SanLuisObispo.com: Breaking News

Proposed motel-condo project in Cayucos to go before Coastal Commission

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 18:40 PST

By Bob Cuddy -- A proposed motel-condominium project off Highway 1 in Cayucos will face the scrutiny of the California Coastal Commission next year.

Commissioners voted 12-0 this morning to overrule their staff and consider the project on its merits.

Commissioner Katcho Achadjian, who also sits on the San Luis Obispo Board of Supervisors, voted for the coastal board�s review.

Rep. Capps commends bill to speed up new credit card rules

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 16:26 PST

By Bob Cuddy -- Legislation to speed up the start date of credit card reforms enacted earlier this year has passed the House of Representatives and now goes to the Senate, according to Rep. Lois Capps, D-Santa Barbara.

The original bill would protect consumers from unfair interest rate hikes on existing balances, double-cycle billing, and �due-date gimmicks,� Capps wrote in a news release.

But it contained a start date of Feb. 22, 2010, and credit card companies have been using the intervening months to �arbitrarily raise interest rates, minimum payments, and fees on consumers,� Capps wrote.

One of three solar plants proposed for Carrizo Plain will not be built

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 14:53 PST

By David Sneed -- A 177-megawatt solar thermal power plant proposed for the Carrizo Plain will not be built.

In a deal announced today, First Solar has purchased the land upon which Ausra Inc. had proposed building its solar thermal plant. The purchase will allow First Solar to reconfigure its Topaz Solar Farm, a large photovoltaic plant it is planning to build nearby.

�The Topaz Solar Farm remains the same size, 550 megawatts, but the acquisition means one less solar project in the region and provides options for Topaz improvements like wildlife movement corridors and minimized use of Williamson Act land,� said Kathryn Arbeit, First Solar business development director.

Paso Robles man Alan Purdy sentenced for crash that left friend Andy Dowless dead

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 11:21 PST

A 20-year-old Paso Robles man charged with leaving the scene of a fatal car accident on New Year�s Day in which a friend died must serve three years probation, according to the District Attorney�s Office.

Alan Purdy received a sentence Tuesday of three years probation, 100 hours of community service, a day in County Jail which he already served, and $13,500 in restitution for funeral expenses to the family of the deceased victim of the crash.

Purdy was driving a 1992 Ford Mustang that rolled near San Miguel early morning on New Year's Day 2009 and told The Tribune he left his car to flag down help when his cell phone didn't have reception. The crash killed 17-year-old Andrew "Andy" Dowless of Paso Robles.

Election update: California Valley Community Services District board

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 10:48 PST

By AnnMarie Cornejo -- George Ayers won a four-year term on the board of directors of the California Valley Community Services District with 57 of the 189 total votes. Ruth Joyce Legaspi also won a four-year term as director by getting 52 of the 189 votes. Lisa Marrone won a two-year term as director by getting 67 of the 101 votes.

SLO police looking for possible witness in attack on teen girl

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 10:43 PST

By Sally Connell -- San Luis Obispo police are looking for a witness who may have photographed the assailant in the case where a man reportedly walked up and struck a 15-year-old girl in the face downtown on Oct. 3.

Moments after that assault, police report, a witness told the victim�s mother that she had taken pictures of the suspect. The woman provided the victim�s mother with her name and phone number, according to police, but that information was not retained.

The San Luis Obispo Police Department urges this witness and anyone else who may have information to contact the police department at 805-781-7337

$11 billion water deal approved by California lawmakers

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 10:14 PST

By Samantha Young -- SACRAMENTO, Calif. � California lawmakers on Wednesday passed an $11 billion overhaul of the state�s antiquated water system in a bid to supply a soaring population while preserving a fragile environment.

After a long night of debate, the state Assembly voted in favor of the comprehensive package of water bills and a bond measure to fund them. The Senate also approved.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger was expected to sign the five-bill package.

Study says dogs have larger carbon footprint than SUV

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 11:40 PST

By By MARK RAHNER -- Thanks for killing the planet, dog owners.

Well, that's a rough paraphrase of a New Zealand study that claims a medium-size dog leaves a larger ecological footprint than an SUV.

In "Time to Eat the Dog? The Real Guide to Sustainable Living," authors Robert and Brenda Vale argue that resources required to feed a dog - including the amount of land needed to feed the animals that go into its food - give it about twice the eco-footprint of, say, building and fueling a Toyota Land Cruiser. Noting that a cat's pawprint was roughly equivalent to a Volkswagen Golf's, "New Scientist" (www.newscientist.com) asked an environmentalist at the Stockholm Environment Institute in York, U.K., to independently calculate animals' environmental impact, and reported that "his figures tallied almost exactly." The study apparently didn't take into account the emissions of either the SUV or the dogs.

Nurses union, CHW reach deal on H1N1 issues

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 06:51 PST

The hospital chain that owns Arroyo Grande Community Hospital and French Hospital Medical Center in San Luis Obispo has reached a contract agreement with a key nurses union over safety issues involving H1N1, or swine flu.

Nurses from the San Francisco-based Catholic Healthcare West were planning to strike Thursday to protest what they said was a lack of preparedness for the swine flu.

CHW nurses planned the walkout over what their union said was the failure of the chain to assure adequate safety precautions for patients, their families, nurses and other health-care employees in the wake of swine flu, according to a statement from the California Nurses Association. Click here to find out more!

UPDATE: Water rate increases fail in Paso Robles

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 22:41 PST

By Tonya Strickland -- Paso Robles voters on Tuesday came out against the water rate increases proposed to them by the city to pay for its share of the Nacimiento Water Project, according to the San Luis Obispo County Clerk-Recorder�s unofficial election results.

