Lompoc Valley LIVING IN THE
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2 | Sunday, August 5, 2018
LIVING IN THE LOMPOC VALLEY
Santa Maria Special Section1
Lompoc making progressive changes Transit, technology, food among upgrades JENNIFER BEST
Contributing Writer
When newly hired Lompoc City Manager Jim Throop took the helm July 30, he adopted a city that has recently welcomed new businesses, improved its transit system, updated technology citywide, and adopted a new city ordinance designed to improve the Lompoc Wine Ghetto. “We’ve been progressive in a number of ways,” said Economic Development Director/Assistant City Manager Teresa Gallavan who served as interim city manager until Throop came on board. New businesses Throop include corporate giants Ulta Beauty, Famous Footwear, Planet Fitness and Blaze Pizza. Hilton Garden Inn opened within the past year, expanding the city’s visitor lodging by 156 rooms. “We balance and support local businesses as well as the chain businesses because both are so important to our economy overall. We have a lot of small business owners here in town and want to be supportive of them as well,” Gallavan said. “We continue to attract and welcome new businesses to our community,” Gallavan said. She noted long-time local favorite Surf Connection, known not only for its collection of surf and skate supplies, but also its support of local youth sports across the board. Other standouts included Deasee’s Boutique, a newcomer featuring women’s clothing, accessories and jewelry, and several eateries including Hangar 7, Solvang Brewery, Scratch Kitchen and 805 Chop House. “The local businesses are very supportive and engaged in the community. They’re active in the (Lompoc) Chamber of Commerce, help with events, donate to fundraisers,” Gallavan said. In an effort to support growing local businesses in Lompoc’s Wine Ghetto, the city is considering adopting a zoning ordinance change which will allow the neighborhood to incorporate food into its industrial zones. “Having food in the Wine Ghetto will make it easier for people to have events there, to get to that next level as an attraction,” Gallavan said. One of Lompoc’s most-publicized changes recently included opening its doors to the cannabis industry. The city has issued three use permits for cannabis-related businesses and 10 more are under review. The businesses include manufacturing, distribution and
CONTRIBUTED BY CITY OF LOMPOC
City of Lompoc Transit, or COLT, recently introduced buses to better support transportation.
LEN WOOD, STAFF
Solvang Brewing Company server Tyler Townsend shows off a logo branded mug inside the new Lompoc Hoptions taproom. dispensaries. As far as transportation, newly wrapped City of Lompoc Transit (COLT) buses welcome locals and visitors alike to ride the city’s routes, including stops at the new transfer station in Old Town. “It looks lovely, brand new. It’s really welcoming to visitors and commuters who might want to go to Old Town to grab a cup of coffee or shop,” Gallavan said. In addition to supporting its growing wine industry, the city
is adding new events to its lineup, which already includes long-time favorites Lompoc Flower Festival and Lompoc Spring Fest. On Aug. 3, the city celebrated its second Lompoc Open Streets. “During our summer Old Town Market nights, which are Fridays from 5 (p.m.) to 8 (p.m.), we’ll close a large portion of Ocean Avenue to make room for pedestrians, people riding bikes, fitness classes, different ways for the community to get out and get moving,” Gal-
lavan said. In April, the city collaborated with NASA, JPL, Lompoc Airport and the Lompoc Chamber of Commerce to celebrate the launch of InSight Lander’s mission to Mars. “We’d like to have more events like this that support aerospace and the launches that take place here,” Gallavan said. To that end, NASA representatives are slated to speak at the Lompoc Public Library in ad-
vance of the Vandenberg Air Force Base launch of NASA’s ICESat-2 spacecraft on the back of a Delta II launch vehicle. “The launches are so amazing. I never get tired of them,” Gallavan said. She’s equally thrilled when talking about Lompoc’s adoption of a variety of technology improvements citywide. A major conversion of the city’s financial management system to new technology could provide more efficient systems. “Residents who will most see those are our utility customers. They’ll have easier access to their accounts, ease of payment and they can make service requests online,” Gallavan said. Lompoc is preparing to launch a new city website to provide the community, customers and visitors more dynamic interaction with the city. The change-up also includes expansion of Lompoc’s social media outreach to increase engagement with the community The recreation department has also embraced new technology this year with programs that provide access to programs, schedules and reservation systems online. “We will continue to have a very active customer service presence here at City Hall. People can still come in to the front counter for customer service and someone will be happy to help you. The counter service is not only popular with seniors, but with people who may not have access to the internet,” Gallavan said.
