero. Charlie can keep his Everlasting Gobstoppers and Wonka Bars. The real golden ticket isn’t hiding beneath the wrapper of some fantastical candy bar—it’s actually nestled under the powdery casing of a handmade truffle salami cured with wine, aromatic herbs, and earthy spices.…
Lightning in a Bottle: The closest thing we have to Burning Man
A highly fragrant essential oil mist is wafting up my shorts now that I’ve just finished traversing up and down a valley that used to be a leg of Lake San Antonio before the drought swallowed it up. Formerly a place where I would cool off with a swim and enjoy water sports with friends,…
Atascadero Police Department to provide a full-time school resource officer
On May 17, the Atascadero Unified School District board approved a two-year agreement to bring an Atascadero Police Department officer onto district campuses to work full time as a school resource officer (SRO). The incoming SRO will replace the probation officer provided to the district by the SLO County Sherriff’s Office. The program will be…
What did you do for your mother for Mother’s Day?
Chris Shelby “Well because my mom lives in Colorado, I sent her a gift basket of various gourmet foods and, of course, I called her.” Jane Leigh “Mother’s Day in the UK is in March and I cooked her favorite food and then we got to celebrate here again with family in the U.S. and…
Choo-choo!
If Thomas the Oil Train leaves the filthy Canadian tar sands traveling south at 60 miles an hour toward the Phillips 66 rail spur project on the Nipomo Mesa, and the SLO County Planning Commission ignores enormous public outcry and potential catastrophic danger, how many jobs are created until a fiery crash destroys homes and…
Fog is our friend
While weatherman Dave Hovde was often grossly inaccurate with the predicted flooding from El Niño 2015-2016, I understand that weather forecasting is an inaccurate science. However, now that we are past his “sky is falling” animated rain predictions, I am perturbed by his almost daily display of angst and worries about clouds, fog, drizzle: The…
We need to protect what we have left
Thank you for Camillia Lanham’s article about federal environmental officials raising major questions about Freeport McMoRan’s effort to have a San Luis Obispo County aquifer exempted from the Safe Drinking Water Act (May 12, “EPA wants more data in Freeport McMoRan aquifer exemption”). Neighbors of the Arroyo Grande oil field have been asking similar questions…
What does the Shredder think it is?
I want to thank you for printing my commentary on why I’m supporting Donald Trump (“I’m not ignorant,” May 12). I think it’s important for your readers to hear from those with a different point of view. That’s one reason why I read New Times regularly and contribute occasionally. Your Shredder comment, however, insinuating that…
Hill’s record is proof of balance
A lot of candidates say they bring balance, but the proof is in the record. Supervisor Adam Hill has helped shaped important social programs like 50Now to house chronically homeless and Laura’s Law to provide intense services to mentally ill citizens who may be prone to violence. He has also been an important and consistent…
The EPA should open its eyes
The U.S. EPA requested more information from California’s Division of Oil, Gas, and Geothermal Resources (DOGGR) regarding an applicant’s request to exempt a San Luis Obispo County aquifer from the Safe Drinking Water Act. To the EPA, I say: Here are three reasons to deny this application. First, DOGGR has approved thousands of wells for…
Don’t let people outside the district elect our next representative
Now more than ever, it is important for voters to do their own research when it comes to choosing their next representative. And that research shouldn’t stop at what the candidates say, but also what is not being said—whom they are raising money from. After hearing Bill Ostrander, one of the candidates in the 24th…
Someone needs a civics lesson
This letter is in response to the letter “California is unfairly represented in U.S. Senate” published in the May 12 issue of New Times. The author is the perfect example of why we need to return the teaching of civics in our high schools. Each state is represented according to population in the House of…
Sugar epidemic
The debates featuring candidates for U.S. Rep. Lois Capps’ seat have focused on many issues: immigration, homeland security, education, campaign finance reform, the Phillips 66 rail spur, and climate change. But what no one is talking about is the looming health care crisis caused by the supersizing of America. With more than 65 percent of…
Planter’s paradise: SLO County Seed Library sprouts in Nipomo
There are seeds for 170 different plants sitting in the Nipomo branch of the San Luis Obispo County Library system right now. And that collection—1,700 seed packets full—is only going to grow. Seriously, no pun intended. The seeds will literally grow into plants if the 22 currently registered members of the San Luis Obispo County…
Cougars & Mustangs
You may be aware that transgender rights issues are deeply important to the staff of one here at Cougars & Mustangs. I hope that I can help provide information for those desperately needing it, and as it happens, Cal Poly is holding such an event, full of laughter and information. On May 23, Cal Poly…
Conservation success: SLO County residents saved more water than required by state mandates
