Author: KEYT

John Palminteri

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – Over 3,200 riders and support crew members came through the Central Coast this week on the AIDS/ Lifecycle ride and one sweet spot on their fundraising journey was the break in Santa Barbara.

The Paradise Pit is a commitment by organizer Sean Dooner who is called the Mayor, and his support team of many including Rod Lathim. The history of this event goes back 25 years. It started on the roadside in Montecito as the riders went by. “The first year we went up on the top of Ortega Hill road and scooped ice cream out of the back of a truck until we ran out and we said, ‘oh, we got to do this. We got to do this.’ So that that was the beginning ,” said Lathim.

It took place at Leadbetter Beach Friday from 10:30 a.m. until 3. p.m. Large Paradise Pit signs were up and tubs of ice cream were in place from Thrifty’s and McConnell’s. The flavors included chocolate chip, strawberry and even a singer Katy Perry inspired “Baby you’re a firework Blue Raspberry.” There were fresh churros, fruit trays, snacks and 45 gallons of coffee.

Volunteer David Landecker said it was a perfect spot. “You’ve got the ocean out there. We’ve got some riders. We’ve got ice cream. “

Dooner said he felt “so grateful and warm. They travel with the love bubble. And there’s so much love right now. You can feel the energy. You can feel the goodness and the love.”

The fundraising was required before the riders could qualify for this special event. “This year alone, they’ve raised $17.5 million for HIV Aids research,” said Dooner.

“We are unofficial. We’re not sanctioned by the ride, but, I think we’re the most talked about pit on the whole ride,” said Lathim.

It’s been an effort that has been rewarding. “Over the years, we’ve served 40 to 50,000 ice cream sundaes to people all free,” said Dooner who has collected donations.

One rider from Long Beach, Mason Sliwa said, “knowing that we have the support in Santa Barbara it helps us.”

John Cianciolo held his cup of ice cream and said, “everybody is in support of everybody. Everybody is so happy to be here and the love is truly here, truly is between everyone.” He said they can eat it without guilt because of all the miles they are putting in during the ride and the calories they are burning up.

The cyclists are finishing up the 540-mile ride from San Francisco to Santa Monica. They will cross the finish line Saturday.

This year, however, it is the last ride. The event is reportedly concluding due to increased production costs and a significant decline in both participation and fundraising.

The ride continued to the south through Montecito and Carpinteria with the overnight stop in Ventura.

It had an emotional moment for Lathim who paused to reflect. “It’s the end of kind of an era here.  I’ll miss it.”

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Jarrod Zinn

ORCUTT, Calif. – A Santa Maria father thought he filmed a woman’s body being dumped in an Orcutt park, but authorities say the video doesn’t show the full picture.

On Tuesday, Michael Zoppo took his young son to Waller Park in Orcutt to play. He was recording his son climbing up a tree with his Meta Glasses, which he bought a couple of months earlier. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a car pull up and, moments later, a woman’s body on the asphalt.

“Right away I wasn’t sure what was happening,” said Zoppo. “We left the scene with an uncertainty too, just because she wasn’t responsive with the paramedics or the sheriff.”

On Friday, the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office clarified that the woman in the video was heavily intoxicated, and what the video doesn’t show is that she got out of the car on her own.

“Because I did have a tree obscuring as well but then I just saw a mass like a body mass come out of the car. I didn’t see someone step out of the car. So that was my immediate attention getter was just something fast coming out of the car,” said Zoppo.

Zoppo saw the driver make a wrong turn out of the park, which gave him enough time to call 911 using his Meta Glasses and provide dispatch with a license plate number.

“I felt like that’s what I had to do at the moment. I had to react,” said Zoppo. “There’s someone face down in the asphalt. It’s — do I walk away and leave them there or do I take action?”

First responders were able to arrest the 67-year-old driver before he got away, and a medical crew was able to treat the intoxicated woman.

A Sheriff’s spokesperson said both the driver and the woman had multiple warrants.

The driver was charged with concealing a dirk or dagger, but it is unclear if that was one of the warrants for his arrest. The Northern Santa Barbara County Jail says he is no longer in custody.

It is unclear if the driver was intoxicated too, and the details of the woman’s warrants have not been released.

We will provide further information on this incident as it becomes available.

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Patricia Martellotti

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – Every day, Old Mission Santa Barbara attracts visitors from all walks of life. 

“I love the history of it and just visiting and getting to see through it,” said visitor Karen Polati of Old Mission Santa Barbara.

But for some, going up the staircase isn’t easy.

“A temporary solution was achieved many years ago, but it involves a lot of distance,” said Father Joe Schwab of Old Mission Santa Barbara.

So the mission is raising funds to build a new wheelchair ramp.

Several renditions have been created to show what the new ramp would look like. 

“We have an artist rendition beautifully done by Fred Sweeney who’s also an architect … and I think that will attract a lot of people just when they see it. It really is quite beautiful,” said Father Joe.

