https://calcoastnews.com San Luis Obispo County’s on-line independent news source producing in-depth investigative news in the public interest. Fri, 21 Nov 2025 18:11:02 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.8.3 https://calcoastnews.com/images/2022/10/cropped-largetile-32x32.jpg https://calcoastnews.com 32 32 59345941 https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/alleged-drug-dealer-attempts-to-sexually-assault-minor-in-san-luis-obispo/ https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/alleged-drug-dealer-attempts-to-sexually-assault-minor-in-san-luis-obispo/#respond Fri, 21 Nov 2025 18:11:02 +0000 https://calcoastnews.com/?p=128792 By KAREN VELIE Officers on Tuesday arrested a 21-year-old San Luis Obispo drug dealer for allegedly providing narcotics to and attempting to sexually assault a minor. In August, a girl under 16 years of age sought medical treatment at a local facility because of a sexual assault. She accused Arturo Rodriguez Reyna of providing her […]]]> https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/alleged-drug-dealer-attempts-to-sexually-assault-minor-in-san-luis-obispo/feed/ 0 128792 https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/misinformation-versus-morality-in-paso-robles-schools/ https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/misinformation-versus-morality-in-paso-robles-schools/#comments Thu, 20 Nov 2025 19:03:45 +0000 https://calcoastnews.com/?p=128788 OPINION by KENNEY ENNEY Paso Robles Joint Unified School District trustees Jim Cogan and Joel Peterson published an op-ed in the “Paso Robles Daily News” on Nov. entitled “Misinformation hurts our schools and wastes taxpayer dollars,” in which they accused me of “fearmongering and misinformation to scare parents into worrying about the safety of their […]]]> https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/misinformation-versus-morality-in-paso-robles-schools/feed/ 19 128788 https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/supervisors-divert-funds-for-temporary-bridge-in-rural-arroyo-grande/ https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/supervisors-divert-funds-for-temporary-bridge-in-rural-arroyo-grande/#comments Thu, 20 Nov 2025 17:44:23 +0000 https://calcoastnews.com/?p=128782 By KAREN VELIE The San Luis Obispo County Board of Supervisors voted 3-2 on Tuesday  to use surplus funds to install a temporary bridge on Cecchetti Road in rural Arroyo Grande, with supervisors John Peschong and Heather Moreno dissenting. A storm in 2023 washed out the Cecchetti Bridge. Since then, agricultural, school and residential traffic […]]]> https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/supervisors-divert-funds-for-temporary-bridge-in-rural-arroyo-grande/feed/ 4 128782 https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/lompoc-city-council-member-charged-with-theft-of-city-funds/ https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/lompoc-city-council-member-charged-with-theft-of-city-funds/#comments Thu, 20 Nov 2025 15:47:50 +0000 https://calcoastnews.com/?p=128775 By KAREN VELIE A Lompoc City Council member is facing eight felony counts which include theft of public funds, the Santa Barbara County District Attorney’s Office announced Wednesday. Stephen “Steve” Bridge was elected in 2024. His alleged criminal behavior occurred from Feb. 2024 to June 2025. The charges include forgery, identity theft, grand theft by […]]]> https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/lompoc-city-council-member-charged-with-theft-of-city-funds/feed/ 4 128775 https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/cal-poly-holds-annual-poinsettia-holiday-items-sale-2/ https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/cal-poly-holds-annual-poinsettia-holiday-items-sale-2/#respond Thu, 20 Nov 2025 04:01:23 +0000 https://calcoastnews.com/?p=128767 By KAREN VELIE Cal Poly’s annual poinsettia sale, with thousands of plants in bold holiday colors, will be held on Dec. 6 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Poly Plant Shop. This year’s plants will feature three varieties: red, white and red and white variegated featuring rosy, pink-red bracts with white centers. Sizes […]]]> https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/cal-poly-holds-annual-poinsettia-holiday-items-sale-2/feed/ 0 128767 https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/police-seek-publics-help-identifying-victims-of-alleged-child-molester/ https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/police-seek-publics-help-identifying-victims-of-alleged-child-molester/#comments Thu, 20 Nov 2025 03:28:06 +0000 https://calcoastnews.com/?p=128760 By KAREN VELIE The Lompoc Police Department is seeking the public’s help identifying additional victims of a Santa Barbara man accused of molesting a child. Last month, the Lompoc Police Department received information regarding an adult man who was allegedly grooming an underage female, which ultimately led to unlawful sexual acts occurring over several years. […]]]> https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/police-seek-publics-help-identifying-victims-of-alleged-child-molester/feed/ 2 128760 https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/vistra-withdraws-plans-for-morro-bay-battery-storage-facility/ https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/vistra-withdraws-plans-for-morro-bay-battery-storage-facility/#comments Thu, 20 Nov 2025 00:25:30 +0000 https://calcoastnews.com/?p=128758 By KAREN VELIE In the latest twist in the controversial plan to build a battery storage facility in Morro Bay, in late October Vistra Energy informed the California Energy Commission it is no longer “advancing the project. A month earlier, Vista withdrew its application from the California Independent System Operator queue. Vistra, a Texas-based energy […]]]> https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/vistra-withdraws-plans-for-morro-bay-battery-storage-facility/feed/ 11 128758 https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/homeowners-win-round-in-court-battle-against-san-luis-obispo-developer/ https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/homeowners-win-round-in-court-battle-against-san-luis-obispo-developer/#comments Wed, 19 Nov 2025 20:15:12 +0000 https://calcoastnews.com/?p=128614 By KAREN VELIE Facing allegations he built a home in San Luis Obispo that is uninhabitable because of black mold and “egregious construction defects,” Gary Grossman of Coastal Community Builders fought for arbitration and a stay of legal actions. The court ruled against him. By forcing arbitration, companies are often able to stack the deck […]]]> https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/homeowners-win-round-in-court-battle-against-san-luis-obispo-developer/feed/ 10 128614 https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/homeless-man-assaults-victim-at-a-bus-stop-in-san-luis-obispo-arrested/ https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/homeless-man-assaults-victim-at-a-bus-stop-in-san-luis-obispo-arrested/#comments Wed, 19 Nov 2025 04:08:21 +0000 https://calcoastnews.com/?p=128741 By KAREN VELIE A 45-year-old homeless man beat a victim with a four-foot metal pipe in an unprovoked attack at a bus stop in San Luis Obispo on Saturday morning. Shortly before 8 a.m., Robert Torres attacked a 57-year-old man at the transit center on Palm and Osos streets. When Torres attempted to hit the […]]]> https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/homeless-man-assaults-victim-at-a-bus-stop-in-san-luis-obispo-arrested/feed/ 14 128741 https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/immigration-enforcement-raids-cost-central-coast-cannabis-company-26-million/ https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/immigration-enforcement-raids-cost-central-coast-cannabis-company-26-million/#comments Wed, 19 Nov 2025 03:20:34 +0000 https://calcoastnews.com/?p=128730 By KAREN VELIE Immigration enforcement raids at two Central Coast cannabis farms resulted in $26 million in lost revenue, with a 100,000 pound reduction in harvested and dried cannabis, Glass House Farms reported on Nov. 12. “In light of the events of this past summer we made the hard decision to completely revamp hiring and […]]]> https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/immigration-enforcement-raids-cost-central-coast-cannabis-company-26-million/feed/ 10 128730 https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/why-was-pismo-beach-man-who-killed-a-friend-sentenced-to-8-years/ https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/why-was-pismo-beach-man-who-killed-a-friend-sentenced-to-8-years/#comments Wed, 19 Nov 2025 01:00:33 +0000 https://calcoastnews.com/?p=128728 Statement from the San Luis Obispo County District Attorney’s Office We understand the community has questions regarding why the San Luis Obispo County District Attorney agreed to a plea of guilty to involuntary manslaughter and did not pursue the initially charged crime of murder in the death of Jonathan Perez. Here is a more detailed […]]]> https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/why-was-pismo-beach-man-who-killed-a-friend-sentenced-to-8-years/feed/ 8 128728 https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/against-all-enemies-foreign-and-domestic/ https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/against-all-enemies-foreign-and-domestic/#comments Tue, 18 Nov 2025 23:57:47 +0000 https://calcoastnews.com/?p=128726 By ANDY CALDWELL The political left loves the concept of intersectionality. That is, how many boxes can they check on a political resume to garner the most votes. Kamala Harris was once the poster child for intersectionality, but she has got nothing on Zohran Mamdani- immigrant, socialist, and radical Muslim. With respect to immigrants, I […]]]> https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/against-all-enemies-foreign-and-domestic/feed/ 13 128726 https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/check-out-san-luis-obispo-county-rainfall-totals-reservoir-levels-4/ https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/check-out-san-luis-obispo-county-rainfall-totals-reservoir-levels-4/#respond Tue, 18 Nov 2025 22:53:03 +0000 https://calcoastnews.com/?p=128720 By KAREN VELIE Will multiple storms drenching San Luis Obispo County, rainfall totals are well above average in all areas of the county for this time of year, according to SLO County. Most areas of the county have received two to three times the average rainfall for this time of year. After multiple years of […]]]> https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/check-out-san-luis-obispo-county-rainfall-totals-reservoir-levels-4/feed/ 0 128720 https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/4-1-magnitude-earthquake-rattles-templeton/ https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/4-1-magnitude-earthquake-rattles-templeton/#comments Tue, 18 Nov 2025 20:03:33 +0000 https://calcoastnews.com/?p=128716 By KAREN VELIE A shallow 4.1 magnitude earthquake in Templeton rattled northern San Luis Obispo County on Tuesday morning, according to the United States Geological Survey. Shortly before 10 a.m., the quake knocked items from shelves and shook houses in Templeton, Paso Robles and Atascadero. The 3.5 mile deep earthquake was located next to West Highway […]]]> https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/4-1-magnitude-earthquake-rattles-templeton/feed/ 2 128716 https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/pismo-beach-man-sentenced-to-8-years-for-stabbing-killing-friend/ https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/pismo-beach-man-sentenced-to-8-years-for-stabbing-killing-friend/#comments Tue, 18 Nov 2025 15:56:18 +0000 https://calcoastnews.com/?p=128713 By KAREN VELIE The 35-year-old Pismo Beach man who stabbed and killed his friend pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter and was sentenced this week to eight years in prison. The crime was initially filed as second-degree murder, but additional investigation led to the manslaughter charge and the eight year prison sentence. Andrew Frederick Rodriguez and […]]]> https://calcoastnews.com/2025/11/pismo-beach-man-sentenced-to-8-years-for-stabbing-killing-friend/feed/ 7 128713