Morro Bay Life • July 2023

PubliSherS

Hayley & Nicholas Mattson

CONTENT EDITOR

Camille DeVaul

COPY EDITOR

Michael Chaldu

LAYOUT DESIGN

Anthony Atkins

Neil Schumaker

Community Writer

Christianna Marks

AD DESIGN

Jen Rodman

Ad ConSultant

Dana McGraw

AdminiStrator

Cami Martin

office@13starsmedia.com

CONTRIBUTORS

Blake Ashley Frino-Gerl

Neil Farrell

The arrival of summer brings with it warmer weather and stirs excitement among the tourists who eagerly flock to our community. The 4th of July celebrations are a prime source of this jubilation. We are gearing up for the beloved annual Cayucos parade, with the anticipation of the spectacular fireworks lighting up the Pier.

Be sure you don’t miss the Family Fun Day at Tidelands Park. The festivities commence at 10 am with a vibrant decorated bike parade, to be followed by live music performances, a flag ceremony, and a captivating magic show. This promises to be a day brimming with joy and celebration.

As we celebrate the Fourth of July, it also brings a deep moment for reflection and thanksgiving. Independence Day is a time when we reflect on the liberties that we, as a nation, have been fortunate to inherit. As we revel in fireworks, barbecue, and camaraderie, let us also pay tribute to the tireless commitment of small businesses, the strength of our local bonds, and the unyielding spirit of the free press that we have the privilege to create and distribute.

The inception of our nation was no small feat. The forefathers of the United States, among whom was the renowned Benjamin Franklin, faced insurmountable odds. They were intellectuals, farmers, musicians, merchants, and more, each signing the Declaration of Independence knowing full well the price of their defiance— death.

- Benjamin Franklin

Benjamin Franklin, himself a printer, encapsulated this idea in his almanac with a quote urging us to “do something worth the writing.”

He understood the gravity and the cost of such actions. Franklin’s wisdom and courage, along with the 55 other signers of the Declaration, paved the way for the life we now enjoy.

The principles inscribed in the Declaration of Independence serve as a bulwark against authoritarian tendencies. This resilient national spirit has been shaped by the trials and tribulations faced by our ancestors, including minor conflicts that eventually coalesced into the Revolutionary War. One such incident involved Benjamin Franklin, who intercepted and circulated letters from Massachusetts Governor Thomas Hutchinson advocating for the deployment of more British troops. His audacious act of defiance culminated in his involvement in the drafting of the Declaration of Independence.

As we celebrate this Fourth of July, let us remember that the concept of inalienable rights - life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness— was groundbreaking in its time and continues to shape the American ethos. The exercise of these rights does come with a cost, and each day presents us with choices that have far-reaching consequences.

In the current age, where social media amplifies every voice and debates about free speech continue, let us remember that our forefathers risked everything for the rights we often take for granted. They believed these rights were not

granted by man but by the divine, forming a higher order of justice and law.

Thus, on Independence Day, we are not merely celebrating an event in the past but recognizing the present reality that these truths remain self-evident. We celebrate our shared responsibility to uphold these rights, acknowledging the costs that come with it. Let us strive, then, not just to write things worth reading but to do things worth writing about.

Warmest wishes for a joyful summer and a reflective Independence Day.

We hope you enjoy this issue of Morro Bay Life.

If you know of a business or non-profit that deserves a spotlight, please send your nomination to our Ambassador’s Committee for review by emailing Lynsey Hansen at lynsey@morrochamber.org.

Putting a Spotlight on Businesses

The Morro Bay Chamber of Commerce is putting a spotlight on local businesses! Spotlight Businesses are nominated and selected by fellow business owners in Morro Bay as a standout business with exceptional ownership.

Business spotlights recognize Chamber member businesses that provide a consistent, positive customer experience, are actively engaged in the community and demonstrate resilience during challenging times.

Please help us CONGRATULATE these businesses on their spotlight award by visiting their establishments, purchasing their products or services, and leaving good reviews online.

City hires new city manager; police commander promoted

By NEIL FARRELL for Morro Bay Life

The Morro Bay City Council approved offering an employment contract to its top candidate for the vacant city manager job, one who would become just the second female ever to lead the city’s government.