Volunteers bring life to all aspects of Lompoc Artist has given long hours to art community JENNIFER BEST
Contributing Writer
Communities thrive where volunteers jump on board and give selflessly for the common good and the love of their neighbors, friends and town. Little Lompoc is full of big volunteers. More than 300 Lompoc-based nonprofit agencies, schools and religious organizations depend upon local volunteers. Together, these people serve animals, cultural arts, the environment, food relief, people with disabilities. They gather their resources to celebrate wine, beer, flowers, children and families. “I like to volunteer. I like to do things in my community, being around people. Sure, we do all our complaining and griping when we’re in the thick of it all, but when it’s all said and done, damn, we had a great time,” said Patti Shiflet, long-time volunteer with Lompoc Valley Festival Association. The organization puts on two of Lompoc Valley’s largest public events: Lompoc Valley Flower Festival, held each June for the past 66 years, and SpringFest, held each April complete with car show, motorcycle show and BBQ shootout. “Back in 1990, there were two things I wanted to do. This was one of them. Even though you go through a lot to bring these things together, it’s worth it. It’s like homecoming every year. We have fond memories and think about all the people we get to see,” Shiflet said. Since 1998, Neda DeMayo’s Return to Freedom American Wild
LEN WOOD STAFF
Vicki Andersen, shown with some of her murals next to the Cypress Gallery, is an active community volunteer and local artist. She’s been involved in Lompoc Valley Arts Association, Lompoc Mural Society and other community organizations. She has also painted several of the murals around town. Horse Sanctuary has served as a 300-acre refuge for wild horses and burros not far from Lompoc’s city limits. Each year, volunteers contribute nearly 3,000 hours of work to keep the ranch going with everything from menial labor to skilled tasks. Healing HEART Sanctuary takes on injured animals. Volunteers for Inter-Valley Animals (VIVA) and Shadow’s Fund are among other animal-focused ventures in town. Out at La Purísima Mission State Historic Park, a boatload of volunteers dress the part to bring history to life for thousands of fourth-grade students from
throughout the state as they learn about state history. They make crafts sold in the gift store, take care of animals, lead walks and talks, and tend to the needs of even the youngest of park visitors. Prelado de Los Tesoros de La Purísima is a volunteer-driven, cooperative association which raises money for park needs. The Lompoc Firefighters Foundation supports the Lompoc Fire Department by providing essential equipment, training and public outreach to supplement city resources. There’s Certain Sparks Music Foundation, which provides music
lessons to Lompoc children who could not otherwise afford them. There are Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts and Civil Air Patrol, band and sports boosters, the Lompoc District Libraries Foundation. For Vicki Andersen, volunteerism is about keeping art alive, bringing up young artists and building a beautiful community. “I feel strongly about the arts being out there for the community and for artists to have opportunities to get together, to share their work, to commune,” said Andersen. The professional artist moved to Lompoc in 1979 and raised all four
of her children here. “Most people I know who are involved love the community,” Andersen said. She was initially wrapped up in the daily life of motherhood, but she joined the Lompoc Valley Art Association and hung around the periphery for years. She watched the art community, the organizations, the growth of opportunity, then jumped in with both feet shortly after muralist Art Mortimer brought to life “Flower Industry,” Lompoc’s first big mural project, in 1990. Ultimately, she has served as president of the Lompoc Valley Art Association, the Lompoc Mural Society, and Lompoc Mural and Public Arts Coalition. “It’s a small town. If you get involved in one arts group, you’ll find the others, and you’ll find the same need for volunteers there,” Andersen said. She’s been there for the birth of Cypress Gallery and revels in the monthly art walks held on the first Thursdays. They bring together artists, their works and the public along with food trucks and live music. Like many of the long-time volunteers on the Central Coast, Andersen is concerned about the future of volunteer-driven organizations. They challenge the younger generation to find the causes that call to them, fill those needs and carry it forward for their own descendants. “All nonprofits are having a challenge finding volunteers because new and younger members are living whole different lives than we did. It makes you worry about what’ll happen in the fu- 00 1 ture,” she said.