The ramp will provide access to the mission church that complies with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

“I think it’s great. I think the more people that can experience it. You know it’s not just wheelchairs, but anybody has mobility issues would have a much easier time just to be able to have the experience and see the history of it all,” said Polati.

Right now, the mission is looking to raise about $500,000 for the completion of the ramp project.

“Well, I have family members that have been in wheelchairs and I’ve seen the difficulties. They’ve had this will make it easier for people to attend church,” said visitor Kevin McKernan of Old MIssion Santa Barbara.

“If you have walking issues or have a wheelchair or anything like that this will make life a lot easier for them to get into the building,” said Father Joe.

Leaders of old mission Santa Barbara hope the Increased accessibility will allow the mission to continue serving as a spiritual home for our community. 

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Patricia Martellotti

VENTURA, Calif. – It’s been about one year since the inception of the new mobile eye clinic at The Salvation Army in Ventura.

Since then, directors of The Salvation Army say the mobile clinic has served more than 1,000 residents throughout the region.

The clinic serves those in need of eye care in several cities including Ventura, Oxnard and Thousand Oaks.

The Salvation Army welcomes donations in order to continue its services for those in need.

For more information, visit The Salvation Army.

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Alissa Orozco

SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. – Two Pro-Palestinian activists were arrested Wednesday afternoon after they and three others stormed a Cal Poly Administration Building and vandalized it.

An email sent out campus-wide yesterday by Cal Poly President, Jeffrey Armstrong, says five pro-Palestinian activists stormed the university’s Financial Aid and Student Accounts office in the Administration Building and began spray painting all over the walls, windows, floors, and computers.

Armstrong states while no one was physically hurt, the incident was “traumatizing for numerous Cal Poly employees and students who were in the office at the time.”

The activists reportedly spray painted various pro-Palestinian phrases: “Free Palestine,” “Free Gaza,” “Cal Poly Divest,” “Let Gaza Live.”

As campus police arrived, the activists fled the scene but two were taken into custody for questioning.

Assistant Vice President of Communications and Media Relations, Matt Lazier, confirmed to your News Channel one of the suspects arrested was a Cal Poly student, while the other had no affiliation with the university.

Multiple people have been arrested on the campus in recent years in protest of the Israel-Hamas War. Eight people were arrested and several other protesters sustained injuries back in January 2024 during a planned pro-Palestine protest.

Most recently, President Armstrong spoke before Congress in May to testify about antisemitic incidents on campus.

“I want to emphasize that our goal is continuous improvement. We will work to give each student the safest possible environment free from discrimination and religious intolerance so they can learn, grow and succeed. We call it being ready day one,” said President Armstrong.

Regarding Wednesday’s incident, Armstrong said in the email, “we will not stand for illegal attacks against our institution, its employees and its students. There is simply zero tolerance for it.”

“Anyone who views this kind of shortsighted, disgusting and illegal activity as acceptable has no place at Cal Poly and will be rooted out.” 

The university asks anyone with information regarding Wednesday’s incident, including the identities of those responsible, to contact the Cal Poly police at 805-756-2281.

Your News Channel has reached out to the university and new information will be added to this web article as it becomes available.

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John Palminteri

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – It’s the final phase, or to some, the final frontier of construction for a highway widening project from Carpinteria to Santa Barbara.

A large portion of the project has been funded, and work up to Summerland has been completed. That has added a High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) lane in each direction. It is set for car pooling in the busy morning and evening hours, and open for all drivers the rest of the day.

Work on the Montecito segment is in progress. It also will include an additional lane in each direction.

The last phase is a connection from Montecito to Santa Barbara, all it needs is the last portion of state transportation funds.

That work will include a new southbound on ramp from Cabrillo Blvd, and a new improvements for Union Pacific trains through the area.

The Santa Barbara County Association of Governments (SBCAG) works with CalTrans and other state agencies on funding, design, and implementation of these projects. SBCAG is made up of leaders from the county and cities within the county.

This year, Mayor Randy Rowse of Santa Barbara is the Chairman of SBCAG.

Rowse says he is awaiting the important phone call about more freeway funding.

Speaking recently about the process, Rowse said, “staff will find out on June 6, I think by 5 o’clock I think that is the witching hour that in fact we got our grant funding  that we are pretty optimistic about. Hopefully I will come back with those big cardboard checks that represents a whole lot of money.” He plans to go to Sacramento for the funds at the end of the month as soon as a date is set.

If all of the pieces come together, SBCAG says the project’s projected timeline has a finish in 2028.

For more information go to: SBCAG

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Mike Klan

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. –

CIF-State SoCal Regional Semifinal Baseball:

Division 3: University City 9, Dos Pueblos 1

CIF-State SoCal Regional Semifinal Softball:

Division 3: Legacy 2, St. Bonaventure 1

Division 5: Orcutt Academy 10, Hueneme 0 (Orcutt will play at Rancho Mirage in Regional Final on Saturday).

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Ryder Christ

EDITORS NOTE: The Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office clarified that the woman in the video was heavily intoxicated and that the footage does not show her exiting the car on her own.