On June 13, the all-woman City Council voted unanimously to offer a contract to Yvonne Kimball, a woman who went to college both in China and the U.S. and has been working in local government for over a decade.

Former City Manager Scott Collins left the city last February to become the executive director of the Housing Authority of San Luis Obispo (HASLO), a company that is nearing completion of a 35-unit low-income apartment complex on Atascadero Road, a block east of Main Street.

An interim city manager (ICM), Greg Carpenter, was brought in to run things while Collins’ replacement was being sought. Apparently, a fair number of people applied.

“A rigorous recruitment process was conducted by Mosaic Public,” reads a press release from Carpenter, “[We used] a public employee executive search firm. The recruitment process garnered significant interest, with a total of 41 qualified applicants vying for the city manager position. After careful consideration, six candidates were interviewed by the City Council.

“Following the initial interviews, the Council selected two finalists who proceeded to engage in interviews with various stakeholders, providing valuable feedback to the City Council. This was followed by an additional interview with the City Council, comprehensive background checks, and thorough reference assessments.”

Kimball brings an impressive resume with her. She earned a Bachelor’s degree in business english from Tianjin Institute of Technology in Tianjin, China, and a Master’s degree in public administration from the University of Central Florida in Orlando. Over a 15-year career, Kimball was the town manager of Dewey-Humboldt, Arizona, from 2012-17; and the city manager for Bowling Green, Florida, from 2008-11. In 2017, she became the city manager for Jackson, California (in Amador County), a full-service city of 5,000 residents located in the Northern Foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains.

In Jackson, she “oversees all city operations, manages substantial budgets, has executed capital improvement projects totaling $20 million, negotiates contracts, and has spearheaded economic development initiatives.”

According to the city’s approved 2022-23 salary schedule, the city manager spot pays from $194,100 to $214,300 a year, plus generous benefits and retirement contributions.

She will be just the second woman to lead the city after Andrea Lueker, who was city manager

Group voices opposition to proposed battery facility

Citizens for Estero Bay Preservation

By BLAKE ASHLEY FRINO-GERL for Morro Bay Life

With the impending proposal from Vistra Corporation to build a battery storage facility to make use of the former Morro Bay Power Plant property, there are opinions against it. Citizens for Estero Bay Preservation (CEBP) believe it would be a disservice and unsafe for the environment and community.

CEBP formed in “September of 2022 after learning of the magnitude and dangers Morro Bay could face by having a 600 MW battery energy storage system in close proximity to our Nationally protected estuary, high school and tourist hub,” the organization says. The group consists of Morro Bay, Cayucos, and Los Osos residents that share common goals:

1. Protect the natural beauty, sensitivity, and intrinsic value of Morro Bay’s waterfront and Embarcadero;

2. Prevent the visual and physical degradation of Morro Bay’s natural environment;

3. Promote the health and safety of Morro Bay’s residents, tourists, boaters, and wildlife habitat;

4. Maintain present levels of coastal access to our California Historic Landmark, Morro Rock, as well as to the harbor, and surrounding beaches;

5. Preserve Morro Bay as a world-renowned tourist destination.

If the battery storage facility is created and put to use, Morro Bay city staff and the San Luis Coastal Unified School District will have to put together a thoughtful emergency evacuation and lockdown plan, just as they did for Diablo Canyon Power Plant.

Such a plan is to be used in the “event of a toxic airborne hazard,” CEBP says. Due to the location of the proposed Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) project, it will be difficult to evacuate in a timely manner, according to CEBP. It says that people near Morro Rock would be evacuating towards the fire, and if a hazard hit when there are various city events happening, such as a surfing competition or the Kite or Avocado festivals, the beaches and bay would be dense with thousands of tourists and citizens. CEBP says that “sheltering-in-place for our tourists would be difficult.”

In addition, the organization adds that “one only has to look back to recent flooding on Jan. 9, to realize some exit routes may not be accessible.”

To further enforce their point, the organization, which meets bi-weekly, says, “At the onset, the BESS will immediately be added to the Nation’s Terror list. This and the ongoing threat to shut down our Nation’s electrical grid will make us a terrorist target like Diablo.”

