Santa Maria police officers nab burglary suspect
By KAREN VELIE A 44-year-old burglary suspect is behind bars after officers tracked the man down and arrested him for burglarizing a residence on Wednesday morning. Shortly before 3 a.m., a caller reported a burglary in progress at a residence on the 1700 block of S. Thornburg Street. Officers arrived...
False claims stir up a frenzy at the Oceano Dunes
OPINION by JIM SUTY It is a shame that people will not perform any basic research before making false claims in an effort to stir up a frenzy when there doesn’t seem to be an issue. However, Charles Varni’s recent attempt to get some fame fails just like his other...
Mudslides, flooding, lightning as storm drenches SLO County
By KAREN VELIE Mudslides, flooding, thunder and power outages as a storm drenches San Luis Obispo County with nearly 5 inches of rain falling at Rock Butte. The National Weather Service issued a severe thunderstorm warning, a flood warning and a high wind advisory for both San Luis Obispo and...
San Luis Obispo police identify possible murder victim
By KAREN VELIE The San Luis Obispo police department on Tuesday identified the woman whose body was found next to a creek on Feb. 12 as 50-year-old Veronica Beatrice Baro. Her death is being investigated as a possible homicide. Baro was a transient who had been staying at a homeless...
SLO County supervisors split on offshore wind energy farms
By KAREN VELIE The San Luis Obispo County Board of Supervisors voted 4-1 last week to approve a state and federal legislative platform that includes supporting offshore wind energy farms and strengthening support for Proposition 13. Supervisors Bruce Gibson and Jimmy Paulding initially agreed they wanted to add only legislative...
Grover Beach citizens propose ordinance to limit building heights
By KAREN VELIE A group of Grover Beach residents filed a notice last week of their intent to circulate a petition to adopt an ordinance limiting building heights in the coastal community. The group’s goal is to limit the height of new buildings in commercial zones to 40 feet and...
Parolee leads officers on chase in Santa Maria, arrested
By KAREN VELIE A parolee fleeing from a traffic stop in Santa Maria over vehicle violations landed in jail on Saturday. Shortly before 6 p.m., officers on patrol near the intersection of Newlove Avenue and McClelland Street observed a vehicle with tinted windows along with lighting issues and attempted a...
