The City of Solvang may be looking for a site to place a new City Hall. 

At the regular City Council meeting on Monday, Oct. 27, City Manager Randy Murphy brought a discussion item asking for direction to find a way to fund a new building to serve as Solvang’s City Hall.

In his staff report, Murphy noted the plaque on the front of the building said the current Solvang Municipal Center (aka City Hall) was completed in 1969. 

“As is often the case with pub- lic buildings, city staff outgrew the available space, and the nearby Masonic Lodge (constructed in 1957) was acquired,” Murphy said. “Only minimal modifications were made to the building prior to commencement of City operations in 2001/02 when Parks & Recreation, Community Development (Planning/ Building), and Public Works were moved across the street into ‘The Annex’. This arrangement continues to this day, which, unfortunately, contributes to multiple inefficiencies between/among staff and the public.” 

Murphy continued to list inadequacies of the building on 1644 Oak St., which the city administration with the Santa Barbara County Fire Department. Moreover, he was making his case on a night the video system malfunctioned, leaving colorful test patterns on the two video screens above the council dais. 

“Building is older and it suffers from a serious lack of technology, as evidenced tonight,” Murphy said, gesturing up to the screens. “An evaluation shows we need about twice of what we have. We need a new City Hall sooner rather than later.” 

Murphy said staff has evaluated options to moving into existing building, but nothing could be found that was feasible. He supplied council with a primary building design for a proposed new building that could be built on the lot across the street. An evaluation determined that a new City Hall would cost between $8.7 million and $10.3 million, and that price tag would increase 5% or more each year. 

“It’s not an inexpensive proposition, but it could included in a bond offering or other opportunities, like grants,” he said. 

Murphy cited other community benefits, such as the Fire Department taking over the space in the building that would be abandoned by the city, and the Solvang Library moving to The Annex when the city leaves that facility. Murphy said both the Fire Department and the library were open to those scenarios. 

“I’m just hoping to get direction from council whether or not this is worth pursuing,” Murphy concluded. 

At first reaction, councilmembers seemed pleased with the idea. 

“I’m interested about bartering with library,”Mayor ProTem Claudia Orona said. “Everybody needs more space; I would like to go forward.” 

Mayor David Brown wondered if Murphy’s floor design really does take care of the “inefficiencies,” of the current setup, questioned the need for an exercise gym that was on there, but Murphy reminded council that the plan was a primary draft he drew himself and could be modified — and said he envisioned the room as a potential child-care area. 

That seemed to appease Brown, but Councilmember Elizabeth Orona warned about the financial consequences of such a project. 

“I feel we have huge costs coming at us already,” she said. “To put unavoidable expenses on the backs of our residents and businesses, we better be really diligent.” 

Elizabeth Orona asked further about the possibility of moving into an existing building and whether it would be cheaper to retrofit a current building. She also brought up the possibility of moving into the former Rite-Aid space at the Valley Fresh Market shopping center. 

Murphy said a new building would actually be cheaper than a retrofit, which was confirmed by Planning Director Rafael Castillo, who also noted that the Rite-Aid space is not set up for the demands of a City Hall-type office and Murphy added that space doesn’t have enough square footage. 

At the end, council instructed Murphy to pursue the matter, and he said he would have something in the next three to six months. 

The City Council will next meet on Nov. 10 at 6:30 p.m. 

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Staff Report

Santa Barbara County Executive Officer Mona Miyasato announced on Nov. 7 that Garrett Huff has been selected to be the next fire chief for Santa Barbara County. The Board of Supervisors is scheduled to ratify the appointment at the Nov. 18 Board of Supervisors meeting.

Huff is currently the Deputy Chief of the Santa Barbara County Fire Department. His first day will be Dec. 8. He will assume the duties from Chief Mark Hartwig, who is retiring on Dec. 7 after six years as the Santa Barbara County Fire Chief.

Huff began his career in firefighting in 1999 and came to Santa Barbara County in 2005. Over the past 20 years with the county, he has worked his way up the ranks from starting as a firefighter/paramedic on an engine to most recently the deputy fire chief. In this position, he oversees the county’s Emergency Medical Services and the Regional Fire Communications Center.  In addition, he has served on the Incident Management Team for numerous fires, the Montecito debris flow, the Conception boat tragedy, and the county’s response to the COVID pandemic.