CEBP says that the dangers that arise from this type of industrial construction could potentially alter the community’s “lifestyle and delicate ecosystem for decades.”

The group’s point of view sees the construction noise and traffic likely disrupting the tourist industry and therefore hurting the city’s necessary tourist economy. To add, CEBP feels “the economic growth during construction is short-lived and the few BESS operation jobs offered upon completion may go to existing specialized Vistra employees.”

CEBP’s hope is “to have the Power Plant acreage returned to an environment that is complementary with Morro Bay’s precious ecosystem.” Sustaining that “would include economic growth that enhances Morro Bay’s unique, natural beauty and promotes a tourism-based economy,” the group adds.

In all fairness, CEBP “believe[s] Vistra is taking steps to ensure their proposed project is built out.”The organization acknowledges Vistra owns the property and that their proposal is their legal right, but CEBP hopes that its side is heard.

for about eight years until she and the former city attorney Rob Schultz were both forced out at the end of 2013 by the City Council majority led by former Mayor Jamie Irons.

She will join Police Chief Amy Watkins, who was hired as the full-time chief by Collins before he left and who first stepped in and then replaced the retired Chief Jody Cox, as well as Assistant City Manager/Admin Services Manager Sarah Johnson-Rios, as the three women currently heading up city departments.

The city also has several women that head up divisions within the departments, including the Harbor Department (Harbor Patrol chief, business manager); and Public Works (Utilities Division manager).

Morro Bay has also been a leader countywide in having women lead the city. Former Police Chief Amy Christy was just the third woman police chief in all of SLO County when she was hired in 2015. Coupled with the all-woman City Council, having the city manager and assistant city manager also be women, it is a big step for the City of Morro Bay.

In other city hiring news, Watkins promoted one of her sergeants to the second-in-command position to fill her old job.

Watkins, in a June 7 news release, announced that she had promoted MBPD Sgt. Tony Mosqueda to be the new police commander.

Mosqueda began his law enforcement career in

May 2005 with Farmersville Police Department, fulfilling several different police duties, and was promoted to corporal in 2014. That was the same year he was hired at MBPD and started over as a patrolman. He made sergeant a year later. He’s had various supervisory duties at MBPD, including administration sergeant, and was the department’s range master and acting commander until Watkins gave him the permanent position.

Mosqueda said, “I am happy to continue my career with the Morro Bay Police Department serving the community and the men and women of this department.”

Mosqueda is married with four kids and the family lives in Atascadero. He’s a deep-sea sport fisherman and loves to watch sports live and in person.

Vistra Corp. continues plan for Battery Energy Storage System project

Texas company provides power-related products and services to 20 states and 4.3 million residents

By BLAKE ASHLEY FRINO-GERL for Morro Bay Life

Vistra Corporation, the owners of the property on which the defunct Morro Bay Power Plant resides, is still set on building a facility to provide battery storage if all the necessary steps pass.

The Texas-based Fortune 500 company provides its power-related products and services to 20 states, including the District of Columbia, serving close to 4.3 million resident, commercial and industrial customers. It offers 50 different renewable energy plans, claiming to combine an “innovative, customer-centric approach to retail with safe, reliable, diverse, and efficient power generation,” according to its website.

According to Jenny Lyon, manager of media relations at Vistra Corporation, the company’s Morro Bay land “remains a premier location for a battery energy storage system due to its Central Coast location and proximity to existing PG&E infrastructure.”

Vistra believes the project will revitalize the land while helping California meet its clean energy goals.

“Battery energy storage is a safe and proven technology with California having safely

deployed more than 4,000 megawatts of lithium-ion battery storage,” Lyon says. Battery storage devices are said to have been safely deployed in various circumstances and products.

Vistra’s Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) project will include comprehensive safety systems designed specifically to address fire incidents and other safety concerns.

“The City of Morro Bay is preparing an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA),” Lyon says.

Therefore in the upcoming months, the city is expected to circulate a draft of the EIR for a minimum 45-day public review and comment period. No decision can be made on the application until the CEQA process is complete, which is expected to occur this year. Many opportunities will exist for public participation throughout the CEQA process.

