New holiday promotion encouraging people to ‘Shop Small’ in the Santa Maria Valley

KEYT on December 16, 2025

Dave Alley

SANTA MARIA, Calif. (KEYT) – A new promotion in the Santa Maria Valley is encouraging shoppers this holiday season to support local businesses.

The “Shop Small Santa Maria Valley” campaign was recently launched by the Santa Maria Valley Chamber in an effort to drive more customers specifically to locally owned and operated businesses.

“Shop Small is a program that we’ve partnered with American Express,” said Michael Boyer, Santa Maria Valley Chamber President and CEO. “We want everybody to focus on shopping at small businesses and to really to support small businesses.”

The Chamber points out that small businesses are an essential economic driver, not only creating employment opportunities for many people, but also how they provide financial contributions and other donations to many important components within the Santa Maria Valley.

“Small businesses are the foundation of the Santa Maria Valley,” said Jennifer Harrison, Santa Maria Valley Chamber Vice President of Marketing and Communications said in a statement. “We are proud to support the entrepreneurs who fuel our local economy, create jobs, and bring character and heart to our community. This campaign is one way we can amplify their impact during the holiday season.”

To help encourage the public to take part in the month-long promotion, the Shop Small campaign includes a financial incentive.

“Go to our Santa Maria Valley Chamber Instagram page,” said Boyer. “Just share to tag a friend, tag a small business. Share it on your story. We’ll enter you into a drawing. We have three $100 (Visa) gift cards that we’ll be giving out.”

For those who own or work at a locally owned and operated business, they emphasize how their shopping experience differs when compared one that is owned by a national company.

“When our clients come in, you’re not going to find something that other corporate places sell,” said Emily Limon, whose family owns the Apricot Lane Boutique in Santa Maria. “We’ll get our customers feedback and we’ll handpick everything ourselves. We really try to make this an experience for our customers and a place where they can come in after a hard day at work, or maybe they want to celebrate something fun, and can come in and get something great that makes them feel good, and look good, and you just won’t get that somewhere else.”

The Shop Small Santa Maria Valley holiday campaign runs through the end of the year and concludes Dec. 31, 2025.

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Millions of dollars to pour into rural Idaho with Secure Rural Schools Act

KIFI on December 16, 2025

David Pace

CHALLIS, Idaho (KIFI) – Millions of dollars are headed to rural Idaho counties after the Secure Rural Schools (SRS) Reauthorization Act passed Congress.

Local News 8 spoke with local county officials to learn how the program impacts rural communities across Idaho.

The Secure Rural Schools program provides vital funding for rural counties with significant swathes of public land that cannot be taxed. It was created in 2000, after declining timber harvest revenues created major funding gaps for counties with large tracts of national forest.

“I can’t understate the significance of this to rural counties in Idaho. Custer County is 97 percent public lands, and we just don’t have the opportunity to expand,” said Custer County Commissioner William Naillon. “The income gathered from programs like these is absolutely essential in keeping our county running.”

Custer County is home to beautiful stretches of forest in the Frank Church-River of No Return Wilderness and Sawtooth National Recreation Area. The county relies heavily on the Secure Rural Schools program to fund its schools, roads and infrastructure.

“What SRS equates to for the Lost River Highway District and the Custer County Road and Bridge is about a half $1 million each for them, and then another close to a half $1 million for School Districts 181 and 182,” Naillon continued. “So it’s about $1.5 million here in Custer County.”

U.S. Senators Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) and Ron Wyden (D-Oregon) led the push to reauthorize the program, which expired in 2023.

“The SRS program is vital to maintaining schools, roads and emergency response services in rural, forested counties. We have a responsibility to these communities who house large swaths of untaxable federal land,” Crapo said in a recent statement.  “The passage of this legislation will provide retroactive pay to counties that faced deep cuts since the program’s expiration at the end of Fiscal Year (FY) 2023 and restore funding levels for FY 2026.  I continue to press for a long-term solution to provide Idaho’s county governments with more certainty.”

The last year Secure Rural Schools was authorized, in 2023, the program paid out $22.8 million to 34 Idaho counties.