“I am deeply honored to be chosen as the next fire chief of the Santa Barbara County Fire Department,” Huff said. “Having grown up and spent my career serving within this department and county, this opportunity is both humbling and profoundly meaningful. The men and women of this organization embody the highest standards of professionalism, compassion, and dedication. It is a privilege to lead them as we continue to serve and protect the citizens of Santa Barbara County. I look forward to building upon our department’s proud history and working collaboratively to ensure a safe and resilient future for our communities.”

The County Fire Department operates 24/7 with 320 personnel and an operating budget of $130 million.  There are 16 fire stations, and each is equipped with multiple firefighters, engines, and Primary Advance Life Support (ALS) to directly serve about 172,000 people in the unincorporated areas such as Orcutt, Vandenberg Village, and most of the Santa Ynez Valley, along with acting as the fire agency for the cities of Buellton, Goleta, and Solvang.  In addition to fire-station response, the Fire Department utilizes helicopters, bulldozers, rescue watercraft, and hand crews for various disasters. The department oversees the new Regional Fire Communications Center, which dispatches the closest available resource to fire and emergency medical calls throughout the County.  In addition, the Department oversees the Office of Emergency Management which coordinates emergency preparedness, response, and recovery for the entire county.

“After a nationwide search, I’m confident that Deputy Chief Huff will continue to lead the department in the right direction. He has proven leadership skills, solid fire experience and immense respect from myself, County leadership and the staff of the Fire Department,” Miyasato said. “He knows this department from the bottom to the top and has worked throughout the divisions of the Department to have a full understanding of the work the department does and the responsibilities of a fire chief. I value his expertise in this field and servant heart to protect our community.”

Huff received his B.S. in fire and emergency management from Kaplan University, his A.S. in fire technology from Oxnard College, and is continuing his education with completing his Master’s in public administration this coming summer.  Huff also has several certifications for his field and is involved in professional organizations across the state, including serving as a board member on the California 9-1-1 Advisory Board.  Throughout his career, he received multiple recognitions, including being named the 2016 Firefighter of the Year for the County of Santa Barbara.

“I also want to take the opportunity to thank Chief Mark Hartwig. With a career spanning 33 years, he has been a knowledgeable, dedicated and bold leader, always striving to advance the fire service for the betterment of our community and the entire state. We appreciate that he has shared his immense experience and leadership with us over these last six years,” Miyasato said.

For more information on the Santa Barbara County Fire Department, go to sbcfire.com.

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The Buellton Planning Commission and the Buellton City Council had a rare joint meeting on Thursday, discussing the city’s General Plan 2050 update.

The council members and commissioners, minus Vice Mayor Elysia Lewis, who was absent, met with consultants Jean E. Ward and Adam Pisarkiewicz of Civic Solutions, as well as Aaron Pfannenstiel from Atlas Planning Solutions. Each consultant discussed a separate subject with the combined panel.

Ward described the General Plan as “a roadmap or a blueprint for future growth and development in the city.” 

She went on to explain the plan needed an update becuase some of its elements were done as long as 20 years ago, and needs to update to keep up with changing needs and conditions of the city. She also said it must address state requirements. 

Required elements or topics to be discussed on the document include: Safety, Housing, Conservation, Land Use, Open Space, Mobility, Noise. Subjects discussed on Oct. 30 included Resources and Conservation (led by Pisarkiewicz) and Noise and Safety (led by Pfannenstiel).The meeting followed a format of the consultant introducing the subject, with the Planning Commission, and then City Council asking questions about the topic. 

Pisarkiewicz began his presentation in resource conservation by bringing up two topics he considered as very important in the Santa Ynez Valley. Air and water quality were brought up first as he pointed out wildfire smoke was the biggest threat to the area. That could greatly affect the air quality as well as water. He asked the Buellton officials what they could focus on. 

Planning Vice Chair Marcilo Sarquilla asked if the city was looking at moving some water through town like he pointed out San Luis Obispo does, and Plan- ning Director Andrea Keefer said that staff was work- ing on it. Planning Chair Shannon Reese followed up on that by asking about the paths along the rivers. 

“At our prior meeting, we talked about scenic and biological resources; pedestrian connections and trials,” she said. “I’d like to explore some standards how trails should look by waterways.”Keefer answered by saying staff had talked to SBCAG about getting some preliminary designs looked at. 

