••• Macy’s will close around 65 stores by the end of January. The locations have yet to be announced; don’t be surprised if the La Cumbre Plaza one is on the list. —Fast Company
••• “Congress pushed forward legislation that notes space launch noise effects on nearby residents and calls for the Department of Defense to mitigate the impact of sonic booms and other disturbances,” reports Noozhawk. “Rep. Salud Carbajal […] sought the language amid a boost in SpaceX launches from Vandenberg and complaints about the noise. […] The lawmakers simply noted the impact and offers a suggestion but stops short of requiring action.” It’s a start. My issue is not living near a Space Force base, but the way that the military is providing cover for a private business, allowing it to run roughshod over the California Coastal Commission—and, even worse, refusing to engage with the community. Something of this magnitude, and this disruptive, needs guardrails, especially when SpaceX is talking about a launch every three or four days. What’s to stop the company from doing it every day? (By the way, J. suggested I remind people that you can sign up for alerts about upcoming launches—although, she said, “some of the SpaceX launches are not ‘alerted’ until until afterwards, which I don’t think was the case a year ago.”
••• Meanwhile, “the U.S. Department of Fish and Wildlife announced […] that it will be holding three public in-person meetings this January regarding the ever-expanding launch ‘cadences’ now taking place at Vandenberg. These meetings will be held January 14-16, 5-8 p.m., first in Ventura, then at the Westside Neighborhood Committee in Santa Barbara, and last at the Dick DeWees Community Center in Lompoc. In addition, a fourth hearing will be held virtually on January 23. At issue is the scope of the environmental impact statement that Fish & Wildlife has taken upon itself to prepare: in other words, what issues need to be addressed and what impacts and mitigations should be considered.” —Independent (the article is also a good overview of the Vandenberg/SpaceX situation)
••• Union Pacific says that one recent instance of railroad-crossing arms failing to rise was due to vandals (likely stealing copper); whether that’s the case for other failures is unclear. —Noozhawk
••• “Surfliner Inn Wins Preliminary Approval from Carpinteria Architectural Review Board […] Next steps include an environmental impact report and review by the city’s Planning Commission.” —Noozhawk
••• A profile of The Horse Project Santa Barbara, a “Santa Barbara–based nonprofit organization [that] has devoted itself to bettering the lives of abandoned, abused, and neglected horses.” —Independent
••• From a press release on Noozhawk: “Non-emergency offices in the city of Santa Barbara will be closed in observance of Christmas Day and New Year’s Day, Monday, December 23, through Sunday, January 5.” Nice work if you can get it. UPDATE: Meredith says it’s a furlough without pay, which changes things…
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Love your “noisy SpaceX run by Trump ally” needs to “curtail its nuisance associated launches” followed by brief about trains- remember when people used to moan about them? They’re still riding the rails. Planes still taking off & landing. What about the new helicopter tours? How are they getting by without upsetting folks? Good luck!
Why do I get the feeling that if Musk stayed a Democrat we’d see articles here about the benefits of what he’s putting into space and the massive technological improvements his company(ies) have made? But no, we’d rather stifle these benefits in as much red-tape as possible because of his politics.
The county office closure is a furlough, so all the employees being affected are given a forced leave without pay during the holidays, not exactly a vacation. https://www.noozhawk.com/state-budget-cuts-force-furloughs-reduced-court-clerk-office-hours/
Yeah “Nice work if you can get it”? This website just recycles other websites reporting, not exactly groundbreaking work being done here.
Last I checked the intent of Siteline is to be a clever perspective on all things Santa Barbara…from news to noshes and in between. As far as I can tell, at no point did Erik purport to be the Edward R Murrow of the American Riviera. I for one thoroughly enjoy his discerning eye and take on happenings from the silly to the sublime.
Thanks for pointing that out—I added a note to the post.
The link provided by Meredith is referring to County Court offices, not city of SB. I don’t know where I read this but the article said city employees can take unused PTO and vacation days so they will still be getting paid for the two weeks off.
I’m sure people complained just the same about trains, cars, and planes when they became commonplace as well.
Ultimately, there have been rocket launches from Vandenberg since the 1950s. One thing I can say for sure is that the space force base won’t be going anywhere anytime soon. I think it’s probably a safe bet to assume theyll be launching daily or even more frequently in the near future.