The BESS project contemplates the demolition of the stacks and the development of a master plan. If the BESS project is approved, Vistra anticipates demolition of the stacks and the existing power plant building will follow in accordance with the schedule shown in the final EIR. Lyon also says that the demolition of those structures would facilitate potential future development, including retail, commercial and open space. In addition, any future development would require separate approvals from the city, along with a process for public review and comment.

This rendering shows the Morro Bay project proposal, taken from Vistra’s presentation to the City Council’s meeting on 26 January. Photo by Vistra Energy / Morro Bay Council website.

believes project would be unsafe for environment and community

(Left) Yvonne Kimball has been selected by the Morro Bay City Council to be the new city manager. (Right) Morro Bay Police Sgt. Tony Mosqueda has been promoted to police commander Contributed Photo

City, county working on Quintana Homeless Project

By NEIL FARRELL for Morro Bay Life

Recently, the City of Morro Bay and state officials conducted a cleanup of homeless encampments along Quintana Road and Willow Camp Creek.

The cleanup was no doubt very upsetting to the unfortunate folks there — to have their belongings gathered up, bagged, and thrown in a dumpster would upset anyone.

It was similar to other cleanups the city has done along Morro Creek at Lila Keiser Park, which is the other main area where some have carved themselves out a niche for survival.

But the Quintana cleanup could lead to something finally being done for the folks who live in the creeks.

Over the past several years, unhoused folks have taken up living among the trees and bushes along Willow Camp Creek, which in that area is just a cement drainage ditch. The seasonal creek begins as a drainage swale in the hills above Morro Bay Boulevard on the east side of Highway 1.

The creek crosses under the highway, runs along Quintana Road and again goes underground to cross Main Street neat Lemos Ranch Pet Supply Store. It also takes the rain runoff from the highway.

It daylights again behind the power plant property and ultimately empties into Morro Creek by Lila Keiser Park.

The Quintana stretch is popular for the homeless in town as it’s very close to markets, a laundromat, restaurants, and other places. But it also attracts some unsavory folks, as the police department’s weekly media logs show time and again officers contacting people down there with multiple bench warrants or dealing drugs and more.

The City Council recently approved a letter of support for an effort by SLO County to help the folks on Quintana Road. In May, the city’s Community Development Director Scot Graham sought support for the county’s effort to get some money to put towards the issue.

SLO County’s Homeless Services Division will apply for a $5 million grant from the second round of funding from the State’s “Encampment Resolution Funding Program,” money being funneled through the California Interagency Council on Homelessness.

According to the state’s website, the program is a “$350 million competitive grant program available to assist local

jurisdictions in ensuring the wellness and safety of people experiencing homelessness in encampments by providing services and supports that address their immediate physical and mental wellness and result in meaningful paths to safe and stable housing. Eligible applicants include counties, Continuums of Care [CoCs], and cities of any size.”

“Up to $237 million is available for award,” in this second round, Graham said in his staff report, “on a rolling basis until June 30, or until funds are exhausted. The purpose of the grant is to resolve critical encampment concerns and funding can only be used for programs that connect people experiencing homelessness in encampments to interim shelter with clear pathways to permanent housing.”

The county identified the Quintana Road encampment as qualifying for the program, according to Graham.

“The County is seeking to apply for the grant with the intent of establishing a temporary supportive housing campus modeled after the 5 Cities Homeless Coalition’s Grover Beach Cabins-forChange Program in this location,” he said.

What’s emerged — only conceptually at this point — is bringing in several little, prebuilt shelters, or “tiny homes” as they are sometimes referred, and arranging them in a mini-neighborhood of sorts on a vacant lot just south of the Couch Potato furniture store on the east side of Quintana, similar to a program the county put in last December.

That South County facility is a “90-day, temporary supportive housing model in Grover Beach,” Graham said.

“[It] operates a closed campus 24 hours a day, and features 20 supportive housing

units, communal restrooms, and bathing facilities, a shared dining hall, a dog wash, assigned storage space, a staff-operations building, and two case worker offices. The units are just over 100 square feet in size, and come equipped with heating and air conditioning.”

County supervisors have already been working on these types of facilities.

“To move forward with this model,” Graham said, “a temporary County ordinance was approved to establish minimum safety standards for any subject emergency housing facility located on county-owned or leased public facilities.”