Reese then pointed out the wildfire smoke was a problem in many communities and asked how those cities were able to combat it. Pisarkiewicz said there were some filtration systems that were utilized, but said policies in the safety topic would entertwine with that and help them figure out how to combat. 

After Pfannenstiel elaborated on wildfire smoke and how it must be dealt with, City Councilmembers John Sanchez seemed to push back on the idea that wildfire smoke required radical action. 

“As far as the concern about wildfire smoke; it’s something that will happen,” he said. “ We have the requirement to have smoke monitors. I don’t understand making us put in a new system. I don’t see the point.” Buellton City Manager Scott Wolfe answered by saying the future policy would mean encouraging new developers to put in filtration systems, rather than replace exisiting homes’ systems. 

Mayor David Silva believed protecting your home from fire was the way to go. 

“Requiring defensible space is appropriate for a plan,” he said. 

“The more we acknowledge wildfire, we can look into landscaping with plants that help with fire mitigation.” 

The discussion then went to noise and safety, with Pfaffenstiel leading the dicussion; first he asked the panel what the biggest source of excessive noise was in Buellton. 

Sarquilla said the big one was Highway 246, with cars going too fast and making noise while they were moving. “The only benefit is it helps the air flow.” 

Commissioner Daniel Contreras pointed to noise standards on construction that aren’t being followed, while fellow Commis- sioner Brian Campbell cited the increased launches from nearby Vandenberg Air Force Base as a problem. On the City Council side, Councilmember Carla Mead said complaints in her District 4 included tractor-trailer trucks driving by apartment complexes on McMurray Road. Silva said landscapers and trash trucks that come by at 7 a.m. 

Councilmember Hudson Hornick said that there were instances of noise, but creative ways to combat the noise, like his proposal to add a number of trees in the city to block the noise, and working with Caltrans to narrow 246. “Careful planning is necessary for 246,” he said. 

At the end of the meeting, Ward said they would take the info collected and add it to the input they gave in the last meeting. Even- tually, she said, they would have a draft plan sometime next year. 

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Residents and visitors to the Santa Ynez Valley took advantage of Halloween to roam the area in their scariest, funniest, and wackiest (or some combination of the three) costumes — or in their regular clothes — to partake in “spooky season” events held in the area.

Chief among those events was the 31st Annual Haunted House and Street Fair in Solvang. For the second straight year, the city’s Parks and Recreation created a scary setup at the Solvang Festival Theater for the week- end of October 24 and 25. 

Reception for the Haunted House was unprecedented as the attraction drew record numbers, with 1,137 people showing up on Friday, and 1,634 on Saturday, when the line to get in went all the way up 2nd Street and around the corner along Copen- hagen Drive. 

“This has been great,” said Candice Libera of Solvang Parks and Rec, who was managing the entrance at the theater. “We had almost 1,200 last night and are expecting more. And everybody’s enjoying the fair we have out here.” 

Yes, the Street Fair. As folks were waiting in line at the theater others were roaming about, many in costumes to check out the street vendors and also grab a bite to eat at the Whiskey and Rye food truck. In addition to delicious dishes, the owners also had a widescreen TV so nobody missed Game 2 of the World Series between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Toronto Blue Jays. 

However, the big attraction to the Fair, other than the Haunted House, was a flash mob of locals performing the Michael Jackson “Thriller” dance. The group gathered at approximately 6:30 in zombie makeup to do the dance to the classic tune from the King of Pop. 

Maria Henning of Santa Barbara was one of the volunteers who took part in the performance. 

“I answered an email asking for dancers, and I thought it would be fun,” she said.“We rehearsed for two weeks at the Maverick Saloon, and I think we pulled it off OK.” 

An old aquaintance of Henning’s, Kylie Tigard of Solvang, also participated in the flash mob. 

“Maria and I went to school together over 40 years ago at Santa Ynez High,” Tigard said.“We’re still out doing crazy stuff.” 

Caroline Howe of Solvang was one of leaders of the mob, helping out Vanessa Robertson, a line-dance instructor at the Maverick, who organizes the event every Halloween. 