John Borst, spokesman for Concerned Citizens for Paso Robles, the group whose petition drive last spring ultimately led to Tuesday�s election, said various reasons played into voters� decisions.

�One of them is that we had a very sound argument (against the proposed rate increases), I believe, to be made,� he said. �And, given the economy today with the way it is, asking the voters at large to raise rates � it�s just that the timing was wrong.�

Paso water rate plan appears to be trailing

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 20:35 PST

By Tonya Strickland -- Paso Robles' absentee voters are leaning toward disapproval of the new water rate plan proposed to them by the city to pay for its share of the Nacimiento Water Project.

Fifty-six percent of absentee voters � or 2,240 people � voted no on the rate plan. About 44 percent of voters � or 1,754 people � voted yes, according to unofficial election results released by the San Luis Obispo County Clerk-Recorder Tuesday evening.

The results represent nearly 4,000 absentee ballots counted as of Monday.

Sheriff's officials identify man found dead on boat off Morro Bay

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 22:16 PST

By Sona Patel -- A man was found dead attached to a fishing buoy Tuesday off Morro Bay.

A person on board a fishing boat named Miss Allison reported finding 47-year-old David Allen Kubiak of Los Osos. Kubiak's fishing vessel Axel, a 39-foot boat home, is ported in Morro Bay, Sheriff's officials said.

Sheriff's spokesman Rob Bryn said it appears Kubiak fell from the vessel sometime overnight. His body was discovered tied to a fishing buoy at 10:40 this morning.

Harmony Headlands plans postponed

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 10:17 PST

County planners have postponed a decision on plans by State Parks to add some amenities to Harmony Headlands State Park.

The improvements proposed at the park entrance adjacent to Highway 1, about five miles north of Cayucos, include a 16-space parking lot, informational kiosk, interpretive signs, a fee collection tube and new safety railings on a bridge just inside the park.

The county Planning Department hearing officer was expected to approve the plans at a weekly hearing Friday, but consideration was put off until Dec. 4 to allow neighboring property owners time to discuss with State Parks concerns regarding access.

Governor Schwarzenegger could appoint Abel Maldonado as his No. 2

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 08:48 PST

By Kevin Yamamura -- Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has complained that he doesn�t get to pick his own lieutenant governor, a position he thinks should be more first mate than political detractor � if it must exist at all.

He could soon get his wish.

If Democratic Lt. Gov. John Garamendi wins a special congressional election Tuesday in the Democrat-leaning 10th Congressional District, Schwarzenegger has the power to appoint Garamendi�s replacement.

Laid-off workers remain in recession's grip

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 05:06 PST

By By JIM STRATTON -- The comments reek of fear and anger. Posted below a news item about the Senate's failure to pass an unemployment benefits bill, they come from people living week-to-week, check-to-check in the worst recession in 65 years.

Some call for a march on Washington. Some urge the defeat of all incumbents. Some curse, and some plead. The message from "Thomas" is typical.

"This is ridiculous. The economy is shot. I have sent out nearly 70 resumes in the past six months and only been called for two interviews.

Over 17,000 species threatened by extinction

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 06:45 PST

By By FRANK JORDANS -- A rare Panamanian tree frog, a rodent from Madagascar and two lizards found only in the Philippines are among over 17,000 species threatened with extinction, a leading environmental group said Tuesday.

The Rabb's fringe-limbed tree frog, only discovered four years ago, is one of 1,895 amphibian species that could soon disappear from the wild because of deforestation and infection, the International Union for Conservation of Nature said.

The Switzerland-based group surveyed 47,677 animals and plants for this year's "Red List" of endangered species, determining that 17,291 of them are at risk of extinction.

Atascadero man who murdered his baby daughter sentenced to 31 years to life in prison

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 14:10 PST

By Staff report -- An Atascadero man who beat his 20-month-old daughter to death was sentenced to 31 years to life in prison Monday.

Fermin Brito Palacios, 29, was convicted of second-degree murder, felony assault on a child younger than age 8 and child endangerment on Sept. 10.

Brito Palacios' daughter, 20-month-old Natalia Brito, died June 24, 2007, at Twin Cities Community Hospital in Templeton.

Bay Bridge reopens after nearly weeklong closure

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 09:10 PST

By Associated Press -- The San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge is open to traffic again following emergency repairs, ending days of frustration for Northern California commuters.

California Department of Transportation spokesman Bart Ney had warned that drivers should prepare to find alternate routes for the Monday morning commute then announced the span would reopen.

Engineers have been working furiously to complete repairs to a section of the bridge where two rods and a crossbar fell into rush-hour traffic lanes Tuesday.

Halloween sees boosts in number of police, arrests in San Luis Obispo

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 06:54 PST

By Scott Silvey -- Expecting a rowdy weekend because Halloween was on a Saturday this year, San Luis Obispo police and other local law enforcement agencies boosted their presence around Cal Poly and downtown.

Though crowds weren't comparable to other busy festive weekends such as Mardi Gras, they arrested 33 people for alcohol-related and other offenses.

"We had a big presence in the neighborhoods, and we did everything we could to send a message that alcohol abuse and dangerous behavior wasn't going to be tolerated," San Luis Obispo police Sgt. Janice Goodwin said.

Fall back: Daylight-saving time ends at 2 a.m. Sunday

Sun, 01 Nov 2009 00:52 PST

WASHINGTON � Leaves swirl. Autumn's chill is in the air. It must be time to set the clock back.

The official change to standard time occurs at 2 a.m. Sunday, though most folks will change their clocks Saturday night.

Some states and territories don't observe daylight-saving time and thus won't have to worry about changing their clocks back. Those are Arizona, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, American Samoa, Guam and the Northern Marianas.