this weeks full SLO City News

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Volume 9

Issue 11

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December 4 - 10, 2014

YOUR COMMUNITY IN YOUR HANDS The all-volunteer SLO County Band played Santa into his SLO home for the season with the annual opening of Santa’s House in Mission Plaza, November 28. Photo by Erin O’Donnell with more info on page 36.

‘Sunny Acres’ Name Is Out For Historic Orphanage

Major Projects Before Planning Commission

By Camas Frank

By Camas Frank

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ver since Dan DeVaul opened his ranch to those in need and created his own sober-living facility — Sunny Acres — on the outskirts of San Luis Obispo, there have been two very different places with the same name. DeVaul’s project is on Los Osos Valley Road and grabbed headlines in recent years, over a code enforcement spat with the County or, more recently, a groundbreaking ceremony for community supported upgrades. The original, other “Sunny Acres” has sat empty and abandoned, save for teenage trespassers, on a hill above Johnson Avenue.

Transitions-Mental Health Association first outlined plans to take over the 80-year old structure two years ago and now wants to end confusion over the name once and for all. The restoration of the historic orphanage building known as Sunny Acres will go forward as “Bishop Street Studios,” Transitions has announced, an independent living center supporting the non-profit organization’s mission promoting “Recovery and wellness for people with mental illness through work, housing, community and family support services.” See Name Change, page 3

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an Luis Obispo City Planning Commission meetings don’t usually garner a lot of attention but the Dec. 10 agenda has a couple of big items for residents to pay attention to. Second on the agenda but probably the most well known is a plan for 40 Prado Rd. That’s the project review for a new “homeless shelter and safe parking program” that’s been in the works in some form or another for a decade. The Prado site, very near the current Prado Day Center, is part of a “Planned Development overlay (O-PD) zone” and would receive a categorical exemption

from further environmental review. Community Action Partnership San Luis Obispo (CAPSLO) managed to secure the property as part of a complicated purchase arrangement with the Regional Transit Authority earlier this year. Also before the commission is a doozy, because of the attention it’s already received through the proposal and Architectural Review Commission (ARC) stages of review. That’s a proposal for a new 102-room hotel project. See Projects, page 4

SLO City Farm Expands Education

Scoop Their Poop

Running For The Finish

Get Your Kicks at ‘Pier 46’

SLO Chief Speaks Out

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page 5

page 6

page 33

page 34

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December 4 - 10, 2014 • SLO City News

Table of

Contents

Coastal Culture .....................14

Bret Colhouer publisher [email protected] Neil Farrell managing editor The Bay News [email protected]

City Farm School Expanding ........... 4

Holiday Guide .........................15-26

Scoop The Poop Campaign ............ 5

805 Sound ..............................27-30

Sports ........................................... 6

Police Blotter ................................. 7

Community Calendar....................8-9

Good To Be King ......................... 10

Theresa-Marie Wilson managing editor The Coast News [email protected]

Entertainment ..........................31-32

Camas Frank section editor SLO City News [email protected]

Opinion....................................... 34

Paul Winninghoff sports reporter [email protected]

Deputies Donate .......................... 35

Gareth Kelly business / lifestyle reporter [email protected]

Visit To Santaʼs House .................. 36

Christy Serpa art director Jim Bennett graphic designer

Dinner And A Movie .............33

Lifestyle ................................... 11-13

In The Black .............................37-39

Kathrene Tiffin copy editor Kaila Lugo administrative assistant Padma Mohan marketing coordinator ADVERTISING Dave Diaz internet, text & loyalty marketing Dana McGraw sales manager [email protected] Zorina Ricci senior advertising executive SEO specialist [email protected] Carrie Vickerman [email protected] CONTRIBUTING WRITERS & PHOTOGRAPHERS Teri Bayus Michael Gunther King Harris Vivian Krug Evanne Mingori Betsey Nash SLO Nightwriters Ray Ambler Ruth Anne Angus Amy Joseph Carrie Jaymes Erin O’Donnell This is a publication of Tolosa Press, Inc., Copyright 2007–2013 all rights reserved. One free copy per person. Additional copies can be obtained at our offices 615 Clarion Court, #2, San Luis Obispo, CA, 93401. Tolosa Press makes every reasonable effort to ensure the accuracy of its contents. Please notify us if information is incorrect.