“I’m just here helping out Vanessa,” Howe said after the early Saturday performance. “She teaches the line dancing at the Maverick, and we’ve been getting the ‘Thriller’ flash mob together for the last five years. We always seem to draw some people, so it should be going next year, and however many years after.” 

A few days after the Haunted House closed up shop for another year, Solvang Parks and Rec took to Facebook to thank everyone: “THANK YOU for making the 31st Annual Haunted House & Street Fair a TREAT! We had a record-breaking weekend!” 

The department credited Fred Lageman for being the “creative genius behind the theme & design,” Jalen, Jenny,Elisa,Candice,TerriandWendy, for the décor at the front of house; and the Parks & Maintenance crew for setup, cleanup and road closures. 

The department also gave credit to volunteers like Vivi and Ken Zigler, Anne and Val Nicholas, Kasi Magu- ire, Ryan Metzger, Athena McCan- dlish, Terri Harmon, Claudia Orona (for makeup), Chantel Green of the Solvang Festival Theater, Kevin McConnell (music and sound), the guides “walking five miles a night” and monsters and the street fair vendors for adding to the fun! The department added that funds raised at the event go back into community programs — keeping them affordable for all. 

Solvang wasn’t the only community hosting a Halloween event on Saturday, Oct. 24 — the Santa Ynez Chamber of Commerce was holding its own Halloween celebration on Sagunto Street. 

While there was no haunted house, there was a street busy with activity as attendees and the still-open businesses on the street greeted trick-or- treaters, took part in a costume contest, and some families sat on hay bales in a viewing area to watch the Disney Pixar movie “Coco” on a big-screen TV. 

Linda Small, executive director of the Santa Ynez Chamber of Commerce, said the organization started this event up again as sort of a trial run after the event was interrupted. 

“We had this going for a number of years, with bounce houses, petting zoos, a lot of things,” Small said. “Then the pandemic hit and we had to discontinue it. This is our first attempt after the pandemic and we thought a movie, the businesses with the trick-or-treat- ing, the restaurants being open, would draw some people. 

“We’re just testing it out now, and we know there are a lot of other things going on tonight. We’ll see how this goes and if we have it again next year, and maybe make it bigger.” 

Among the attendees were the Arias family from Lompoc — Ozzie, Melissa, and their toddler daughter Kaia — who were the winners in the family category of the costume contest. Ozzie wore an inflatable dinosaur on his lower half, making it look like he was riding on top of it, while little Kaia wore a dinosaur onesie and Melissa went with a more understated dinosaur decoration. 

“We heard about this and thought it would be fun; it’s our daughter’s first year that she’s aware of Halloween, so we thought we’d come out here because it’s a little more low-key,” Ozzie said. 

Across the Valley, people had a few more days to vote in the Scarecrow Fest, as businesses’ themed scarecrow display were up for judging, as onlookers were invited to vote for their favorites. 

According to the Scarecrow Fest website (syvscarecrows.com), 52 displays were put up all over the Valley, up from 46 in last year’s contest. A list of winners, as well as the winner of the Harvest Award for the most popular will be shown in a future issue. 

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Staff Report

The fifth annual Buellton Fall Festival will return to the Avenue of the Flags in Buellton from Nov. 7-9. The event schedule is Friday, Nov. 7, from 4 to 10 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday, Nov. 8 and 9, from 12 to 10 p.m.
The family-friendly, free-admission event will feature a carnival with rides and games, over 40 bands on two stages, and over 60 food and merchant vendors. It’s conveniently located right off Highway 101 in Buellton.
This year, the event organizers have focused on bringing in more carnival rides, headliners, and special entertainment nights.
“The Buellton Fall Fest is a great event for the entire community and visitors alike,” said Kathy Vreeland, executive director of the Buellton Chamber of Commerce. “Being on a holiday weekend allows families to come out every day and enjoy all the rides, games, food, and the live music. We look forward to this event each year and are so thankful for En Fuego Events for bringing this event to Buellton. The festival takes place on the Avenue of Flags and showcases the heart of our city. We look forward to welcoming everyone to Buellton.”
On Friday, Nov. 7, the Fall Fest kicks off with an ’80s and ’90s Dance Party on the Rio Vista Chevrolet Main Stage featuring everyone’s favorite, The Molly Ringwald Project. Also playing will be the 90s Babies, Smelly Cat, and The Last Decade.
Saturday, Nov. 8, will be the “Funk ‘n’ Rock the Block Party,” with Nautical Thrust, The New Vibe, and False Puppet. Saturday evening will be Reggae Night, featuring local band Cornerstone, and reggae legend and
icon, Pato Banton. Pato is a Grammy-nominated reggae legend who has recorded and toured the world with The English Beat, Steel Pulse, UB40, and Sting, among many others.