Final funding will be set by a “formula that includes federal land acreage, economic activity, timber harvest levels, and other factors that vary from county to county each year,” according to Crapo’s office.

The Secure Rural School Reauthorization Act also significantly impacts Fremont, Clark, Lemhi and Teton counties in eastern Idaho.

“We put it toward special projects, so if we got a grant to rebuild a bridge or stretch of road, we use that as our match to help fund those projects,” said Fremont County Clerk Abbie Mace, who retired Friday after an exemplary career.

“We don’t plan on it until they [Congress] actually send the money to us, and then we open our budget. It’s never guaranteed,” she said.

Frank Church River of No ReturnFrank Church-River of No Return Wilderness | Courtesy James Sippel, University of Montana

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UO Study finds wildfires can turn soil nutrients into toxic metals

KTVZ on December 16, 2025

Triton Notary

EUGENE, Ore. (KTVZ)– New research from the University of Oregon has uncovered a hidden and potentially dangerous side effect of wildfires — the ability to turn naturally occurring nutrients in soil into toxic, cancer-causing metals.

Scientists found that extreme heat from wildfires can convert chromium, a common micro-nutrient in Pacific Northwest soils, into a harmful chemical form that can leach into groundwater. Lab tests showed the highest concentrations formed at fire temperatures between 750 and 1,100 degrees.

Researchers say the study underscores the need for expanded soil and water testing after wildfires, especially as blazes in the region grow more frequent and severe.

The findings suggest that beyond visible burn scars and air pollution, wildfires may also leave behind long-term contamination risks hidden underground.

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Columbia agrees to enter agreements with local overnight homeless shelters totaling $1 million

KMIZ on December 16, 2025

Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The Columbia City Council on Monday night approved a resolution to enter two agreements for homeless services in the city for the next year.

The city will pay two entities more than $1 million to provide overnight shelter services. The council memo states $584,956 will go to the Voluntary Action Center for overnight shelter services, while $431,978 will be paid to Turning Point for homeless drop-in center services and an overnight warming center.

The resolution was moved off the consent agenda and amended because the council memo did not have the correct total listed, however the contracts listed on the agenda did have the correct totals.

“These services reduce the risks associated with exposure to the elements, provide safe spaces for individuals experiencing homelessness, and address immediate shelter and stabilization needs,” the council memo states.

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Columbia agrees to annex 45 acres that will become site of trucking facility

KMIZ on December 16, 2025

Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The Columbia City Council on Monday night approved to annex more than 45 acres of land into the city that will eventually become a trucking facility.

The agreement was made with KW COU, LLC for a property on the north side of Enterprise Drive, east of Route Z. The 45.15-acre area was not considered within the city before and as a result was not able to connect to the city’s sewer system.

The sewer that would serve the property was also discussed last year during a sewer extension agreement between the city and Setzer Properties.

“Per the Extension Agreement, compensation for the installed improvements to KW COU, LLC would be generated from future connection of the 35 properties within a defined 675-acre ‘service territory,’ the council memo states. “Distribution of collected revenue to compensate KW COU, LLC for the sewer main extension expenses is only permitted to occur once approval of the attached annexation agreement has been given. Distribution of collected revenue to off-set incurred expenses to KW COU, LLC has a specified term of 20 years following approval of the annexation agreement.”

Proposed trucking facility has an estimated investment value between $35 million-$40 million, per the memo. A number of FedEx signs were seen at the property on Monday.

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Palm Springs moderator mourns Rob Reiner ahead of planned interview; local couple recalls personal visit

KESQ on December 16, 2025

Shay Lawson

PALM SPRINGS, Calif. (KESQ)  – Bruce Fessier said he was preparing for a Q&A with filmmaker Rob Reiner Tuesday at the Palm Springs Plaza Theatre to kick off the Palm Springs Speaks series.

Instead, he said he learned that Reiner and his wife, Michele Reiner, had been killed.

“Stunned, just gobsmacked,” Fessier said. “I had been preparing all afternoon for this interview that I was going to be doing with him on Tuesday, and I had actually started doing my research a few weeks ago.”

