Month: May 2025

Dave Alley

SANTA MARIA, Calif. – The City of Santa Maria’s new police chief was sworn-in on Tuesday night, marking the official beginning a new era for city’s police department.

“It’s a bit overwhelming,” said Santa Maria Police Department (SMPD) Chief Christopher Williams during a conversation with News Channel 3-12 Wednesday morning. “I’m very humbled and blessed to have the opportunity to serve the community in the capacity that I can as a leader. I just want to make a difference in my community and help out people.”

Williams comes to Santa Maria after serving in a number of positions in the Oxnard Police Department, where he most recently was the Assistant Police Chief the past three years.

“What I really liked about the City of Santa Maria when I was doing research for the job position, I watched a couple of City Council meetings, and I was really impressed by how efficient and effective Mayor (Alice) Patino ran the council meetings, and how supportive the council was with the police department because it’s important,” said Williams. “Santa Maria reminds me of my hometown of Oxnard, and it’s a growing, vibrant community, supportive of their law enforcement, and, I just got a hometown feel to the to the City of Santa Maria.”

An Oxnard native, Williams now leads the largest city department in Santa Maria, one that includes 200 positions and an annual budget of $54 million.

“His background was exactly what I was looking for,” said Santa Maria City Manager David Rowlands. “He has touched every function of the police department from the gang aspect of it, to homicide, and internal affairs. His personality really came through and his commitment to working with the community and being involved with the community from day one. That was really important to me and important to our City Council.”

Coming from nearby Oxnard, a city located exactly 100 miles south of Santa Maria, and one with similar attributes, has made Williams already feel right at home.

“Santa Maria reminds me of my hometown of Oxnard,” said Williams. “It’s a growing, vibrant community, and supportive of their law enforcement. I just got a hometown feel to the City of Santa Maria. I tell people, I think Santa Maria is what Oxnard was about 15 years ago. There are a lot of similarities because of the agriculture and the demographics. The friendliness of the people and the culture that both cities embrace are very similar.”

Williams is a big proponent of being involved in the community and believes in a philosophy of having “non-enforcement contacts” with the public.

“A lot of people don’t have interactions with the police that often, and when they do, it’s usually for a criminal matter, or they’re getting, pulled over because they’re speeding or whatnot,” said Williams. “It may have a certain type of perception with them, but by having the non-enforcement contacts, it shows the human side of our officers because behind the the badge and the gear and the equipment, we’re all humans, and we all have feelings and we all want to do well. Being able to show that side to specifically our youth, but our adult community as well is important.”

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Patricia Martellotti

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – The Trump administration mandated the reduction of agencies including The Institute of Museum and Library Services that funds libraries around the country.

Directors of the Santa Barbara Public Library are concerned about how this new directive could affect their services.

The library team hopes to keep critical services for the community.

The Institute of Museum and Library Services administers grants worth roughly $160 million in all 50 states.

The Institute of Museum and Library Services, which provides grants to “advance, support, and empower” museums, libraries and similar institutions in the U.S. according to its website, was named in an executive order this month.

Gov. Gavin Newsom and Attorney General Rob Bonta announced the legal action calling the administration’s move to shutter the federal agency “illegal” and warning it threatens critical services at the state’s 1,127 public libraries.

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John Palminteri

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – 100 homes are participating in a citywide yard sale Saturday that comes with support from the Santa Barbara Department of Sustainability.

Outreach coordinator Jen Hollywood says “part of this is to help people understand that buying used or mending what you already have, repairing things you already have, is a better way than buying new things.” She says when you are done with an item “we want to encourage that circular economy giving someone else a chance to use it rather than sending it to the landfill.”

The Santa Barbara County landfill at Tajiguas west of Goleta is taking in more trash than the county would like, at a time when recycling is an ongoing priority. “We are seeing more and more things go into landfills year after year, ” said Hollywood. “We can always be doing better, we can always be encouraging our our community to be as clean as we possibly can, keep things off of the street and keep things in use,” said Hollywood.

The Community Yard Sale event takes place from 8 a.m. until 2 p.m.

Residents who signed up by May 1st received a sign with a QR code and they will be listed on a map.  There is also a resource guide that lists places to dispose your items or recycle year-round.