Pato’s concerts are upbeat, positive, energetic, and family-friendly. He travels all over the world, and now he will host a free concert at the Buellton Fall Fest.
“Having Pato come back and do this free concert during the Buellton Fall Festival is going to be amazing for the community,” said event organizer and co-owner of En Fuego Events, Andres Nuño. “We had a lot of people reach out hoping to have him come back and play the Fall Fest, and we are excited we finally were able to make it happen.”
Sunday, Nov. 9, starts with Fiesta Sunday, featuring Traviesos Jr., Equipo Marcado, and Equipo Elite.

The event ends with Country Night, featuring the Jimi Nelson Band, and local favorites Agin Brothers and Territorial Law, and Jayden Secor. Adding to the fun will be the Central Coast’s finest line dance instructor, Vanessa Robertson.
You can see the full entertainment schedule, including the bands playing on the Discover Buellton Stage at www.BuelltonFallFest.com/entertainment.
The carnival will feature rides and games for all ages, including the Century Ferris Wheel, the Zipper, bumper cars, a carousel, Super Slide, Extreme, Kamikaze, Pharaohs Fury, and other favorites.
Carnival presale All-You-Can-Ride wristbands ($38) are available online until Thursday, Nov. 6, at 10 p.m. Carnival wristbands and credits will continue to be available online and at the Fall Fest after the presale deadline. You can also purchase All-You-Can-Ride wristbands in person at the Buellton Chamber of Commerce located at 597 Avenue of the Flags, Suite 101.
For guests over 21, the Ales on the Avenue boutique-style Beer and Wine Festival will feature more than 12 breweries, ciders, and wineries on Saturday, Nov. 8. The event is from 12 to 3:30 p.m. and tickets are $35 presale. Tickets are available on the event website.
The Buellton Fall Festival donates a portion of proceeds to the Buellton Chamber of Commerce Scholarship Fund that benefits local high school seniors.
For more information about the Buellton Fall Festival, visit www.BuelltonFallFest.com.

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By Mike Chaldu

michael@santaynezvalleystar.com

The bad news on Halloween night for the Santa Ynez High football team was their defeat to Righetti in the regular-season finale, as the Pirates, despite getting off to an early lead, saw the visiting Warriors make big plays leading into halftime and into the second half to post a 34-24 win at Rio Memorial Field.

With the defeat, their second straight to close the Sunset League slate, the Pirates finished at 2-2 in the league, and 6-4 overall. SYHS had lost at San Luis Obispo the previous week by a 28-23 score. Righetti and SLO both finished 3-1 to share the league title.

Despite the setback, SYHS got some good news the next day, Nov. 1, with the release of the CIF Central Section playoff seedings. With a No. 6 seed in Division IV, the Pirates will be at home for their first-round matchup against 11th-seeded Dos Palos. The Broncos also finished with a 6-4 overall record and were second place in the West Sierra League with a 4-1 mark. The winner of that game will travel to Fresno to face No. 3 seed McLane, the North Yosemite League champ with a 10-0 overall record, on Nov. 14.

The game against Righetti was a chance for Santa Ynez to capture at least a share of the Sunset League title, and to begin with, things looked good for the Pirates.

SYHS scored on their first drive, culminating in an 8-yard scoring pass from Jude Pritchard to Austin Willis and the Pirates led 6-0 after a missed extra point. In the second quarter, Diego Pulido added a 21-yard field goal for a nine-point lead, and after Righetti got on the scoreboard with a 5-yard TD run by Michael Mendez, Pulido kicked a career best 44-yard field goal — just three yards off the school record for a 12-7 Pirates lead.

It looked like that scored would hold up by halftime, but Righetti was able to get into SYHS territory in the final second of the second quarter, and then Warriors quarterback Nick Matautia hit received Thomas Harris with.a 38-yard touchdown run as the half ended to give Righetti a 14-12 lead at intermission.

