Josh Friedman
Writer Josh Friedman may or may not live in San Luis Obispo County.
The "Continue Reading" links open in a new window or tab.
Ray brings boyfriend into political fray
By JOSH FRIEDMAN and KAREN VELIE A San Luis Obispo County supervisor currently running for election has used her political position to further the career of her boyfriend, in violation of an ethic’s policy. Last October, Governor Jerry Brown appointed Caren Ray to the San Luis Obispo County Board of Supervisors to fill a seat […]... (Continue Reading)
SLO developer fined by state ethics watchdog
By JOSH FRIEDMAN A San Luis Obispo County developer has drawn a fine from the California Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC) for not identifying himself as a major donor to the election campaign of County Supervisor Caren Ray. The FPPC voted during its meeting last week to fine Gary Grossman $400 for failing to properly […]... (Continue Reading)
Will Gibson’s emails to his lover surface before election?
By JOSH FRIEDMAN For more than 17 months, San Luis Obispo County officials have claimed they are attempting to comply with the California Public Records Act, yet they have failed to provide emails that could tarnish the reputation of a supervisor currently running for reelection, as required by law. The California Public Records Act is […]... (Continue Reading)
Fire authority blames voters for parcel tax failure
By JOSH FRIEDMAN After 60 percent of voters rejected a parcel tax initiative for firefighting services, the Five Cities Fire Authority (FCFA) took to Facebook to blame its fiscal woes on South County property owners. On Friday, the votes were tallied. Property owners in Arroyo Grande, Grover Beach and Oceano voted 59.6 percent against the […]... (Continue Reading)
Cal Poly clinches Fullerton series on 13th inning walk-off
By JOSH FRIEDMAN Cal Poly junior right fielder Nick Torres hit a walk-off double Friday night, capping a 13-inning, 4-3 victory over Cal Sate Fullerton and clinching a Big West series over the former conference frontrunner. Poly Head Coach Larry Lee went for the series win in the second of three games and risked entering […]... (Continue Reading)
Will SLO issue a pension obligation bond?
By JOSH FRIEDMAN Chances are growing that the city of San Luis Obispo will issue a pension obligation bond to gain control of its unfunded retirement plan liabilities, which have soared past $100 million. The city currently has a total of about $123 million of unfunded liabilities in its California Public Employees Retirement System (CalPERS) […]... (Continue Reading)
Supervisor candidates tussle in Nipomo
By JOSH FRIEDMAN Caren Ray is warning voters about big money donors, Lynn Compton is making no bones about being Republican and Mike Byrd is facing a charge of unethical behavior for offering an opinion during a debate. Those revelations and more surfaced Wednesday evening during a fourth district supervisorial candidates forum at Nipomo High […]... (Continue Reading)
Battle for SLO supervisor seat prompts illegal signs
By JOSH FRIEDMAN A sitting San Luis Obispo County supervisor seeking to keep her seat has dozens of campaign signs placed on county and state property in violation of the law. Typically, candidates get permission from supporters to place signs on private property. Campaign signs are not permitted on public lands such as parks or […]... (Continue Reading)
Raises pending for SLO council, manager and attorney
By JOSH FRIEDMAN Each member of the San Luis Obispo City Council, as well as the city manager and city attorney could receive pay raises in the coming weeks. This week the council is holding closed session meetings in which they are considering bumps in pay for both City Manager Katie Lichtig and City Attorney […]... (Continue Reading)
SLO to spend big on employee supervision
By JOSH FRIEDMAN The city of San Luis Obispo is planning a $250,000 rearrangement of city hall that would allow the city manager to more closely oversee the city clerk’s office. On Feb. 18, the city council approved a staff request to allocate $250,000 to reorganize and remodel city hall offices and to install an […]... (Continue Reading)