phone (805) 543-6397 fax (805) 543-3698 615 Clarion Ct., #2, San Luis Obispo, CA 93401 www.tolosapress.com

Call 543-NEWS

SLO City News • December 4 - 10, 2014

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NEWS Name Change, from page 1

In a press statement Transitions Executive Director, Jill BolsterWhite, explained the first step of changing the name. “We have received a gratifying amount of encouragement from neighbors as well as community leaders who know that our community needs to provide this kind of housing,” said BolsterWhite. “Our supporters urged us to come up with an updated name to avoid confusion with Dan DeVaul’s Sunny Acres facility. Given the big difference between our mission and Mr. DeVaul’s, it made sense to come up with a different name that clearly identifies our project for precisely what it is — studio apartments on Bishop Street.” While original projections for the project were hazy on exactly how many clients could be housed once the structure was gutted, had its masonry reinforced and rebuilt with a modern interior, their target is to provide affordable housing for at least 14 Transitions clients. Citing pending, “final discussions

Photo taken of ‘Sunny Acres’ in 2011, by Camas Frank

with the County and the City,” Bolster-White left the door open for as many as 35 residents with at least one manager living permanently on- site. If successful, the project will also be a triumph for preservationists, who have tried to keep the building in public ownership since the County announced plans to sell it.

The building served various roles, as an orphanage and eventually a home for troubled kids, before being shut down permanently in 1974. Near several County facilities on the north side of the city, the property has a hilltop view and is surrounded by green-space. That makes it perfect for the Transitions project but also a good

candidate for the County’s original plan to sell off the site for conversion into a pricy, single family, mansion. Cost has always been the barrier to keeping the space in a public use. Transitions has been able to work out a series of loans, grants and donations to come up with the project costs, estimated at $5 million. ✤

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December 4 - 10, 2014 • SLO City News

COMMUNITY School At City Farm Expanding By Camas Frank

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s the students at Pacific Beach High School took some time off to be with their families for Thanksgiving, a few might have been looking a little differently at their dinner plates. Students have been growing lettuce, tomatoes, corn, sunflowers, squash and more since the introduction of a school garden program at SLO’s City Farm for the 2014-15 school year. Going a step beyond just how to do things in a farm setting, their time has been split between the field and classroom with more science studies and classes planned. “They’re learning about the entire food web,” Principal Andy Marnello said, “the history of how people have been fed and why we have the foods we eat.” He added that he, and a few of the school’s staff, have been more than happy to play guinea pigs for culinary experiments, as the kids finding out how to turn fresh-fromthe-field produce into appetizing dishes. “It’s amazing how people don’t understand the connection between a saran wrapped product on the shelf to what it took to grow that food,” Marnello said. Pacific Beach, located on Los Osos Valley Road in SLO, is the San Luis Coastal Unified School District’s alternative for students who want an accelerated environment or with challenges that make attendance in other district schools unfeasible. It serves the entire district including Morro Bay, Los Osos, Avila and SLO. As such they’ve had a freer hand to test out programs that their smaller student body find rewarding. Partnering with the City of San Luis

Projects, from page 1

If readers haven’t heard, the project is planned for the parking lot around the Pappy McGregor’s Restaurant, 1845 Monterey St., they probably don’t live in the San Luis Drive neighborhood, just across the creek from the development. The project passed through the ARC on Oct. 20 with a standing room only crowd interested in the details of how noise would be channeled through a ground level parking garage, how many balconies might be able to see over the creek into their backyards, and even concerns about outdoor lighting. Doug Davidson, the first City hearing officer to look at the project,

Obispo’s brand new City Farm, just off Calle Joaquin and behind the Madonna Road shopping centers, was a perfect confluence of available space and talented volunteers. They started with a 3-week pilot program last summer and the idea stuck. Developed by teacher Anne Wilder, the curriculum for students’ time at the farm is a supplement to traditional classes with concepts such as, “international versus local supply chains,” “the history of food,” “the physics, chemistry and biology of agro-ecology,” and “principles of sustainable and organic agriculture” taught hands-on style. Now the organization that runs the SLO City Farm, Central Coast Grown, has been able to allocate some more resources towards the educational side of their operation.