In the second half, Righetti blocked an SYHS punt, and Julian Santos returned that for a touchdown, and Mendez rushed for another to give Righetti a 27-12 lead. After Pulido caught a 3-yard TD from Pritchard to close the gap, Mendez rushed for his third touchdown of the night, and the Pirates’ Greyson Foy closed the scoring with a 1-yard TD run with 3:38 left in the game.

Pirates head coach Josh McClurg blamed the loss on the inability to contain the Righetti offense, which came up with plays at crucial moments.

“We can’t give up big plays,” he said. “No matter where it’s at, the big plays are going to kill us. We can’t do that.”

McClurg also pointed to his team’s composure: “We have to be able to have composure in adversity, and not point fingers. We’ve struggled with that this year; when things are going good, we’ve been good, but when they go bad, we struggle with composure.”

SYHS was riding high on Oct. 17 with a 51-0 shutout at Pioneer Valley that had them at 2-0 in league and 6-2 overall. In that game, Austin Willis returned the opening kickoff 98 yards for a touchdown, the third time Willis had taken a kickoff back all the way this season, and the third time the Pirates have done so on the opening kick. The Pirates also scored touchdowns on the ground (three times), by pass (one), and also with interception return (Pulido) and fumble return (Ayden Finley).

The next week, Nov. 24, the Pirates lost a tough game at San Luis Obispo 28-23 for their first league loss. Like in the Righetti game, SYHS had a lead late into the second quarter until the Tigers scored with about a minute left to take a 14-10 lead at halftime. The Pirates were able to regain the lead at 17-14 as Pritchard threw a 12-yard TD pass to Jaxson Glover, and after getting the ball back, hoped to add to it, but SLO returned a Pritchard interception 35 yards for a score to give the Tigers a lead they wouldn’t relinquish.

Kickoff for Friday’s playoff game against Dos Palos will be 7 p.m. at Rio Memorial Field.

Pirates girls water polo wins first-round playoff match

The Santa Ynez High girls water polo team won its first-round CIF Central Section Division III game over Exeter 7-4. The Pirates (13-10), the No. 8 seed in Division III, scored four goals in the second period to open up a lead, and then, when the No. 9 seed Monarchs drew to within one goal, scored a couple while shutting out Exeter the rest of the way.

Juliet Kerr led a balanced scoring attack with two goals, while Elena Sleiman, Angelina Lifeline, Paige Reynolds, Adriana Bilac, and Eleanor Murphy scored a goal apiece. Goalkeeper Rylan Agin was solid, with nine blocks and even has an assist.

The Pirates now advance to the second round, where they will play No. 1 seed in Hanford at 11 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 8

Santa Ynez closed out it regular season by defeating Cabrillo 11-3 to finish its play in the Sunset League finals on Oct. 29.

Lefemine led the way with four goals and four assists, while Bilac and Sleiman had two goals apiece. Goalkeeper Rylan Agin had 13 blocks to turn back the Cabrillo attack. The previous day, the Pirates lost 10-6 to Paso Robles in their first game of the tournament, with Bilac scoring twice and getting four steals, Eleanor Murphy with two goals of her own, and Agin with 15 blocks in goal.

The Pirates stood at 12-10 with a 3-3 league record for the regular season.

Pirates girls tennis eliminated in second round of CIF playoffs

The SYHS girls tennis team, the defending CIF Central Section Division II champions, fell short of a second straight title, suffering a 6-2 defeat to Reedley on Thursday, Oct. 30. The Pirates were swept in singles play, with the doubles teams of Keegan Withrow and Haley Towns (8-6) and Danielle Hyland and Claire Tipich (8-3) earning the only two points for SYHS.

SYHS won its first-round playoff match 5-4 over Templeton on Tuesday, Oct. 28. Danielle Hyland won the deciding match at No. 2 singles, 6-2, 6-3, in a hard-fought battle. No. 1 Keegan Withrow (6-1, 6-4) and No. 5 Clea Malkmus (6-3, 6-3) also won in singles, while doubles duos Withrow and Townes (8-1), and Tipich and Ainsley Haws (8-6) picked up points in doubles.

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The Santa Ynez High football team returned to Rio Memorial Field for the third straight week on Friday, Oct. 3, for its Sunset League opener vs. Atascadero. The visiting Greyhounds opened the scoring with an interception return for a touchdown on the Pirates opening drive, and ended the scoring with a touchdown pass in the fourth quarter.

