California slips as others catch up
As July heads past the mid-point, California still does not have a budget. This inability to get simple things accomplished underscores how far the Golden State has slipped behind its chief political rival, Texas. The July 11 edition of the Economist elaborates on the California-Texas rivalry, pointing out that among other things, Texas seems to Read More →
101 traffic upgrade goes before the public
One of the unintended consequences of the current economic meltdown may be public acceptance for widening Highway 101 through the Montecito area of Santa Barbara County. Caltrans, Santa Barbara city and county, the city of Carpineria and the Santa Barbara County Association of Governments all have lined up in support of the plan to put Read More →
Chevron cleanup progress
Early in July, Chevron announced plans to clean up the remaining environmental problems at its former Tank Farm Road facility in San Luis Obispo. Tank Farm Road has emerged as a major economic development corridor for the city of San Luis Obispo and it has attracted millions of dollars in capital investment to an area Read More →
Unshackle CSUs to move state forward
Amid the media swirl over Michael Jackson (see below), California continues to lumber toward its own tragedy — the state budget mess. But the more we look into the budget and its impacts on our region, the more we see opportunities lost and entrepreneurial efforts cast aside. Take, for example, the situation at California Polytechnic Read More →
Recognize. Neutralize. Monetize.
That should be the mantra that Santa Barbara County officials keep in mind as they navigate the media mess and potential economic bonanza posed by the death of Michael Jackson. His family’s decision — widely reported, but canceled just before press time — to hold a public viewing and memorial for the late entertainer, at Read More →
State budget farce as 10-penny opera
What will a smaller state government look like? What if it is $24 billion-a-year smaller? Those are the questions being debated in Sacramento these days. And no one is more important in that debate than Assemblymember Sam Blakeslee, R-San Luis Obispo. Blakeslee recently was elected minority leader of the assembly and from that perch he Read More →
A well-deserved retirement
During our nine years in business, we’ve gotten to know Jim Lokey, first as president of Mid-State Bank & Trust and later at Rabobank, which acquired Mid-State a couple of years ago. During his time at Mid-State, Lokey worked closely with Chairman Carrol Pruett. He and his team helped build Mid-State’s branch network across the Read More →
