Cover Story
Spring Arts Annual 2024
Spring 2024 is here! Happy blooming and fun-in-the-sun season! New Times is ready and we’re here to help you celebrate with our annual Spring Arts issue. Calendar Editor Caleb Wiseblood pulled all gallery exhibits, art lessons, plays, live music, crafting activities, wine celebrations, street fairs, and food festivals into one place just for you! Check…
The Flowering Stone holds terrarium workshop in SLO
SLO Cider Co. will host a ticketed terrarium workshop on Saturday, March 23, from 2 to 3 p.m. General admission to the event, led by The Flowering Stone, is $60 each, and tickets are available online in advance at my805tix.com. Attendees of the workshop will complete a terrarium, with multiple project options to choose from.…
Nipomo residents are upset about a new housing development
The San Luis Obispo Planning Commission approved another housing development in Nipomo, despite community members’ protests. Commissioners unanimously approved the construction of 72 affordable, multi-family residential units on 2.57 acres along Magenta Lane during a March 14 meeting. The development will consist of three three-story apartment buildings, an attached community room to the front entrance…
SLO County DUI program moves to Paso Robles
After 40 years of operating the Driving Under the Influence (DUI) Program, the San Luis Obispo County Behavioral Health Department decided to pass the role on to Kings View Behavioral Health Systems. “We took a look at what our primary mission is as the county Behavioral Health Department, and it is to serve those individuals…
Forest Service gets green light to temporarily ban camping on county beach
The California Coastal Commission voted unanimously on March 14 to allow Los Padres National Forest to prohibit camping and campfires at San Carpoforo Creek Beach—the only beach in Big Sur where people could camp for free—for at least two years. It will stay open and accessible for day use activities. “The purpose … is to…
Damsel proves a distressed lady can save herself
DAMSEL What’s it rated? PG-13 What’s it worth, Glen? Matinee What’s it worth, Anna? Matinee Where’s it showing? Netflix Juan Carlos Fresnadillo (28 Weeks Later) directs this dark fantasy about dutiful Elodie (Millie Bobby Brown), a royal from an impoverished kingdom, whose father, Lord Bayford (Ray Winston)—in exchange for wealth—arranges to marry her to Prince…
SLO Transit prepares for more electric buses
The city of San Luis Obispo’s Transit Division is bidding farewell to diesel to make space for more zero-emission buses by the end of 2026. “SLO Transit currently has two battery electric buses and another six electric buses on order,” said Alex Fuchs, the mobility services business manager of Public Works, in an email to…
13 Ghosts
What’s it rated? Unrated When? 1960 Where’s it showing? The Bay Theater, Monday, March 25, at 5:30 p.m. William Castle (House on Haunted Hill) directs this ghost story by Robb White (The Tingler). Occultist Dr. Plato Zorba dies, leaving his ramshackle mansion to his impoverished nephew, Cyrus (Donald Woods), and his family, wife Hilda (Rosemary…
Vertigo
What’s it rated? PG When? 1958 Where’s it showing? The Palm Theatre of San Luis Obispo on March 23 and 24 (1, 4, and 7 p.m.), and March 25 (7 p.m.) Alfred Hitchcock directs this psychological thriller about a former San Francisco police detective turned private eye, John “Scottie” Ferguson (James Stewart), who’s hired to…
Experience a sonic interpretation of wine harvesting on March 22, at Claiborne & Churchill Winery
Have you ever wondered, “What would the art of winemaking sound like from a musical perspective?” San Luis Obispo musician and composer Brook Munro gives you his answer in Harvest in the Twelve Parts: A Sonic Exploration Through Harvest, an album produced throughout the 2021 and 2022 harvest seasons at Claiborne & Churchill Winery, where…
Dream big
On March 26, the SLO County Board of Supervisors will begin discussing a five-year master plan for the future of the Oceano Airport. Oceano is a changing, upcoming, and vibrant community. Smack-dab in the middle of Oceano is the ragtag airport. Looking at it as you drive by, it is a run-down eyesore. It’s like…
Biden will see our country through its current challenges