However, between those two plays, the Pirates dominated, with four touchdowns on offense and three interceptions on defense, giving Santa Ynez a 28-13 victory, which raised their record to 5-2 overall.

The Pirates marched to the win with a strong ground game, gaining 245 yards rushing, led by quarterback Jude Pritchard, who gained 105.

“We really wanted to establish the run game, and we did,” said SYHS head coach Josn McClurg. “This week we challenged the offensive line, because we felt they did not play a great game last week [against Santa Maria High] and they rose to the occasion and blocked their tails off. I thought we had our way with them in the running game.”

As far as the passing game, Pritchard didn’t have to go to the air often, but he did complete 11 of 19 passes for 121 yards and three touchdowns. Jaxon Glover only had two reception for 20 yards, but both those catches were for touchdowns. Likewise, Levi Snow’s only catch of the evening was also for a score.

The defense, meanwhile, was stingy, keeping the Greyhounds’ offense out of the end zone until the fourth quarter. Defensive back Jack Swain had two interceptions on the night to go with seven tackles, and Diego Pulido had a pick of his own, and eight tackles.

“Once I saw them on defense, I know that was going to be fine,” McClurg said. “We gave up that interception and fell behind, but the defense stopped them on the next drive and we got the ball back, and we were fine after that.”

The Santa Ynez offense showed its effectiveness right away, taking the opening kickoff and marching down into Atascadero territory. However, that momentum was stopped when the Greyhounds’ Damon Mitchell picked off a Pritchard pass and took it 75 yards for a score. After the missed extra point, Atascadero led 6-0.

Undeterred, the Pirates again took the kickoff and moved down the field. This time, they were not stopped as Ayden Finley took it in on a 2-yard touchdown run. Pulido added the first of four successful extra points for a 7-6 SYHS lead. Later in the first quarter, Glover caught his first touchdown pass, a 9-yarder, to put his team up 14-6, a score that would hold until halftime. Snow caught his 20-yard TD pass in the third quarter, and Glover would have another TD reception in the fourth quarter.

Behind 28-6, the Greyhounds would score on a 29-yard pass with 4:54 left to cut the deficit, and then recover the ensuing onside kick, but the Pirates stopped them on downs and ran out the clock.

The Pirates enjoyed a bye week on Friday, April 10, and returned for a road game at Pioneer Valley on Oct. 17. SYHS goes out for another road game at San Luis Obispo on Oct. 24, then comes home for its regular-season finale vs. Righetti on Halloween night, Oct. 31.

Girls tennis

The Pirates lost to San Luis Obispo 8-1 in their last regular-season dual match of the season.

“Our lone win came from Claire Tipich, who showed incredible resilience — battling back from a 2–5 deficit in the second set to win 13–12 in a tiebreaker and push the match to a third set. An impressive fight!,” said Pirates head coach Jennifer Rasmussen.

The match was also during Senior Day, and three of them were honored.

We had the honor of celebrating our three amazing seniors: Keegan Withrow, Danielle Hyland, and Rylee Arellano,” Rasmussen said. “I’d like to thank them for their leadership, dedication, and the energy they’ve brought to the team. They’ll be missed!”

Girls water polo

The Pirates edged Cabrillo 6-5 in their Sunset League match to move to 10-9 (2-3 in league) on the season.

Juliet Kerr and Adriana Bilac had two goals apiece, while Rylan Agin had a whopping 12 blocks.

SYHS ends its regular season with a home game against Paso Robles on Wednesday, Oct. 22.

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A local developer’s appeal of approved changes to his project of hotel cottages and a meeting space on the corner of Mission Drive and Alisal Road drew substantial comment from City Councilmembers and the public at the Monday, Oct. 13, regular meeting before council voted to deny the appeal and confirm the changes.

The Item 7.A, Public hearing to consider an appeal of Planning Commission decision approving amendments to facades and building colors for 1704 Mission Drive, concerns the project on the corner at that site, on the corner of Mission and Alisal Road, just west of Mission Santa Ines and across the street from Svensgaard’s Danish Lodge. The applicant, local developer Ed St. George, had been building the project consisting of nine separate cottages ranging in size from 250 to 390 square feet that would serve as one-bedroom hotel rooms and an on-site ancillary building.

