Earlier this year, Open Air Bikes moved out of the “Dead Area” on lower State Street because of high rents, to a new store on the 13000 block. The relocation apparently didn’t work and now the bike store appears on the brink of extinction.

According to their website… Open Air Bicycles will be closing our doors – BY END OF MAY or when we sell out of our products. MOST ITEMS ARE AT COST or close to it! WE ARE SELLING FURNITURE AND FIXTURES TOO. We appreciated all of our loyal customers, and wish everyone well.

Sadly, another local store down and out on State Street.

Protesters rally against the proliferation of marijuana dispensaries in front of City Hall Tuesday evening… Brian Sarvis, Superintendent of the Santa Barbara School Districts, called for a complete ban on dispensaries in the city of Santa Barbara.

PS: Earlier in the day, the Santa Barbara City Council voted (5-2) to limit the number of pot shops medical marijuana dispensaries in Santa Barbara to five (5).

As readers of the former Santa Barbara’s Blog will attest, comments can be the most informative, important, and entertaining aspects of a website. Now that the transition to the new Santa Barbara View is nearly complete, a quick comment…

Yes, a one-time registration is needed to post on SB View, click on the Register tab. The one-time registration has been added to provide real-time moderation. Once your first comment has been confirmed, you comments will immediate be published… no longer will they sit in a queue for approval. And, the one-time approval is needed to help weed out spam. Spammers can register, but they will be flagged immediately and readers don’t have to sift through spam.

So, while the one-time registration process may seem onerous, it’s really the best solution. No spam and real-time moderation. We want to expedite your comments  not eliminate, bury, or censor them. Now, with that out of the way, stay logged in and share your voice on the topics of the day – it’s as easy to comment as it was on the Blog, except your submissions will immediate be published. We know you are reading, now grab the mouse, hit the keyboard and join in the conversation!

Last night El Presidente Michael Dominguez unveiled the official 2010 Fiesta poster, below. The image is taken from a mural in the courthouse and this year’s theme is “A Gathering of Friends.”

Here we go again… Dr. Dan Secord is running against Janet Wolf for the 2nd District Supervisor seat. Wolf narrowly defeated Secord for the same seat in 2006.

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The Santa Barbara Botanic Garden’s Vital Mission Plan will once again be a hot topic at the County Board of Supervisors meeting today. Hundreds of concerned citizens will likely be on hand to share their thoughts on appeals to the Planning Commission’s approval of the Botanic Garden’s Vital Mission Plan.

The Santa Barbara Botanic Garden has launched an expensive media campaign to help get their controversial Vital Mission Plan approved, but questions still remain… Can Mission Canyon really support Garden expansion? Instead of pouring cement to double the building space, shouldn’t the Garden remain a garden? And why does the Garden need to hold  three large events (weddings, etc.) each month?

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“The disaster in the Gulf of Mexico has strengthened my resolve to bring an end to oil drilling and move towards a fossil free energy future that relies on clean renewable energy.”

“In order to end our dependence on oil we need a comprehensive strategy that stops oil drilling and promotes clean renewable energy. At the City Council, my colleagues and I have strongly opposed new and existing oil drilling as well as created tough renewable energy and energy efficiency standards that have created jobs, reduced our dependence on fossil fuels and helped protect the environment.”

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Column by Barbara Hirsch

Even with people and thousands of other creatures dying, the gulf water and land ecosystems being seriously damaged, people in the region losing work, not being able to eat their local foods, even with all this and so much more, most Americans won’t directly feel the effects of this oil rig explosion in the Gulf of Mexico.

Oil is a tangible, primary basis of our economy and our contemporary lives. It is in, or transports, nearly everything we use and eat on a daily basis, and it powers our vehicles. Cars and trucks are the least important concern of this disaster, but are the deepest roots of it, so with that in mind, here is some perspective on quantities of oil that have gushed into the Gulf.

Estimates have had the rig spewing about 210,000 gallons of oil per day (42 gallons in one barrel, 5,000 barrels per day.), nearly 4 million by now. The actual amount, we now know, could be much, much larger. But still, at the current estimates, more has spilled than that of the entire Santa Barbara oil spill which spawned the environmental movement. The size of the slick a week ago (over 2,000 square miles) was equivalent to the greater coastal region from Santa Barbara to San Diego.

The average car or light truck in this country is driven about 12,000 miles per year, at an average of 20 miles per gallon. It takes about 2 gallons of oil to make one gallon of gasoline. A few calculations later, and we can see that, up till now, enough oil has spilled to fuel around 3,300 cars/trucks for an entire year, at least.

In another exclusive, here is what the Mayor of Santa Barbara had to say when asked about her continuing support for the PXP project, which would allow the first new drilling project in Santa Barbara waters since the 1969 oil spill in in exchange for a permanent halt to drilling and exploration beginning in 2022…

“The tragic and horrific oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico makes me believe more than ever that we need to move away from fossil fuels and invest in new technologies and systems that use clean renewable sources of energy. My support of the Tranquillion Ridge project with PXP was because it enforced an end date of offshore oil production as well as dismantling both offshore platforms and onshore facilities.  With the Governor’s change in support, debating the PXP project is now moot. The bigger issue still stands, as our community and country still need to find ways to end our addiction to oil.” – Helene Schneider

3 year old spayed female spaniel mix, 15 pounds. Smart, happy, well behaved. Megan is fine with other dogs, but prefers to be with her person(s).  A great little loyal companion for an adult household.

She is awaiting adoption at DAWG (Dog Adoption and Welfare Group), 5480 Overpass Rd, Santa Barbara. CLICK HERE to see more adoptable dogs. DAWG is a no-kill dog rescue/adoption not-for-profit organization. (805) 681-0561.

Unnecessary office buildings are coming to this corner of of Foothill Road and Highway 154, courtesy of Michael Towbes development.  Even with office vacancies all around town, a two-story buildings (41,056 square feet) and two smaller office buildings (13, 247 square feet each) are being proposed for the corner property.

Nothing is safe from taggers on the East Side of Santa Barbara… not even boats.

In an exclusive, local Congressman Lois Capps told the Santa Barbara View that she continues to support the PXP deal, which would allow a Texas-based oil company, PXP, to expand drilling from an existing rig off Santa Barbara into the Tranquillon Ridge geological formation in exchange for a permanent halt to drilling and exploration beginning in 2022…

“The unfolding tragedy off the Gulf Coast reinforces the reality that oil drilling is a dirty and dangerous business and shows that we must not only push efforts to prevent new drilling off our coasts, but also take immediate steps to end the drilling already underway.  Platform A, which spilled over 3 million gallons of oil into our ocean and onto our beaches, is still producing oil – forty years later.  This is unacceptable and shows the need to support innovative ways to end current drilling activities, like the (PXP) plan put forward by the Environmental Defense Center and Get Oil Out.”

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A dolphin lies on dead on a beach in the Gulf of Mexico. At least six dead dolphins have been found on the Gulf Coast since May 2nd, presumably from the devastating oil spill in the Gulf. Experts say the Gulf dead zone is expected to expand.

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