He said the hours spent rewatching films and preparing questions made the loss feel personal.

“I just felt like he was a friend,” Fessier said. “I was looking forward to conveying some information that maybe not everybody knew about him.”

Fessier pointed to Reiner’s political activism as central to his legacy, particularly his role in challenging Proposition 8 through the courts.

“Rob Reiner made this a better country,” Fessier said. “He was a great filmmaker, but he should really be remembered as much for his social activism.”

The interview, Fessier said, would have leaned into Reiner’s improvisational spirit.

“We’re very fortunate to live in the Coachella Valley where we have so many opportunities.”

For one Palm Springs couple, those opportunities included an unexpected, intimate visit with Reiner years earlier.

Gary and Joan Gand said they met Reiner in the spring of 2017 when a tour guide called to ask if Reiner could see Gary Gand’s extensive guitar collection.

“Being a musician, I have a big collection of guitars,” Gary said. “I said I’d love to meet him. Big Spinal Tapfans.”

The Gand’s recalled joking with Reiner about amplifier volume.

“You think 11 is loud, wait’ll you hear this thing,” Gary said.

He explained his vintage amps “go up to 12.” He said Reiner got a big laugh out of that.

As Reiner toured the room, Gary said he spotted a Peter Gunn album.

“He looked at that album and he said, ‘Best song ever. Peter Gunn,’” Gand said.

Joan added, “We just love that because we actually agree with him. We just thought he was so cool.”

Gary said the visit included Reiner’s family, conversations about music and movies and one lasting memento.

“He autographed my guitar for me,” Gary said.

The Gand’s described Reiner as warm and approachable.

“He was super friendly and just not standoffish at all,” Joan said. “Just like a guy that you would want to be friends with. They were all super nice”

Reading the news of the Reiner’s death was devastating, the couple said.

“It was the most horrible thing,” Joan said. “I just don’t know what to make of it.”

Fessier said the shock of the moment is still settling in.

“One moment you’re preparing for the future and 10 minutes later it’s the past,” he said. “You’re looking at your notes that you had just written down … and all of a sudden it’s part of a different era and we’re moving on. And that’s history.”

Stay with News Channel 3 for the full report at 10 p.m. and 11 p.m.

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Former Cal Poly student gets 6 years, 2 months in prison for firearm shooting and possession

KEYT on December 16, 2025

Caleb Nguyen

SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. (KEYT) – Charles Hojaboom, a former Cal Poly student, received a 6-year, 2-month state prison sentence for firearm crimes on Cal Poly’s campus in 2023, according to the SLO County District Attorney’s Office.

Hojaboom, 21, pleaded no contest on Aug. 27 to criminal charges of shooting at an inhabited dwelling, discharging a firearm with gross negligence, vandalism and five counts of loaded firearm possession on a college campus, according to the SLOCDAO.

Hojaboom admitted to personal use of a deadly or dangerous weapon included in his plea to the crime of discharging a firearm with gross negligence, according to the SLOCDAO.

Hojaboom also pleaded no contest to shooting at an inhabited dwelling and now stands convicted of two separate “strikes” under California’s Three Strikes Law, according to the SLOCDAO.

All charges against Hojaboom in the case come from four separate shooting incidents that happened between June and November 2023, three of which happened outdoors on campus, according to the SLOCDAO.

Hojaboom fired a bolt-action rifle inside his dorm room on Oct. 27, 2023 and investigators found a bullet that travelled from his dorm through the ceiling into a separate dorm room above, according to the SLOCDAO.

No reported injuries arose during any of these shootings and no agreement between Hojaboom and the District Attorney emerged on a specific time sentence, according to the SLOCDAO.

The maximum sentence on Hojaboom could have been 11 years and 6 months but a presiding judge said she would not go further than 7 years, 6 months for his sentence, according to the SLOCDAO.

Hojaboom will now be taken to state prison for the rest of his sentence after already serving 1,472 days in county jail, according to the SLOCDAO.

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Cierra Griffin announces candidacy for Jefferson City Board of Education

KMIZ on December 16, 2025

Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The field for the Jefferson City Board of Education race continues to grow.