Thank you for your opinion article, “The usual suspects?” (Shredder, March 7). I usually appreciate your satirical spin and acerbic wit on the issues of the day. However, I don’t agree with your portrayal of President Joe Biden as “Bumbling Joe.” I wrote him a letter early last year with regard to our current threat…
Convince Los Osos leaders to save water
Years ago, while involved in a large estate building project, I had a water-saving idea for this large home and future homes in California where water is an issue. If building departments would implement it, we would have a good chance to eliminate water issues in California and in the process make it possible for…
Breaking a bad habit
Precisely 75 years ago March 19, the legendary California Zephyr debuted with “modern” passenger train service from Chicago to Oakland. As a child, I often watched from my bedroom as the orange-and-silver Zephyr locomotive roared by our Redding home. In the 19th century, iron rails literally stitched our continent together. In 1875, the narrow-gauge Pacific…
Why we can’t have nice things
When the best thing you can say is, “At least no one fell through a collapsed roof and got injured,” you’ve set a very low bar. But the good news is, unlike in 2015, during this year’s St. Fratty’s Day, no roofs collapsed. What did happen is between 6,000 and 7,000 Cal Poly students and…
Thousands of St. Patrick’s Day partiers damage Cal Poly dorms and neighborhoods near campus
Property damage and theft were widespread the Saturday before St. Patrick’s Day as more than 6,000 people filled the streets near Cal Poly to celebrate the holiday. “I think all of us are deeply disturbed and troubled by the events that happened this weekend, both on campus and off campus,” SLO City Manager Derek Johnson…
Change of ownership and new vinyl vibe transform Jan’s Place in SLO
Tune in Jan’s Place, located at 1817 Osos St. in San Luis Obispo, is open Tuesday to Saturday from 3 to 8 p.m., with ample free parking. For parties of five-plus visit jansplaceslo.com or call (805) 439-1544 to make a reservation. Track music and menu drops on Instagram and Facebook @jansplaceslo. It’s all about sips…
A draft ordinance that aims to add more teeth to noise violation enforcement will soon hit the Board of Supervisors’ table
Loud open-air celebrations in the residential agricultural areas of San Luis Obispo County could face stricter penalties for disturbing neighbors’ peace. “We’re in a very precarious situation here because the county code was so vague,” said Bruce Wagner, a resident of unincorporated Arroyo Grande. “It didn’t even address loud noises other than commercial events and…
Cobi Moules pulls 1980s horror films and landscapes together to put queer bodies in spaces that once limited them
Take a trip If you missed Showering of Sparkling Bits at Cuesta College’s Harold J. Miossi Art Gallery, you can catch Cobi Moules’ exhibition in San Francisco at the Schlomer Haus Gallery (2128 Market St.) starting May 3. Visit cobimoules.com for more information about his art. Ombre skin tones in fleshy silicon dripped down one…
San Simeon CSD takes first step toward dissolving
The San Simeon Community Services District board unanimously voted to begin the process of dissolution during a special meeting on Friday, March 15. Since December, the district has weighed its options—whether it should divest a portion of the services it provides, which include water, wastewater, roads, streetlighting, and waste management; dissolve altogether; or push forward…
Catch The Fish Whisperer onstage in Oceano
The Great American Melodrama in Oceano presents The Fish Whisperer, which is scheduled to run Friday, March 22, through Saturday, May 11. Set in the small town of Shewauga, Wisconsin, The Fish Whisperer is a musical “brimming with hope and romance,” according to the Great American Melodrama’s website. The show opens during a rough patch…
SLO receives $6.6 million for wells to treat water pollution
The city of San Luis Obispo expects a $6.6 million monetary injection from the state to cure its groundwater from a stubborn toxic chemical prevalent since the 1980s. “Thankfully, the work done on the groundwater sustainability plan has provided a thorough understanding of the basin, and previous rounds of this project which focused on identifying…
