Recent Comments
Re: “From Splash with love”
My husband and I, had the good fortune of enjoying a meal at Splash Cafe, October 30, the last day it was in business in SLO. Joanne, the owner, was conversing with customers and made us feel most welcome. Splash’s famous clam chowder, was offered free to customers, and a gift certificate for a free dinner at the Pismo location — a kind gesture! We will miss Splash, its vibe, the food, the staff, and the delicious pastries, temptingly displayed in a glass showcase. We offer our thanks to Joanne, for her warm hospitality and wish her much success in the bakery expansion of the business.
Tina and John Dickason
Re: “Ah, progress!”
Sorry Shredder, but I do not agree with your assessment on this one!
Let the public decide! There are often instances where the public has proven to be way smarter than their elected officials. The residents of Morro Bay should have a say in this issue; they are the ones who will be affected by battery storage in a sensitive location. The elected officials come and go, but the residents are stuck with bad decisions that their elected officials make, in the so-called “best interests” of their constituents.
Case in point:
The SLO Board of Supervisors moved to have an independent group of non-partisan citizens to replace the Board in approving district boundaries, (see link below). I support this idea, especially after witnessing the fiasco that took place when the Board majority at the time, made a decision purely for political gain, not for a need, or any reasonable rationale making it necessary.
https://news.yahoo.com/slo-county-supervis…
Tina Dickason
Cambria
Re: “Everyone needs to stay 'wide awake'”
Mr.Donegan,
It wasn’t “the perpetually crazed progressives” who stormed our nation’s capital on Jan. 6, 2021!
Re: “Running the clerk-recorder's office requires experienced hands”
Thank you, Mr. Rodewald.
Elaina Cano will receive my vote, as she has the experience required for the position.
Tina Dickason
Cambria
Re: “As Arroyo Grande increases its water rates, residents and officials try to escape the costly drought cycle”
Proposition 218 is not conducted by a vote (ballot) but rather, a protest. In order to be successful in a Proposition 218 effort, 50% + 1 valid protests would need to be received by the agency proposing the rate increases. Some agencies may include a protest form in the rate increase mailing, but if they do not, then ratepayers can provide their own written protest to include the necessary information as required under Prop. 218 and included in the rate increase notice from the agency. One protest per parcel is allowed!
Re: “As Arroyo Grande increases its water rates, residents and officials try to escape the costly drought cycle”
As indicated in the chart provided in today's New Times article, Cambria, by far, has the most expensive water from the cities/towns included in the chart, in the County. To add insult to injury, the Cambria Community Services District (CCSD) will be voting to raise our rates in their Board meeting today. The rate proposal is for approximately $17 million dollars! (For a town of less than 5,700). I wonder how the same chart might look, once these HUGE rate increases have been implemented. Cambria CSD has no problem coming to the ratepayers for however many $$ they see fit, yet the ratepayers see little improvements from the high rates we are paying. We have the highest rates while using the least amount of water. Cambrians have conserved the most of any area, not just in the County, but most likely in the State.
Despite the lack of water, Cambria CSD has no problem in issuing Will-Serve letters for development for mega-mansions in a town that has a very limited supply of water. Thankfully, the Coastal Commission has denied more development as reported in another article in today's New Times, due to an unsustainable supply of water! When will the CCSD and the County Planning Department get it?
Our water supply comes from two creeks --San Simeon and Santa Rosa, which provide a limited supply determined not only by rainfall but the District's licenses (diversion permits) from the State Water Board, which were reduced significantly, several years ago.
The Emergency Water Supply (EWS) facility the District built in 2014 to aid in drought situations, has changed names and purposes three times but has remained since 2014, without a regular Coastal Development Permit (CDP). Even if the CCSD had a CDP and could run the facility, the District is strapped in finding an affordable way to dispose of the brine waste. The evaporation pond that was intended to hold the brine, was decommissioned by the Regional Water Quality Control Board (RWQCB) several years ago. Trucking the brine waste to SLO South Sanitation District is currently the only available option to dispose of the brine waste, but the cost to do so is prohibitively expensive; the CCSD can't afford it! This is a District that in my opinion, has a great deal of difficulty in effectively operating the District --they look to their ratepayers as a continuous "cash cow" but we receive little in return for the millions of dollars Cambrians have and continue to pay for a useless multi-million dollar facility while ignoring crumbling infrastructure.
Tina Dickason,
Cambria
Re: “Responding to unravelling”
Thank you, Andrew Christie, for your years of dedicated service to the Santa Lucian Chapter of the Sierra Club. You will be missed!
And thank you for your brilliant commentary in New Times--a voice of wisdom and warning in our troubled times. I couldn't agree with you more on the topics you addressed in your last column, however, I hope you will continue to provide comments on relevant topics to readers of New Times; we need your voice!
Wishing you the very best in your forthcoming pursuits, especially in the next 10 months!! It's about our freedom and what we hold sacred as Americans!
Tina Dickason