LIVING IN THE LOMPOC VALLEY
Santa Maria Special Section1
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Recreation high on list of amenities Water, parks, classes, special events among the city’s offerings JENNIFER BEST
Contributing Writer
With winter high temperatures ranging in the 60s and summer lows ranging in the 70s, it’s little wonder Lompoc’s recreational opportunities focus on the outdoors year-round. Even the city’s popular aquatic complex is almost entirely glass, with a retractable roof, for ultimate year-round swimming experiences. “We have year-round swimming lessons, year-round rec swim, year-round youth and adult sports, 15 parks, multipurpose trails, a bike park, dog park and our facilities are impacted all year round,” said City of Lompoc Recreation Manager Mario Guerrero, Jr. The city’s biggest facility, Lompoc Aquatic Center at 207 W. College Ave., is one of the largest indoor water parks in the state. The 31,000-square-foot, aluminum-framed glass structure includes a 10-lane competition/ water polo pool, a wheelchair-accessible, 1,600-square-foot therapeutic pool maintained at 90 degrees as well as a recreation pool with an interactive water playground and two, 126-foot-long winding water slides. “The Aquatics Center has been very popular for birthday parties because, realistically, it’s a lot cheaper than renting a park, renting a bounce house and all the other birthday party set up. At the pool, you’re in and out in two hours. It’s so much easier than a full day of packing, setting up, then cleaning up anywhere else,” Guerrero said. The city also offers year-round youth and adult sports programs on any number of its playing fields, as well as after-school and summer camps. Its parks facilities are also used by organizations including Little League, Girls Softball Association, American Youth Soccer Organization and Lompoc Youth Football. La Purísima Golf Course offers year-round, 18-hole play. “We’re always growing and improving our facilities and pro-
LEN WOOD, STAFF
A swimmer zooms down a tube slide during expanded recreational swim hours at the Lompoc Aquatic Center in June.
“The Aquatics Center has been very popular for birthday parties … it’s a lot cheaper than renting a park, renting a bounce house and all the other birthday party set up.” Mario Guerrero, Jr., City of Lompoc Recreation Manager grams,” Guerrero said. Thompson Park is the current focus, with all grounds being entirely renovated. The completed project will include a new score booth, covered bleachers, covered dugouts, brand-new bathrooms as well as a brand-new playground, shade structure over the rentable picnic area, and improvements to make existing walking paths more accessible. Programs designed specifically
with seniors in mind generally find their home at the Dick DeWees Community & Senior Center at 1120 W. Ocean Ave. Classes run the gamut from crafts to Tai Chi, dance fitness to chair yoga. The center is open weekdays from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. and many of its programs are offered free. Check the city’s recreation program apm.activecommunities.com/lompocrecreation/Activity_Search?Page=5) for details.
Lompoc recreation also offer special events like the Annual Boat Float, fun runs, basketball and softball tournaments, parades, triathlons and track meets. And don’t forget the festivals that celebrate the spirit and nature of Lompoc, including SpringFest (April), Lompoc Valley Flower Festival (June), and Pirate Faire (August). Just outside city limits, River Park offers the Central Coast’s only kid-focused motocross park. Lompoc Valley Motorsports Kids Moto Fun Park is a no-charge, off-highway vehicle facility open to children under age 12 riding up to 50cc motorcycles and ATVs. The volunteer-operated park is open weekends and holidays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. year round. River Park is also home to a playground, horseshoe pits, a fitness trail, Kiwanis Lake, sandy vol-
leyball courts and a full-hookup campground, group camping and barbecue areas as well as the community’s Vietnam Veterans Memorial. Lompoc Valley’s recreation opportunities extend well beyond city limits. Jalama Beach County Park to the south and Ocean Beach Park to the west are both popular for beach walkers, particularly those who favor coastal fog over valley heat. One of the most extensively restored missions in California sits about two miles beyond Lompoc’s city limits at La Purísima Mission State Historic Park. In addition to self-guided tours, docent-led activities, a visitors center and the mission itself, the 2,000-acre park is also home to some 25 miles of trails open to hikers and horseback riders.