They’ve hired a new farm manager and educator to develop curriculum on site. Nicki Anderson is set to take the job this week. “The students have fully designed their own garden on the plot that we gave them,” explained Jenna Smith, executive director for Central Coast Grown. “They’re doing the entire process start to finish. With a full time educator we’ll be able to expand to half an acre and add business planning and marketing courses to the vocational training.” While the classes are still an elective at PBHS, the hope is to expand the farm’s educational abilities to include an apprenticeship program and help young people interested in literally growing a business from the ground up get their start. “We’ve already had so much

thought those concerns might have been worked out after an August public hearing that featured both Andrew Firestone of West Coast Asset Management (the project applicant), and a sizable residential turnout spearheaded by the current appellant, Bob Lucas. Lucas though, representing an informal but close knit group of residents in the area, hasn’t been overly enthused with the solutions provided during later steps of approval. City staff found that, “sound generated from use of the proposed balconies more than complies with City noise requirements and light associated with the proposed balconies also more than complies with the City’s Night Sky

Preservation requirements.” Higher screening walls on the creek side and a reduced number of balconies from the original architectural drawings were however, worked into the Oct. 20 approval. City Associate Planner, Marcus Carloni, who’s in charge of the project, noted that the project’s status after the last ARC meeting was largely unchanged from when it went in, except for enclosure of the lower parking level, which would result in the loss of about 10 parking spaces. That, it was felt, was a reasonable compromise for commercial parking design. As long as both the restaurant and hotel on-site were

help,” said Marnello. “Central Coast Grown is a real clearing house for amazing volunteers.” Among the volunteers is former Cal Poly professor, Steven Marx, who has been the liaison between the agricultural and educational elements of the farm since the beginning. “He’s been the energy behind us and really kept us going,” Marnello added, noting that Marx has also lent his know how in “the system” to help find grant opportunities, which is how the new educational coordinator is set to be funded. “We’re really looking forward to what this will mean for our program.” Marx, coincidentally is married to SLO Mayor Jan Marx. As for what the public can do to help the City Farm keep going, donations and volunteer time are appreciated, but if you have equipment there’s always a constant need. “Right now we’re looking for rototillers,” said Smith. Outdoor tables and chairs would be welcomed too. For more information about Central Coast Grown and City Farm see: www.centralcoastgrown.org. ✤

both fully booked, there shouldn’t be and overflow issue. At the heart of the matter though, what Lucas and many of the Oct. 20 public commentators were more concerned with is the “human scale” of the project, and the prospect that their privacy and nearby open space are open for development based on administrative checklists. That’s not something an appeals process will resolve, but for at least one more meeting, a lot more people are getting involved in the process. The Planning Commission meets at 6 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 10 in the Council Chamber at City Hall, 990 Palm St. ✤

SLO City News • December 4 - 10, 2014

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NEWS ‘Scoop the Poop’ Campaign Hatched By Neil Farrell project locations are mapped at: www.SLOscoopspoop.com. Bureaucrats have apparently been tracking these orphan poop piles. “Each of the designated locations has either a pink or checkered flag that identify and represent the number of orphan poops that have the ability to impact public health and our local waterways. In addition,