In Grover Beach, their facility is on county-owned property adjacent to a county public health clinic and Drug and Alcohol Services office.

What they have in mind in Morro Bay is 10-20 “units” and have an as-yet-unidentified nonprofit run it and provide services that would ostensibly help them find permanent housing. So far, all the city has had to do was approve a letter.

“The county,” Graham said, “is proposing to take the lead in writing, submitting, and administering the ERF-2-R grant application and is requesting the city assist with the development of the program, identification, and provision of suitable location for the campus and securing of local permits to develop the site.

“Grant awards will be prioritized for applications that demonstrate collaboration while protecting the health and well-being of individuals living in encampments,” he added.

Right now, the preferred site, or at least the one that’s part of the grant application, is the vacant lot by Couch Potato. That oddly shaped lot had been for sale, but apparently had no takers. The

current owner is Habib Tabrizi, according to the report, and the county is looking to negotiate some kind of lease.

While a county project in Morro Bay would be similar to the one in Grover Beach, there are differences.

“It would like be fewer units than the Grover Beach project,” Graham told Morro Bay Life, “but they may look at using a different format as well — attached units to make more efficient use of space.”

Though this first step by the City Council didn’t need any environmental review, Graham said once there’s a formal project submitted, it would trigger a permitting process. Just what that will entail is unknown at this time; however, if these tiny homes are to have electricity and heating and air, plus a shower facility and more, it’ll require a lot more than just setting down a bunch of little houses sitting on the dirt.

“We would go through some type of permitting process,” Graham said. “Won’t have that nailed down until we have an actual project.”

And what is meant by the term “temporary,” since often when something is built on a “temporary basis,” — especially housing — it’s tough to take it away?

“Temporary in this instance,” Graham said, “would likely be a year or two but could be longer depending on funding and success of the program.”

The grant program is slated to expire in 2026, so continuing this beyond that would take more money, which has always been the number one roadblock for the city to do something for the local homeless beyond cleaning up their hideaways from time to time.

The project is anticipated to be ready

for its inevitable closure, unlike the county’s Safe Parking Site on Oklahoma Avenue, that was begun in 2022, mainly to address the dozens of people that were parking RVs and vehicles and essentially living on Palisades Avenue in Los Osos.

The county Grand Jury recently released a report on that Oklahoma Avenue facility and sharply criticized the county for not doing proper preplanning, having a lack of amenities and services, and poor management by contractors.

The Oklahoma Safe Parking Site was plagued by criminal activity, drug abuse, and more. Two people living at the site died — one in a trailer fire and the other of a drug overdose. A woman resident of the site was arrested for allegedly selling the overdose victim the fentanyl that killed him.

The same county agency that set up that facility is working on the one in Morro Bay too, but it sounds like they’re learning from past mistakes.

“A full de-mobilization plan will be built into the grant application to ensure the selected site is restored if the program is unsuccessful,” Graham’s report said.

The grant money would pay for an “encampment project manager” and a dedicated service provider to manage encampment outreach and on-site operations for the duration of the grant period, which runs through June of 2026.

“On-site wrap around services will be prioritized as well as a closed campus location that is within walking distance to additional critical services,” the report said.

So while the potential project would be only a temporary fix, it might lead to greater efforts to help the homeless here.

A homeless woman sits along Quintana Road amid belongings that were bagged up for disposal during a homeless encampment cleanup by city and state officials on May 29.

Photo by Neil Farrell

Little motel project with big views underway

By NEIL FARRELL for Morro Bay Life

Earthwork is well underway on a project to demolish an old motel and replace it with a six-unit motel development with a fantastic view of the Morro Bay Harbor and the iconic Morro Rock.

The property was once the 17-room Harbor View Motor Lodge before a huge storm in March 1995 caused the bluff to slip and a 25-foot tall retaining wall to come down in one piece and crush a car parked down on Front Street.

That caused swift action by the owner and the city to remove a swimming pool that had been partially undermined by the landslide before it too slipped down the bluff. It also ended the motel use, and the handful of remaining rooms were turned into monthly rentals.