It should be no surprise to anyone that California is in a drought. Even elementary school children are taking the initiative to do a little tattling on could-be water abusers. San Luis Obispo Utilities Service Technician Mychal Boerman said that the city has received phone calls from every demographic about water and conservation. “I got…
Power struggle: Cal Poly professor to argue at hearing that school administrators violated faculty rights
Tensions between Cal Poly faculty members and the school’s administration haven’t necessarily subsided since a CSU system-wide strike was averted in April. On May 23, a faculty committee will hear a grievance highlighting a dispute between members of the College of Agriculture, Food, and Environmental Sciences (CAFES) and university administrators over how an Agribusiness Department…
SLO County seeks grant to fill gaps in services for crime victims
SLO County is hoping to snag some extra funds to help better serve victims of crime. The SLO County Board of Supervisors gave the all clear to move forward with an application for a $336,874 grant from the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services, which would be used to fill gaps in SLO County’s Victims…
SLO supervisors discuss Dairy Creek Golf Course’s financial woes
First, the course saw a sharp decline in its primary water source—reclaimed water from the California Men’s Colony—which meant reduced irrigation and declining playing conditions. That brought decreased play, and now the course is seeing its revenue-dependent operating budget dry up and head into a deficit. The SLO County Board of Supervisors is now tasked…
SLO County residents open wallets for national elections
With the 2016 national elections just around the corner, SLO County residents are throwing cold, hard cash behind the candidates and causes they support. A recent study by opensecrets.org, a website that tracks political spending, shows that SLO County residents have contributed a little more than $1 million in political donations for the upcoming federal…
Phillips 66 rail spur moves forward, opponents vow to stay in fight
While the majority of the SLO County Planning Commission favors moving forward with plans to approve a modified version of the proposed Phillips 66 rail spur project, the move is unlikely to deter the project’s most vocal critics. After a May 16 vote to outright deny the project, which would allow the company to bring…
Music’s transformative power: Collaboration between Orchestra Novo and Grizzly Youth Academy culminates in May 29 concert
For many of the Grizzly Youth Academy cadets at Camp San Luis, the 22-week program is a last chance. The 16- to 18-year-olds have dropped out of high school or are at risk of dropping out. Some have had run-ins with the law. Many have experienced broken homes, addiction, neglect, or abuse. For two days…
Good Medicine unleashes a plethora of shows on SLO County, including Phil Vassar, Nicki Bluhm, and the Sweet & Tender Hooligans
Whether you’re ready for some hit country, Dusty Springfield-esque ’70s pop sounds, ’80s-style gloom rock, reggae of every variety, or smoking blues rock, Numbskull and Good Medicine Presents has got you covered starting with two-time ASCAP Songwriter of the Year and Billboard Country Songwriter of the Year Phil Vassar this Thursday, May 19, at Tooth…
True Myth’s 2013 Cabernet Sauvignon and Adelaida Cellars’ 2015 Estate Rose
I am slightly scared of butterflies. There, I said it (but only when they land on my face, and only if there’s a lot of them). Please don’t judge me. I’m not saying they’re not breathtakingly beautiful, and I must say that the flower-loving insects look incredibly gorgeous and ethereal fluttering around the label of…
Must do
Is that the smell of seafood, sausage, and bay leaves simmering? Mmmm, yes! The Paso Pinot and Paella Festival is gearing up for an expanded two-day event this June 4 and 5! The main event will kick off at Templeton Community Park with dozens of local chefs sharing their fave paella recipes (tickets almost sold…
Clubs 5/19/16 – 5/26/16
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…
Bingeable: Fargo
Where? FX and Hulu; 2014-Present. As a big fan of the Coen brothers’ 1996 film Fargo, I’ve been hesitant to delve into the TV series of the same name for fear it will either be a retread, or worse, taint the brilliant film. After gobbling up the first season, I’m happy to report it’s a…
SLO Symphony announces finalists in search for new conductor
Get ready classical music lovers, there’s going to be a new person waving around that baton in San Luis Obispo. After considering 134 applicants, the SLO Symphony narrowed it down to five potential candidates who could fill the vacant conductor’s podium. Each of the hopefuls will lead the orchestra in guest engagements during its 2016-2017…
ARTS Obispo proposes statue of Teddy Roosevelt in Mitchell Park
Years and years ago, 113 years ago to be exact, President Theodore Roosevelt stopped by the fair little city of San Luis Obispo. In Mitchell Park in early May of 1903, ole Teddy thunderously gave one of 250 speeches that he would deliver across the American West that year as part of his Great Loop…
Dry times: Atascadero photographer Brittany App captures California’s lack of water to raise awareness
Some two years after Gov. Jerry Brown declared a state of emergency and enforced mandatory water restrictions, the severity of the drought in California still hasn’t quite sunk in for some. And why would it? All that people know is the faucet still turns on. Luckily for the odd water ostrich who’s stuck their head…
