Morro Bay to discuss its plan to improve walking, cycling

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• SLO considers feasibility of Higuera transit hub

  SLO considers feasibility of Higuera transit hub

  The San Luis Obispo City Council expressed support Tuesday night for the development of a transit center along Higuera Street that would consolidate and improve bus services at one central location downtown.

  The plan, spearheaded by the San Luis Obispo Council of Governments, seeks to increase the number of bus bays from 10 to 16 to meet future demand and build a 5,000-square-foot building to provide a passenger waiting area, restrooms, ticket kiosks and a break area for bus drivers.

  As it is now, bus drivers and passengers have to scout nearby areas such as City Hall, the library and nearby restaurants for restrooms.

• Central Coast bicycling advocates lobbying in Washington this week

  Central Coast bicycling advocates lobbying in Washington this week

  Central Coast advocates for bicycle riding are in Washington this week to lobby for federal money for biking and walking.

  Members of the San Luis Obispo Bicycle Coalition are joining 900 people in similar organizations from around the country as part of the National Bike Summit. Executive Director Dan Rivoire and Leslie Bloom, marketing and outreach director, are representing the Central Coast and the coalition.

  They are spending half of this week meeting with elected representatives “to ensure future funding for transportation projects that include bicycle and pedestrian facilities,” according to a news release from the organization.

• Government Watch: A roundup of this week’s agendas

  Government Watch: A roundup of this week’s agendas

  Arroyo Grande City Council. Meets Tuesday. 473-5400. Vote on the city’s 2010 Urban Water Management Plan, which if approved would be sent to the state Department of Water Resources; resolutions regarding dissolution of the Arroyo Grande Redevelopment Agency; expected appointment of Councilman Tim Brown as the mayor pro tem for a one-year term.

  Atascadero City Council. Meets Tuesday. 461-5000. Recommendations for disbursing $170,000 in federal grant money, occupancy permit for a residential care center at 9525 Gallina Court; recommendations for $170,000 in federal grant funding; establishment of a successor agency after the city’s Redevelopment Agency is dissolved.

  Lucia Mar Unified School District Board of Education. Meets Tuesday. 474-3000. Report on phasing in new kindergarten entry date over three years; agreement between district and New Tech Network, the organization that helps public high schools start the New Tech High model.

• Jamie Irons is the new attitude Morro Bay needs

  Jamie Irons is the new attitude Morro Bay needs

  Jamie Irons, a former city planning commissioner, would be a breath of fresh air on a City Council that’s made some puzzling calls over the past couple of years.

  One example: Shortly after taking office, Mayor Bill Yates called for the ouster of the entire city Planning Commission. Yates wasn’t successful, but it was a divisive move that reeked of a my-way-or-the-highway attitude.

  While we endorsed Yates for mayor two years ago, we expressed reservations about his abrasive attitude, and those concerns were borne out.

• Morro Bay estuary plan updated

  Morro Bay estuary plan updated

  The Morro Bay National Estuary Program has updated the plan outlining how the many resources in the Morro Bay watershed will be managed for at least the next five years.

  Called the Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan, the 108-page document describes the challenges facing the 75-square-mile watershed that drains into Morro Bay as well as action plans to address them.

  Topping the list of ongoing issues are sedimentation of the bay and an influx of water pollutants including bacteria, nutrients and toxic substances.