Over the years since the 1995 collapse, different proposals have been made to redevelop the site, with the most controversial coming in 2004 when the late-Dan Reddell proposed the “Harbor View Project,” a three-story mixed-use development covering some 17,182 square feet that stepped down Harbor Street with buildings fronting Harbor Street and designed to look like row houses in San Francisco.

The project was touted as a desirable mixed-use development that would have commercial/retail spaces on the ground floor, office/art studios on the second floor, and residences on the third floor.

The Planning Commission denied it primar ily because of the size. But the City Council approved it and it went to the Coastal Commission on appeal. The Coastal Commission essentially killed the project with new conditions it placed on the coastal development permit, like the ratio of commercial space to residential and parking in-lieu fees.

That appeal also reaffirmed the city’s in-lieu parking fees, setting $15,000 per space as the fee for anything on the waterfront, this project included.

Local developer Smith Held bought the prop erty after Reddell’s project fell through, and he worked on a 30-unit motel proposal with Thom Jess of Arris Architecture designing it.

But when they encountered troubles with the city, Held dropped the project and put the property up for sale.

Chung Hsiao of San Diego was the next owner and proposed the current six-unit motel project, though they could also be considered vacation rentals, as they are bigger than typical motel rooms in size and will each have kitchens.

Hsiao retained Arris Architecture to design the new project, and the firm’s Rebecca Johnson did a favorable design, according to Jess. “This is something that she is rightfully very proud of,” he told Morro Bay Life. That project was ultimately approved and is now under construction.

The contractor is Columbia Builders of Paso Robles. Recent weeks saw the demolition of the

remnants of the old motor lodge, and extensive grading and dirt work has been underway on the site getting ready for foundation work. It’s opened up a new vista of Morro Rock not seen since the 1940s, albeit temporarily.

According to the approved project, there will be four units on the ground floor and two on a second story that fronts Market Avenue. It would step down the bluff, keeping the required 50-foot setback from the bluff top.

The six units would total some 5,054 square feet and each will have a patio or deck facing the ocean.

Each unit will have a kitchen, and according to Jess, they will be very nice and upscale, too.

Jess told Morro Bay Life that Arris Architec-

ture also designed the recently completed and now open 83-room Hampton Inn, located on Atascadero Road in front of Morro Bay High School, and the firm also designed a 35-apartment affordable housing development nearing completion on Atascadero Road at Sunset Avenue, just a couple of blocks from the Hampton Inn. The Housing Authority of San Luis Obispo is building that project and will run it too.

Arris designed several other SLO County developments, including Colony Square in Atascadero, The Creamery in Downtown SLO, Prefumo Creek Commons (Target in SLO, and the White Water Inn in Cambria, among numerous others in California and other states.

Coalesce Bookstore celebrates 50 years of business

By BLAKE ASHLEY FRINO-GERL for Morro Bay Life

Linna Thomas grew up in Washington and earned her teaching degree, but once she and her friend, Janet Brown, found out that other friends were taking a boat trip down the coast, they followed them to Morro Bay and decided to stay.

The two women had dreamed of owning a bookstore and so with just “$1,600, no experience, no business plan and no clue about the realities of running a business, we found a small funky beach bungalow with lots of windows for light near the bay and opened Coalesce on July 22, 1973,” Thomas remembers.

Their initial inventory, mainly purchased from a Los Angeles warehouse that was small enough to fit in the trunk of their car, was also supplemented from the ladies’ personal libraries.

“From the beginning, we’ve offered new and used books,” Thomas adds. The business grew and the business moved to the current location on Main Street in 1981.

When asking about the meaning behind the business’ name, Thomas says that “the only other name we considered was Crossroads, but we wanted a name that captured the serendipity one can feel in finding community and in finding the perfect book.” It is the action of coming together to form one whole.

“We always envisioned Coalesce not just as

a bookstore, but as a place to be comfortable and to find community,” Thomas says.

A couple employees working with Thomas in the bookstore have been there decades: Cheri (47 years) and Joanne (35 years). There are also additional employees servicing the chapel and garden.

