Please see this important message from our partners at the Environmental Defense Center (EDC) regarding the upcoming hearing about Idle Wells in Santa Barbara County. We hope you will speak up on Tuesday, May 24 and let the Board of Supervisors know we want more regulation and monitoring of these hazardous idle oil wells.
On Tuesday, May 17, around 3 p.m., the Board of Supervisors will consider whether to extend the Santa Maria River levee trail to Guadalupe.
This trail would provide a much needed scenic, recreational and transportation corridor between Santa Maria and Guadalupe that could accommodate bicyclists, joggers and pedestrians. It's a unique asset that the public should be able to access. It would provide more access to nature, more opportunities for recreational activities for residents and economic stimulation for local businesses in both cities.
Although the levee is in the north county, we are looking for support from members of the public from throughout the county.
Can you join us and sign a petition supporting the extension now? Click here: https://actionnetwork.org/petitions/santa-maria-river-trail-expansion-support-petition?source=email&
If you can, please attend a rally organized by CAUSE prior to the item coming before the board. It will be Tuesday, May 17 at 1:30 p.m. at the Betteravia Government Center, 511 E. Lakeside Parkway in Santa Maria. You can also provide testimony there or on the fourth floor at the county building at 105 East Anapamu St. in Santa Barbara.
If you can’t show up in person, please send written comments to the board by 5 p.m. Monday or testify remotely on Tuesday.
If you would like to submit a pre-drafted email, which you can modify, click here: https://causenow.org/content/extend-sm-river-trail-guadalupe?fbclid=IwAR3961LihuIwKjjkBBHJ5ribM6D2ZZZ1cCi00hp1rGXaUcldAqOzNkAUwdE
Or click here to create an email to the Clerk of the Board. Add a subject line such as "May 17 BOS Agenda Item #7, Letter in support of the Santa Maria River Levee Trail."
More information about testifying is below.
On Tuesday, May 17, the Board of Supervisors will consider whether to extend the Santa Maria levee trail to Guadalupe, which could become a wonderful recreational and transportation asset for residents of the Santa Maria Valley.
We urge you to attend a rally organized by CAUSE prior to the item coming before the board. It will be Tuesday, May 17 at 1:30 p.m. at the Betteravia Government Center, 511 E. Lakeside Parkway in Santa Maria.
If you can’t show up in person, please send written comments to the board by 5 p.m. Monday or testify remotely on Tuesday.
More information about testifying is below.
For more information on the issue, read this op-ed written by Jeanne Sparks and published in the Santa Maria Times May 14, 2022:
We will be hosting both a North and South County Roundtable this month.
For North County, come to meet our new SBCAN North County co-president, Rebeca Garcia! We will discuss the Santa Maria River Trail, Farmworker strikes, and the Santa Maria General Plan Update.
For South County, we will hear from Santa Barbara City Staff about their Housing Element Update, and we will give an update on the Rent Stabilization efforts.
We hope you will join us.
Santa Barbara County Action Network will hold its 2022 North County “Looking Forward” Awards Dinner & Fundraiser on Sunday, June 26 from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. at Blosser Urban Garden, 915 S Blosser Rd, Santa Maria.
Please mark your calendar and keep an eye out for additional information we will be putting out soon! We are eager to be back with each other in person outdoors after two years of virtual-only events.
Every year we recognize individuals or organizations that work to protect our environment and the rights of our county’s residents. These awards help encourage this good work to continue and to raise the funds we need to keep doing our part.
100+ indigenous farmworkers for J&G Berry Farms (Rocha Farms) in Santa Maria, CA are determined to continue their struggle for Just wages! Their demand - $3.50 for each strawberry box picked, against a currently unlivable price of $2.10 - comes under working conditions that includes wage theft, body-wracking labor, and exposure to pesticides and other toxins.
Most of these workers are from indigenous undocumented backgrounds, and, being unable to speak English, are subject to language-based intimidation from management, further intensifying their conditions of exploitation. Despite this, these workers dared to struggle for their dignity, many striking for the first time in their lives.
The strike began on May 2nd 2022, with workers walking off the strawberry fields and autonomously organizing against the paltry pay provided by the bosses. With management refusing to meet their demands, workers walked across fields, recruiting fellow farmworkers - the strike is spreading!
Santa Barbara County Action Network will hold its 2022 North County “Looking Forward” Awards Dinner & Fundraiser on Sunday, June 26 from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. at Blosser Urban Gardens, 915 S Blosser Rd, Santa Maria.
Please mark your calendar and keep an eye out for additional information we will be putting out soon! We are eager to be back with each other in person outdoors after two years of virtual-only events.
Every year we recognize individuals or organizations that work to protect our environment and the rights of our county’s residents. These awards help encourage this good work to continue and to raise the funds we need to keep doing our part.
We are excited to announce this year’s award recipients:
We hope you will come celebrate with us on Sunday, June 26.
If you are interested in sponsoring the event, please contact [email protected].
Please note that all guests should be fully vaccinated or have a negative test within 48 hours of the event. Thank you for your cooperation.
Santa Barbara County Action Network will hold its 2022 North County “Looking Forward” Awards Dinner & Fundraiser on Sunday, June 26 from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. at Blosser Urban Gardens, 915 S Blosser Rd, Santa Maria.
Please mark your calendar and keep an eye out for additional information we will be putting out soon! We are eager to be back with each other in person outdoors after two years of virtual-only events.
Every year we recognize individuals or organizations that work to protect our environment and the rights of our county’s residents. These awards help encourage this good work to continue and to raise the funds we need to keep doing our part.
Please see below for information about a virtual workshop on housing that the Blum Center is sponsoring on Thursday, April 28th from 5:30-7:00pm via Zoom, including SBCAN's South County Co-president, Dick Flacks as one of the presenters. This is the second in a series of Blum Center-sponsored workshops on the crisis of affordable housing in California and the Central Coast. The workshop is free and open to the public.