ORCUTT, Calif. — When Michael Zoppo of Santa Maria bought his Meta Glasses three months ago, he never expected to capture the body of a woman being dumped while filming his young son at a park.

“I originally got them for sports, youth sports, with my son biking and other activities. I did not expect to film what I saw with them.”

While filming his son climb up a tree at Waller Park in Orcutt, he noticed a man drag a body out of a car in the nearby parking lot.

“I didn’t think it was a dead body originally, just because it looked like the gentleman was talking over them and there was not a lot of movement,” he said, adding he originally thought the man was going to help her.

“Maybe he’s helping her until I saw him drag her out of the way so he could leave, leaving her in the asphalt.”

Zoppo kept calm and acted quickly. When the driver made a wrong turn out of the park, Zoppo used his Meta glasses to discreetly call 911 and relay the car’s license plate number.

“He went left, and in that moment, I kind of took action,” he said. “Called the dispatcher right away… I told them what was happening. I think there’s a lady down in the parking lot.”

Deputies from the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office intercepted the vehicle before the man could leave the park. The woman, who appeared unresponsive, was taken away in an ambulance.

“She was not moving or talking when they were trying to ask her questions.”

Zoppo said he had heard of similar body dumpings in the area but said he never imagined witnessing such an event—especially at a public park in the middle of the day.

“There’s kids… I’ve never, in my 35 years of living, seen something like that,” he said. “It’s wild… It happened right here.”

Despite the disturbing experience, Zoppo said he doesn’t want the incident to change how his family views the park.

“It sucks that that happened, but I don’t want that to diminish the community,” he said. “I’ll still be here. I’ll still feed the ducks and the squirrels.”

Zoppo’s advice to parents who may face a similar situation: stay calm and protect your children from seeing disturbing events.

“Just make sure your kid doesn’t see it,” he said. “Because it’s traumatizing for me as an adult to kind of see her—half her clothes pulled down and her face down in the asphalt.”

Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Officers have clarified that the woman was intoxicated, and that the Meta glasses did not get her opening the door and getting herself out of the vehicle.

The man and woman both have multiple warrants.

The condition of the woman and the identity of the man have not yet been released by authorities.

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Mike Klan

GOLETA, Calif. – Dos Pueblos was the last high school baseball team in the 805 area still playing in the playoffs but the Chargers dream season is finally over.

University City of San Diego scored 4 runs in the first inning and they cruised to a 9-1 victory at DP in a CIF-State SoCal Division 3 regional semifinal game.

The Chargers avoided the shutout with a run-scoring single by pinch-hitter Nick Salcido in the bottom of the sixth inning.

Charlie Potter led DP with two hits and reached base three times.

The loss wraps up an historic season for Dos Pueblos.

The Chargers won five playoff games which included a CIF-Southern Section Division 4 championship game appearance as well the program’s first win in a CIF-State playoff game.

Dos Pueblos(23-12) says goodbye to 12 seniors who certainly left their mark on the program.

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John Palminteri

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – The Win-dow is a new restaurant that has arrived in Santa Barbara from Los Angeles and Long Beach, where it has five locations.

This is the first one outside of that zone, and the owners found Santa Barbara fits their simple, retro feel for the business.

It is a small building on the corner of Chapala Street and Ortega Street. It has been a restaurant off and on for years, but has no dining structure.

It didn’t matter to the first customers.

The grand opening for The Win-dow smashburger menu came with a free double cheeseburger for all customers who made one other purchase.

The menu is very simple. Beyond the burger – either a single or double, with a vegetarian option – there is a fried chicken sandwich, fries, a kale salad and a grain bowl. To refresh your meal, they have shakes and cold drinks. That’s about it.

The South Coast Chamber of Commerce had a ribbon cutting Thursday around 10:45 am, prior to the 11:00 am opening. A line up the street was already cued up.

One of the co-founders, Jeff Goodman said, “we’re one of the original smashburgers in L.A. We opened in 2019 before it blew up into a trend, but our mission was really about better fast food. You can see it is not just burgers, although as you can see we serve a delicious burger. We also serve a killer fried chicken sandwich.”

Other co-founder, Paul Hibler, was not present.

The official logo has a dash in the name. Win-Dow. Goodman said it is for “style.”

Many of the first customers gave their meal a thumbs up, but their stuffed cheeks and smiling facial expressions spoke louder than words.

The cost of a cheeseburger is $4.35. That is considered one of the lowest for this type of popular menu item in the area.

It is a casual restaurant with outside tables for about 50 guests. There’s no enclosure, which will test the weather durability of loyal customers in cold, rainy or windy conditions. That is not expected to be a problem in the start up phase now.

Online ordering is expected to be popular, making The Win-dow a grab and go stop for those looking for a quick filling meal for a fraction of the cost of a larger sit down restaurant.

The restaurant has hired 25 employees.

Wednesday was a private opening for friends and family members who were eating menu items and filling out a sheet to give their review of The Win-dow.

The restaurant will be open seven days a week, with a 9 p.m. closing time.

For more information go to: The Win-dow

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