The chapel, built in 1973, was designed by the Cal Poly Architecture Department. It was to be used to serve beer and pizza, “by a motley group of locals headed by contractor Ron Ketch,” Thomas adds. Throughout the years, the chapel has hosted weddings, memorials, baptisms, concerts, author events, poetry readings, classes, workshops, yoga, meditation, metaphysical readings, meditation groups, political groups, fundraisers, exercise classes, Tai Chi, Santa’s Workshop, and story telling. Coalesce Press, which takes submissions only by invitation, is putting out its sixth publication entitled “Releasing the Light,” a non-fiction book by Carol Alma McPhee.

Thomas fondly says that “working with Coalesce has never grown old for me.” For her, “books are endlessly interesting, as are the people that come and go through our doors.” The half-century business has kept its customers coming, creating a sense of family.

“On any given day, we interact with our old timers and with tourists in for the first time,” Thomas said. “Both bring energy and are important to the spirit of Coalesce ... a sense of community and a sense of discovery.”

Happy 50 years, Coalesce Bookstore.

Computer renderings by Rebecca Johnson of Arris Architecture Studio of San Luis Obispo show the final design of a sixunit motel/vacation rental development under construction now at the corner of Harbor Street and Market Avenue.

Linna Thomas and Janet Brown opened the Coalesce Bookstore on July 22, 1973, and the business has been at its current Main Street location, shown here, since 1981 Contributed Photos

Coalesce Bookstore co-owner Linna Thomas is shown inside the store. Fifty years ago, Thomas and her friend, Janet Brown, opened Coalesce with “$1,600, no experience, no business plan and no clue about running a business.”

Throughout the years, the Garden Chapel behind the bookstore has hosted weddings, memorials, baptisms, concerts, and more events

Photo by Blake Ashley Frino-Gerl

Joint committee on fisheries and aquaculture holds hearing

Inclusive

By BLAKE ASHLEY FRINO-GERL for Morro Bay Life

In December, the federal government leased five offshore wind areas along California’s coast, including three off the coast of San Luis Obispo County. There was a hearing with the joint committee on fisheries and aquaculture to hold offshore wind at the State Capital on May 17.

“This first-of-its-kind hearing will bring all sides of the offshore wind discussion together, ensuring the state can expedite the deployment of this valuable energy resource while protecting the interests of California’s storied fishing fleet and guaranteeing coastal environmental safeguards,” said District 2 Senator Mike McGuire. “It’s critical to have these voices at the same table as we develop the roadmap for offshore energy, healthy oceans and a thriving fishing fleet to co-exist here in the Golden State.”

on obtaining “new green power generation facilities,” McGuire said.

Federal and state agency representatives, tribal leaders, offshore wind industry and fishery representatives, as well as people from labor and environmental industries, were included in the hearing.

Jennifer Miller from Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) hopes to make offshore wind energy a reliable source for “renewable energy in a thoughtful manner that minimizes conflicts with other ocean uses.” She said BOEM is drafting to “mitigate impacts to fisheries in the areas of project siting, design, navigation, access safety and financial compensation.” It is also important to BOEM that there is no indication of hazardous intrusion on animal life.

Jenn Eckerle, the deputy secretary for oceans and coastal policy for natural resources and executive director of the Ocean Protection Council (OPC), said her group’s primary role is to “ensure that the best available science is informing” their decisions and identify suitable areas for offshore wind that maximizes wind and energy off the coast, but also minimize the impacts to marine life, habitats, fisheries, the communities and environment.”

decision-makers to help identify appropriate areas for offshore wind development.”

Elizabeth Huber, director for the Siting, Transmission and Environmental Protection (STEP) Division at the California Energy Commission, says STEP will work with the state and federal partners, as well as industry and environmental organizations, and fisheries and tribal communities “to advance common interests and shared values.”

Senior Environmental Scientist for the California Coastal Commission Holly Wire said “It is important to us that this group is inclusive and we are looking forward to working with BOEM to get the working group started.” She added that “monitoring adaptive impacts in the ocean is critical to the success of offshore wind on the West Coast.”

It is also important for them to get the information they need, as well as working with all the groups, including fishing commission in a relevant time period for decision making.

