Sculpture would honor zoo namesake

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• Charles Paddock Zoo showing its age

  Charles Paddock Zoo showing its age

  The zoo's aging infrastructure has put its accreditation at risk and could mean the loss of animals.

• Photo: King vultures in Atascadero

  Photo: King vultures in Atascadero

  A pair of colorful king vultures is now on exhibit for the first time at the Charles Paddock Zoo in Atascadero.

  The species, native to the southern regions of Mexico south to Argentina, are scavengers with hooked beaks and a wingspan of up to 5.5 feet. Their white, cream and black feathers paired with the orange and yellow highlights on their face make them stand out among other birds of prey, zoo staff say.

  The zoo’s new pair, located across from the existing flamingo exhibit, features a male and female king vulture.

• Bouquets and Brickbats: Charging for Sunday parking is too expensive

  Bouquets and Brickbats: Charging for Sunday parking is too expensive

  Who knew that charging for Sunday parking in downtown San Luis Obispo would be so pricey? Originally, it was estimated that the city would spend $11,000 to install new signs with the updated parking fee schedule. Since then, the cost has jumped nearly tenfold, to $102,500.

  For that price, we should get gold-leaf lettering, right? Wrong.

  Here’s what’s driving up the cost: Because the new parking signs are bigger than the old ones, new posts will have to be installed. And it turns out that the city underestimated the number of signs that will be needed.

• Editorial: Countywide tax not the right fix for zoo’s problems

  Editorial: Countywide tax not the right fix for zoo’s problems

  Much as we support Atascadero’s Charles Paddock Zoo, we find it a stretch to expect people living as far away as Nipomo or Grover Beach or California Valley to pay a $20-per-year tax to help fund it.

  Yet as reported in Sunday’s Tribune, a countywide property tax assessment is one option being explored by zoo advocates, who are looking at ways to raise $30 million to modernize the aging facility.

  We have no doubt that the zoo has fans in every corner of the county who would be willing to donate to the cause. But the zoo is a regional facility — not a countywide one — and we can’t see asking all SLO County homeowners to foot the bill for modernization. That’s a bit like asking taxpayers throughout the county to help fund a performing arts center in Arroyo Grande or a children’s museum in San Luis Obispo.

• Letters to the Editor 9/4

  Letters to the Editor 9/4

  We’re in the Dark Ages

  Again, recent high-level wind and rainstorms across our country suddenly put millions of people without electricity and telephone service.

  Why is it that we still have telephone and power lines above ground? Other countries buried these eyesores below ground decades ago and keep their telephone and power services up and running during bad weather. Why are we still living in the Dark Ages? No pun intended.