Grassroots deserve some credit
Let’s give credit where credit is due. It was not just the pressure from local politicians that led Federal Receiver Clark Kelso to shelve, at least temporarily, his plan to build a 1,000-bed state prison hospital near Camarillo. A community group, known as the Prison Hospital Action Committee, was instrumental in gathering support from citizens Read More →
Esmay paved way for leaders
We’re going to say a few words about James L. Esmay, the first dean of California Lutheran University’s School of Business. Esmay, who passed away Feb. 10 at age 79, came to CLU in 1965. After a stint at Cal State Northridge, he rejoined the campus in 1979. He was named dean of the school Read More →
California
Now is the time to blow up California’s government and start over again. That’s the general idea behind the proposed constitutional convention, an idea making its way up and down the political food chain in the Golden State. Given the government gridlock that’s led the state to the brink of insolvency — and perhaps over Read More →
Region
Now that the realities of recession have hit hard, it’s time for Santa Barbara County to launch a targeted and effective economic development initiative. All around us are examples of people doing a good job with limited resources. The Economic Vitality Corp. in San Luis Obispo, the EDA activities that are taking place under the Read More →
Oil field rejection shows state
Politics being politics and California being California, it was not totally surprising to see a perfectly sensible deal between environmentalists and the oil industry go down the tubes late last month. The State Land Board’s decision to reject a proposal by Plains Petroleum to abandon four offshore platforms and an unsightly refinery in return for Read More →
Economy uproots hotel plans
Just a few months ago, the future of the hotel industry in the Tri-Counties looked clear. Smaller, nimbler, niche-oriented hotels were going to be the wave of the future. But the credit crunch has put a number of these plans on hold. Construction at Fess Parker’s Waterfront Hotel has been stalled; the restoration of the Read More →
Oil spill
The 40th anniversary of the Santa Barbara oil spill, widely credited with helping give birth to the environmental movement, would not seem to be a time to pay some new respect to the free enterprise system. After all, the Jan. 29 offshore spill, which polluted beaches in Santa Barbara and Ventura counties, led to a Read More →
