Welcome to the Slo Coast Journal. Published online monthly, the Journal is here to bring you information specific to our part of California's Central Coast.
"The notion of a free press, of an institution that monitors those in power and those who wish to be in power, that ferrets out truth from lies, that draws public attention to the pressing issues of our times, is a cornerstone of a liberal democratic theory."
Robert McChesney in the Political Economy of the Media
Butterfly Bingo Party!
Photo by Mike Baird
Tuesday, February 1
Bingo begins at 6pm
We've gone posh! This year we are holding our Butterfly Bingo Party at The Cliffs in Pismo Beach. Tickets are $30 and include 10 games with three cards per game, appetizers, and the chance at some awesome raffle prizes. We expect to sell out the ballroom, so get your tickets early—you don't want to miss this fun event.
For more information call
805.772.2694 x 102
Photo by Carol DiNolfo
Great Shots?
Are you a local photographer with images of the Central Coast you'd like to share with our readers? The Great Shots team is always looking for photographs a cut above the rest. Join the Flickr group Slo Coast Journal Photos and submit your favorites.
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Yates' Attempt to Fire City Planning Commission Fails
Mayor Bill Yates' attempt to have the Morro Bay City Planning Commission fired, after commissioners opposed the city's proposed new wastewater treatment plant, failed when most other City Council members opposed his move and Council member Noah Smukler said Yates was "attacking their [commissioners'] character," being disrespectful, making accusations "bordering on slander," inciting "political and public ridicule" toward the Council, and that he took "offense." Read More
PG&E Installs Smart Meter over Resident's Protest
A Morro Bay resident has reported that PG&E refused to abide by the city-approved moratorium on the installation of a Smart Meter on her private property, which, along with other such experiences, has prompted a state watchdog organization to accelerate its efforts to convince the state to investigate possible health risks from the meters and impose its own moratorium until that information becomes available. Read More
Dead on Arrival? New Morro Bay-Cayucos Wastewaster Treatment Plant
Over widespread opposition, the Morro Bay City Council has approved plans for a new Morro Bay-Cayucos wastewater treatment plant. Nearly everyone is predicting the California Coastal Commission will send it back for complete revision. Read More
West Coast Senators Introduce Bill to Protect Pacific Coast from New Offshore Oil Drilling
New federal legislation that would permanently prohibit offshore oil drilling along the entire Pacific Coast has been introduced by six U.S. Senators from California, Oregon, and Washington, including California Senators Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein, in the wake of the disastrous BP oil explosion off the Gulf Coast last year. Read More
Governor Brown Calls for New Nominees to the Coastal Commission
Governor Jerry Brown has called for nominees from this area to the California Coastal Commission in the wake of reports that the appointment of Mary Ann Reiss, a Republican protege of Assembly member K.H. "Katcho" Achadjian, was tainted by complaints that her nomination process was partially hidden from the public, which reportedly has prompted a large number of requests that Brown replace her. Read More
Agreement Protects Carrizo Plain From Severe Overgrazing
Conservation groups, the State of California, and a livestock operator finalized a formal agreement last week that will protect the 30,000-acre Carrizo Plain Ecological Reserve from severe livestock overgrazing. The legal agreement mandates removal of all livestock from the Reserve until environmental studies are completed, and calls for the preparation of a long-term management plan for the Reserve, which is located between the Los Padres National Forest and the Carrizo Plain National Monument in southeastern San Luis Obispo County. The agreement resolves a lawsuit filed in February 2010 by Los Padres ForestWatch and the Santa Lucia Chapter of the Sierra Club. Read More
Morro Bay Power Plant Sale Stalled
The sale of the Morro Bay Power Plant as part of the parent company, Dynegy, has been delayed at least until February 9 after Dynegy's second largest stockholder refused to accept the $665 million purchase offer of Dynegy by Icahn Enterprises, which had been scheduled to close on January 25.
Icahn Enterprises is Dynegy's largest stockholder. It is a diversified holding company engaged in investment management, automotive, railcar, food packaging, metals, real estate, and home fashion fields, but not in energy production. Icahn Enterprises had made its offer on December 15 following the collapse of a previous offer by the Blackstone Group last August. Icahn increased its offer over what Blackstone had bid. Read More