Lompoc medical services blend bedside manner, top-end care JENNIFER BEST
Contributing Writer
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Lompoc’s medical facilities incorporate modern technology and traditional bedside manner for rural solutions for today’s medical problems. “You don’t get to Lompoc unless you meant to come here. Our doctors like the way we can treat patients. We’re smaller, slower. We come face-to-face with our patient in the grocery store, at church. Small practices allow us to make sure our patients get decent care,” said Dr. Cory Gusland of Central Coast Medical Group. Gusland began his medical career working for public health service in Kernville. School loans paid off and ready to move on, he sought out a home that would serve both his practice and his family. Lompoc was the answer. “It was a smaller town, and the hospital was established very much on family practice as the workhorse of the hospital. We had a lot of privileges there you don’t see at bigger hospitals,” he said. Over his 31 years of service, Gusland has served more than a few families over generations. “You can be delivering a baby in one part of the hospital while taking care of that baby’s grandfather in another on the same day. You’re taking care of everyone. Relationships to patients are just amazing,” Gusland said. Today, in partnership with Dr. Claudio Bonometti, Dr. John Sawyer, and Dr. Carl Schlosser, Gusman and Central Coast Medical Group focuses on offering a full-spectrum of primary care services including preventative health care, immunizations, well-child care, well-woman exams, minor surgical procedures and diagnosis and treat-
“They were full of kindness when I needed it.” LEN WOOD, STAFF
Yvette Cope, Lompoc Valley Medical Center assistant nurse executive, and telemedicine project coordinator and emergency room technician Juan Esquivias wave to a neurologist at another location on a video link during a 2016 demonstration of a telemedicine robot that provides patients with 24/7 access to neurological consults. ment of acute and chronic illness. They still provide in-home, bedside visits for patients who can’t make it to the office. He’s seen change come over Lompoc Valley as well. “Certainly we’ve seen advances in orthopedics, and anesthesia is much better than it used to be. The new hospital is certainly a lot more state of the art, with a lot of bells and whistles,” Gusland said. Among the latest additions to Lompoc Valley Medical Center’s facilities is the cutting-edge teleneurology contract for a “stroke robot.” Although stroke is the second leading cause of death in Santa Barbara County, the 45,000-resident Lompoc Valley community does not have a full-time neurologist. Patients thought to be having a stroke are often transferred out of town to a larger hospital. LVMC’s telemedicine agreement with Santa Barbara’s Cottage Hospital allows more patients to remain at the hospital and in their own community for recovery. When emergency medi-
cal services call the hospital with a stroke patient, nurses in Lompoc are connected with Cottage Hospital via “Dr. Robot,” the InTouch Health Remote Presence Virtual Independent Telemedicine Assistant. In addition, Lompoc Valley Medical Center has responded to the growing number of caregivers in the Lompoc Valley by opening its Family Caregiver Support Network Office (lompocvmc.com/locations/ family-caregiver-support-network). It offers primary and specialty care physicians, a hematology/ oncology facility that treats some 1,100 local patients receiving cancer treatment in town. There’s long-term skilled nursing and postacute rehabilitation services. New services include outpatient lactation support services for new mothers, and a weekly breastfeeding mothers’ support group. The medical center continues to recruit new physicians to the community, including relatively recent additions of Dr. James Trettin, Dr. Lee Silman, and Dr. Nancy Mutoro.
Beverly Dean
Orthopedics Patient
Keep moving. Stay active.
When Beverly Dean was in a car accident, she needed an orthopedic surgeon. With her physician on vacation, she turned to Dr. David Cortese, MD.
Read her full story at LompocVMC.com/Bev
LIVING IN THE LOMPOC VALLEY
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Santa Maria Special Section1
Have you tried the new COLT bus? n A lot has changed in the world of travel . . . but City of Lompoc’s COLT buses have been bringing the Lompoc Valley reliable, convenient and affordable transportation for more than 40 years. With 14 COLT buses, including 7 brand-new ones, and a new downtown transfer location, traveling through the Lompoc Valley is more comfortable and convenient than ever before! COLT travels around Lompoc, Mission Hills and Vandenberg Village, and COLT is now proud to serve the Santa Ynez Valley with the Wine Country Express. COLT offers special night service to Hancock College’s Lompoc
campus, too. COLT also offers service to Santa Barbara twice a week, on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Passengers traveling to Santa Maria can ride the Breeze Bus operated by our
We offer a wide range of cost-effective programs to conserve energy and water at your home or business.
Let the City of Lompoc help you save energy, water and money! n Did you know the City of Lompoc offers rebates for water leak detection and repair, energy and water-saving appliances, lowwater-use landscaping and more? Recycled water is now available for purchase from the city’s wastewater plant for construction use. Learn more about recycled water and how we can work together to conserve water and energy at: cityoflompoc.com/ utilities/conservation.
transit partners, SMAT. For more information, including COLT routes and fare information, visit cityoflompoc. com/transit/colt.htm.
Need to dispose of items that are too big for your trash bin? n Don’t abandon them! Keep our city looking nice by scheduling a pick-up with our Solid Waste Division. The city offers residents three collections (up to two items each) every year at no additional charge. To schedule a bulky item pickup, call (805) 875-8024 at least one week before you’d like to have the items removed. The Solid Waste Division also offers options for special hauls for an additional charge, as well as self-hauls to the landfill. For details, visit: cityoflompoc. com/SW/. P.S.: Don’t forget mattress recycling is free at the Lompoc Landfill.
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