Tom Hafer, president of the Morro Bay Commercial Fisherman’s Organization, attended the hearing with his wife. He said that he really just wants AB 286 to not take out the “industry-to-industry agreement” that they worked so hard for in Morro Bay and Port San Luis.

happen to California’s coast. Then after speaking to U.K. citizens, they learned energy bills were five times higher with the wind turbines. She went on to imply that there will be devastation financially, as well as too small of ports that would result in costing taxpayers billions of dollars. She also stated how the environment, marine life, and commercial fisheries would be negatively affected.

Vice Chairman of the Yurok tribe Frank Myers said that it is crucial for offshore winds to create a “net positive for our citizens,” understanding there will be negative impacts.

Myers said that “some of those impacts can be mitigated, some of those impacts simply cannot be mitigated.” However, “it is important to know and see ourselves in this conversation,” Myers added.

The Yurok tribe is in support of offshore wind and it is because they have yet to see what it exactly looks like, and will hold their opinions while the planning is being developed.

“The goal is only the goal as long as it works within our environment … and benefit the ecosystem … and as long as there are no impacts that we can’t mitigate,” Myers said.

McGuire prides California in including stakeholders and ensuring their voices are heard.

“We got to get this right,” he concluded. “We can learn from the mistakes we’ve seen in other regions of this country and throughout the world.”

SUBMIT

EVENTS TO: office@13starsmedia.com

JULY 1-3

ART IN THE PARK

MORRO BAY BLVD. AND HARBOR STREET, MORRO BAY

10am-5pm

The Morro Bay Art Association is once again hosting its triannual Art in the Park Festival on Memorial Day. The proceeds help fund children’s art classes, provide scholarships and other programs throughout the year. For more information, visit morrobayartinthepark.com.

JULY 1-3 AND JULY 15-16

WATERFRONT MARKET

EMBARCADERO, 1001 FRONT STREET, MORRO BAY

10am-4pm

The market at the Embarcadero will showcase crafts and food for purchase.

JULY 1, 8, 22 AND 29

SUMMER CONCERT SERIES

ATASCADERO LAKE PARK BANDSTAND, ATASCADERO

6:30-8:30pm

Bring a blanket or chair to sit on and enjoy the summer at “Saturdays in the Park” concert series. July 1 will have music from Club Dv8, The Rockin’

Bs Band on July 8, Riff Tide on July 22 and Way Out West on July 29.

JULY 1

MUSIC AT TOGNAZZINI’S DOCKSIDE

1245 EMBARCADERO, MORRO BAY

11am-2:30pm

Wes Kelley and the Unchartered Waters will perform music to enjoy by the bay, while enjoying the fare for purchase at Tognazzini’s.

JULY 4

FAMILY FUN DAY

TIDELANDS PARK, MORRO BAY 10am

Beginning at 10am with a decorated bike parade, followed by music, flag ceremony and magic show, it will be a fun day for all to celebrate. There will be a beer garden, food and activity wristbands for purchase.

JULY 4

INDEPENDENCE DAY PARADE

Cayucos 10am

Walking down Ocean Avenue you will see a sea of chairs that have been set up as early as July 3rd at 6 p.m. to secure a front-row seat to the 4th of July parade. Independence Day parade starts at 10 a.m. from the south side of town down Ocean Avenue and runs until 12 p.m. Each year you’ll see a variety of entertainment including floats, classic cars, and live music!

JULY 4

FIREWORKS

CAYUCOS PIER 9pm

No alcohol, fires, or fireworks are allowed on the beach, so it’s a great place for families to come and watch. Make sure to bring a blanket, chairs, and a warm jacket to enjoy the show! The fireworks show starts around 9 p.m. and lasts about 30 minutes.

2-8pm

Presented by Colony Days and the Printery Foundation, the 4th of July Bluegrass Freedom Festival will offer music, boating, bounce houses, games and more. There will be food, bear and wine available for purchase. For information, visit atascaderofourthofjuly.com.

JULY 14 AND 28

FOOD TRUCKS AND MUSIC

ST. TIMOTHY’S CATHOLIC CHURCH

962 PINEY WAY, MORRO BAY

4-7pm

Enjoy listening to music and connecting with the option of purchasing food from varying food trucks.

JULY 28

REBOOT STORYTELLING

meeting brings out varying opinions on wind power and its effects on fish, jobs, and local communities