Crack down on fire-causing cartels
An international law enforcement effort is needed to bring the perpetrators of the La Brea fire to justice. Unless you have been sleeping for the past week, you probably know that state and local officials believe that Mexican cartels that operate massive pot farming operations in far northeast Santa Barbara County were behind the 89,000-acre Read More →
Cushman campaign puts business first
There were times this year when Steve Cushman’s campaign for mayor looked liked the longest of long shots. Cushman, who heads the Santa Barbara Region Chamber of Commerce, stepped part way into the ring and backed away. Some close advisors wanted him to run for City Council first, something he eschewed right off the bat. Read More →
UCSB
Vice Chancellor John Wiemann is retiring, but we doubt he’s left the University of California, Santa Barbara, scene forever. For the past 14 years, Wiemann has been the eyes and ears in the community for Chancellor Henry Yang. He’s helped create the UCSB Economic Forecast Project, and he’s shaped community outreach projects on a regionwide Read More →
Oil money is ripe for the taking
When it comes to running a business, it’s generally a bad idea to leave money on the table. Not leaving money on the table means grabbing revenue that’s easy whenever it’s easy to grab it. And after witnessing the California budget meltdown this summer, it’s astonishing to see how much money the state left on Read More →
Dalidio
Ernie Dalidio has not always been lucky with his San Luis Obispo Marketplace project. He’s been thumped by bureaucrats, stumped by politicials, delayed, distracted and was forced to spend big bucks on a referendum to get his project passed. But Dalidio’s luck may be changing and the SLO Marketplace may yet come to fruition as Read More →
SLO event ordinance a blow to business
A prime example of job-killing regulation is coming to light in San Luis Obispo County. That’s because a group of environmentalists and “buy local” have joined forces to advocate for a countywide ordinance that would ban most private, for-profit activity on agricultural land. In other words, no more weddings, retirement parties, fundraisers, corporate celebrations or Read More →
California budget may just be a short-term fix, after all
California has a budget, but how long will it last? And what will be done about the pension time bomb? Don Facciano of the Ventura County Taxpayers Association believes the legislature will be back considering more cuts in a few months. Others think it may be a mid-year correction. Meanwhile there is the question of Read More →