Cierra Griffin, in a Monday press release, announced her bid for one of the open seats on the board. Ryan Towner, Gretchen Duckworth, Trent Vallandingham and Michelle Rodemeyer announced their candidacies earlier this month. Three seats on the board are up for election.

Griffin’s press release says she is the assistant director of school counseling services in the Office of College and Career Readiness at the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.

She has lived in Jefferson City for 16 years and is a graduate from Lincoln Universty, holding a bachelor’s degree in elementary and special education and a master of education degree in school counseling, the release says. Her son is a current student at the school district.

Griffin describes herself as an advocate for public schools and listed transparency and “student-focused outcomes” as focuses of her campaign.

“I’ve seen the power of strong teachers, supportive school environments, and open communication. I want to help strengthen public education, elevate student success, and support the transformational work happening in our schools. I bring a unique perspective shaped by both personal and professional experience,” she is quoted in the release. 

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Isla Vista Food Co-op to Close Downtown Location in Final Days of December

KEYT on December 16, 2025

Mina Wahab

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (KEYT) — Many shoppers are sad to see the Isla Vista Food Coop’s Santa Barbara location close down. 

“I mean, it’s just sad to see something so good go. It’s obviously so good for the community to have this little thing on the side of the street,” said local shopper Atalia Zahrndt.

 “I got to know like everyone who works here, so it’s like a fun little, like I get to see my community when I come in and buy my stuff,” said local shopper Sonika Biyani.

The co-op attributes the closure to ongoing financial struggles.

An online statement reads in part: “Expenses remain high, sales remain too low, and we can’t sustainably operate a second location without risking the stability of the cooperative.” 

The store will now revert to the Cantwell’s Market and Deli. 

“They actually had a little more business as the deli when it was Cantwell’s and the variety of salads that they had at the deli was greater too. I used to ask, ‘You don’t have any yam salad today?’ And the next day they would have it,” said Mike Daggett, who lives in Santa Barbara. 

The deli owners say they are excited to bring their culinary expertise to the forefront. 

Pradeep Shastri shares his favorite pasta recipe he’s planning on incorporating in a special menu. 

“Tomato, onion, garlic, feta cheese, and you mix it together with fresh basil and make a vegetarian version with some really julienne of vegetables in there. And then on the same pasta you can create a nice grilled chicken on the top of that or a piece of salmon on that,” said Shastri.

Shastri says he hopes to hire some of the same employees that helped run the co-op. 

He says he’s excited to make it a place with small town charm and culinary flair, adding that there will be indian and italian fusion. 

“We want to make sure we make every client who walks in here happy with the food, with the hospitality. And I know we cannot compare, compete with the big players like, you know, Costco and everybody else, but we are a convenience and a common cafe deli store,” said Shastri.

The State Street store will officially close on December 26th.  

The co-op location in Isla Vista will remain open.

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St. Joseph Police Department reports decrease in violent crime, vehicle thefts in November

News-Press NOW on December 16, 2025

Cameron Montemayor

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — Crime statistics for the month of November show 13 of 18 major categories saw a reduction in cases according to the St. Joseph Police Department.

Crime statistics released by SJPD on Saturday show notable decreases for the month of November, with seven crime areas in particular decreasing by more than 25%.

St. Joseph recorded a 15% decrease in total crime cases and a 21% decrease in total violent crime, dropping from 140 cases in October down to 110 in November. Total crime cases dropped from 758 to 644.

Thefts from motor vehicles saw the biggest decrease of any area, from 41 cases to six, a decrease of 85%.

The department also reported sizable reductions in aggravated assaults (61% decrease), motor vehicle thefts (58%), stealing (39%) and property crime (30%), which decreased by nearly 100 incidents, from 300 to 209.

No murder cases were reported in November. The department also reported no murder cases the previous month.

Cases of burglary were one of the few categories to see a notable increase, rising from 57 cases in October to 64 in November, an increase of 12%.

Drug offenses were unchanged at 40 cases in both October and November. Disorderly conduct reports also increased by 3%.

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