Signs will be going into the ground at the designated addresses by the end of the week. The event comes with an online map and a handy resource guide.

The city is also using the event as an educational tool to responsibly donate or dispose leftover items.  They also have information on large item pickups throughout the year by Marborg Industries.

The city says by participating in a yard sale you’re part of the movement to reduce, reuse and recycle.  

Tips for Hosting a Successful Yard Sale (from the City of Santa Barbara)

Make the most of your yard sale with these helpful tips:

Plan Ahead: Choose a layout that makes browsing easy and price items clearly with visible tags.

Spread the Word: Take advantage of the event’s promotion, but also share on social media, in neighborhood groups, and by word of mouth.

Organize Items by Category: Arrange similar items together – clothing, books, home goods – to make shopping easier.

Offer Deals & Bundles: Encourage sales with discounts like “Buy One, Get One Free” or bundle pricing.

Be Prepared with Change & Bags: Have plenty of small bills and coins for making change and provide reusable bags for buyers.

Consider setting up a Venmo account or QR code for contactless payments: People love the convenience.

Make It Fun: Play music, offer refreshments, and create a welcoming atmosphere to attract more shoppers.

Sustainable Shopping Tips for Yard Sale Shoppers

Want to be a more eco-friendly yard sale shopper? Here’s how:

Bring Your Own Bags & Boxes: Reduce waste by carrying reusable shopping bags or baskets for your purchases.

Choose Quality Over Quantity: Look for well-made, items that you can enjoy longer.

Think of Upcycling Possibilities: Consider how items can be repurposed or refurbished to give them a second life.

Plan Your Route Efficiently: Use the online yard sale map to reduce unnecessary driving and save fuel. 

Good Housekeeping & Responsible Disposal

Once the yard sale is over, be sure to dispose of leftover items responsibly:

Donate Gently Used Items: Consider donating unsold goods to local charities, thrift stores, or shelters.

Recycle What You Can: Check your local recycling guidelines for accepted materials.

Dispose of Hazardous Waste Properly: Items like old paint, batteries, and electronics should be taken to designated disposal sites.

Check out our resources: Refer to our Waste Disposal Resource Guide and online map to find the best locations for donating, recycling, and properly disposing of your items.

For more information go to: Santa Barbara City Community Yard Sale

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Jarrod Zinn

SANTA MARIA, Calif. – City leaders and firefighters in Santa Maria are celebrating the long-awaited approval of a new labor contract.

For the last two years, the local fire department has been at odds with the City of Santa Maria through a contentious campaign for fair pay.

Since 2023, they’ve been operating under the previous M.O.U. (memorandum of understanding), which has affected their recruitment and retention rates.

“When we hire new firefighters, we have to put them through a rigorous training academy. And then once they complete the training academy, they then right around town on engine serving the community. This community is really busy. There’s a lot of demand on fire services. And for the low pay that we were receiving was contributing to those individuals taking jobs elsewhere,” says Matthew Chircop, City Fire captain and Local 2020 president.

As of Tuesday night, they’ve reached a 2 1/2-year agreement, with negotiations for the subsequent two years pre-scheduled for 3 months before the end of this one.

“I’m glad we get to be cooperative at the table, don’t have to be combating back and forth. I’m looking forward to working with the union, with our chief to continue to bring high quality service to our community,” says David Rowlands, Santa Maria’s city manager.

Starting in June this year, firefighters will have a base pay increase of 14%, an increase to health insurance benefits, and certain equity adjustments.

Some additional minimal adjustments are to be included, such as an additional holiday for Cesar Chavez Day, standby pay for the fire investigation on-call program, and a rise in hours available for the union’s use for association business.

“This agreement adds standby pay for future arson investigators. Our prevention bureau provides that service during daytime hours, but they don’t provide that service after hours. And we’re hoping that we can get an agreement soon to put that program into place,” says Chircop.

Unit members who were already under city employ when this M.O.U. was adopted, will also be given a one-time lump sum payment of $2,000.

“Now we can focus on big, important issues. The employees now don’t have to worry about the pay. We get to work together as a team and move this department forward,” says Rowlands.

Leadership at the City of Santa Maria and the Fire Department are both excited to announce this long-awaited agreement, and members of the fire department want to thank the community and their families for supporting them through this long negotiation process.

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