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ocal cities are starting a new PR campaign to step up education on the issue of pet wastes, part of a State program to wipe up bacterial pollution in storm water run-off. Targeting priority water pollution sources, participating communities on Nov. 24 kicked off “SLO Scoops Poop” — a county-wide campaign “to protect public health, our local waterways, and our beautiful central coast landscape,” according to a press release from the City of Morro Bay. In accordance with state regulations, the release reads, each participating community will be promoting a pilot program to address water quality impacts related to pet waste. According to the press release, the pilot program will educate the public, and “identify social and physical barriers that prevent a desired behavior or activity, provide educational prompts to elicit a desired behavior, and provide incentives for the desired behavior.” It’s assumed that a rolled up newspaper won’t be part of the behavior modification. “Our mission is simple,” reads the release, “to get dog owners to pick up after their dogs every stinkin’ time! Every time you’re walking your dogs on trails, through local parks, or your neighborhoods remember to pick up your dog’s poop and dispose of it properly. This also includes accumulated dog poop in your yards.” It continues, “When dog and other pet waste is left on the ground, not only is it smelly and unsightly, but it poses a health risk for other animals and people. “In addition, unattended [“orphan”] poop during rains can contribute harmful bacteria [giardia, roundworm, viruses, and other parasites] to our local waterways. “No one wants to swim in waterways that are polluted with harmful bacteria, especially fish and other aquatic life. ‘SLO Scoops Poop’ has selected eight different project locations in each participating community.” The

each of the eight designated project locations contains a unique treasure container — “canine cache.” Of course there’s a poop project tracker website, see: www. SLOscoopspoop.com to find GPS coordinates and hints to find a cool pooch prize. Partners in the program include: the cities of Arroyo Grande, Paso

Robles, Morro Bay, Pismo Beach, Atascadero, SLO and Grover Beach, SLO and Santa Barbara counties, Santa Maria, Los Osos and Templeton CSDs, Cal Poly, and Caltrans, according to the website. Their motto is: “Remember: Poop Pollutes, so… Scoop the Poop, Every Stinkin’ Time!!!” ✤

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December 4 - 10, 2014 • SLO City News

SPORTS

proudly supports OUR local Athletes!

Local Runners do Well at State By Neil Farrell Photos by Mark Smith

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an Luis Obispo High’s William Ernst finished in second place at the CIF State Cross Country Meet held in Clovis over the weekend, leading the SLO High Boys’ Team to a 5th Place finish in the Div. 4 team standings. And Morro Bay High’s Austin lay capped off a stellar prep career taking 4th in the Div. 4 race and taking home a medal, while posting the fourth fastest time ever for a Morro Bay runner at State. Ernst also took second at the CIF Southern Section Div. 4 Finals held the previous weekend at Mt. SAC. Lay was 12th in that race, running just fast enough to make State, though the rest of the Pirates’ team didn’t qualify for State. Other runners for SLOHS were: Callum Bolger (4th, 15:29); Aramis

Morro Bay’s Lay clocked 15:44 for the 5K race and Pirates’ coach Chuck Ogle said it was a performance for the ages. “That time ties him with Dave Mitchell (1993 Sate Meet) for the fourth fastest mark by a Pirate on the course,” said Ogle. Only Isaiah Festa has run faster.” Festa was a two-time State Cross Country Champion who went on to star in cross country and track for the University of Wisconsin. “Austin ran a smart race,” Ogle said. “He went through the first mile in a controlled 4:50, used the second mile to establish his position, held in the third mile, and sealed the deal with a strong kick over the last 100 meters.” Photos shown here were taken at the CIF SS Finals Meet at Mt. SAC. ✤

Knox (57th, 15:44); Ethan McSwain (65th, 16:48); Matt White (120th, 17:25); Kieran Bolger (137th, 17:45); and Kobi Kelly (143rd, 17:48). There were 192 total runners In the Div. 4 race and SLO’s team time was 1-hour 21.46 minutes. Callum Bolger also medaled in the race. (Top-10 get medals). In the Div. II Girls race, Arroyo Grande’s team finished ninth with a collective time of 1:36:31. Leza Cassidy led with a 5th place finish among team runners (individual scorers removed) clocking 18:15. She was 12th overall in the race. Others included Rosa Granados (42nd, 19:00); Jocelyn Reynolds (68th, 19:37); Talley Hill (75th, 19:43); Malia Simon (84th, 19:56); Haley Chavez (93rd, 20:03) and Angela Gemignani (103rd, 20:10).

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