Briefly it seemed that there would be no discussion, as St. George requested a continuance to the next meeting on Oct. 27 so he could extend an offer to members of the City Council, Planning Commission, and Design Review Committee to tour the project under construction before making a decision on it.

St. George said his original offer was accepted only by Mayor David Brown, who had mentioned at the onset of the hearing that he had, in fact, toured the building with St. George. City Councilmember Elizabeth Orona said she had toured the site with another person without the presence of St. George.

“This is, I feel, the most important project In last 25 years. I want to give you two more weeks to make one of those appointments [to tour the site],” St. George said. “I feel Solvang is not being represented by the city, since they didn’t show.”

Brown made a motion to continue the item to the next meeting. Councilmember Mark Infanti eventually seconded, but not before saying that he didn’t accept the offer to tour the site because he didn’t think it was necessary, because the item was a policy matter involving the Planning Commission. Infanti then seconded, but then the motion failed when Councilmembers Elizabeth Orona, Claudia Orona, and Louise Smith all voted no to defeat the motion 3-2.

In introducing the item, Community Development Director Rafael Castillo pointed out that St. George appealed the following requirements: Removing some of the half-timbers on Units 2,4,5, and 9 that create additional patterns (in contrast to just straight or diagonal shapes) or that “does not emulate authentic appearance and pattern of historic buildings in Europe,” and remove the colored red and white banding on the roof of one structure.

Before the item went to public comment, Infanti explained his refusal to tour the site, while emphasizing he was in favor of the project.

“I like it, but that’s not important,” he said. “If we approve any of this, aren’t we setting precedent to limit the DRC and Planning Commision in the future. Someone will come along later and say ‘If he can change things, why can’t I?’”

Meanwhile, Brown expressed that he didn’t agree with the amendments and the reasons for them.

“I have seen buildings with half-timbers with curves,” the mayor said, referring to the apparent problem the Planning Commission had with the half-timbers. Roof colors like pin striping on a car, a signature.”

The council gave St. George a chance to speak on his project before Public Comment.

“The reason I did this is I wanted something that was kind of whimsical,” he said. “My inspiration is photos of other buildings in Solvang. I probably could have built a four-story building, or affordable housing, but I wanted to do this, it’s a project from someone with a lot of passion.

“It was important to me that this corner be something Solvang could be proud of, emulate what it was trying to be, more cottage-style, close to mission, and a genesis of community,” he said. “And now some of the features are asked to be removed, and they are on other buildings in Solvang.”

In Public Comment, there were 18 speakers on the subject with approximately half in favor of, or at least complimentary of the project.

Speakers like Jean Simon and Michael Mendoza praised St. George’s artistic vision with the project and thought it would be an excellent site for someone coming into town.

“My imagination takes hold when I see the medieval village,” Simon said. “The Spirit of Hans Christian Anderson takes hold, and he would approve and want St. George to express himself artistically in these buildings.”

Among those opposed to the project, Janice Ziegler cited cultural appropriation as her reason for being against it.

“I strongly oppose those who practice cultural appropriation — it’s exploitive, disrespectful or devoid of context,” she said. “St. George’s project is 3-for-3 in that regard.”

Thorn Kinersley, a resident “on and off” of Solvang, said St. George’s situation is like when Kinersley tried to get a Tivoli wheel in Solvang, which was denied; however, he also said that many Danes’ who have been to Solvang view it as “a caricature, and this project adds to that.”

After getting it back to council, most of the members said the process of the project going through the DRC and Planning Commission must be respected, and they felt those groups did their due diligence.

“We must follow the rules; it’s important any development follow these rules,” Smith said. “Bend rules, would that make city vulnerable to other developers. It would be a slap in the face if we let this go through.”

Brown, however, was the lone holdout, saying he approved of the project and didn’t see it as a “slap in the face,” but just a different design and opinion. However, when he made a motion to uphold the appeal, he did not get a second.

With that, Infanti made a motion to deny the appeal, with Claudia Orona seconding. That motion passed 4-1 with Brown voting against.

The City Council will meet next on Monday, Oct. 27, at 6:30 p.m.

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The City of Solvang, as it approaches its 40th year of incorporation, held its State of the City address on Monday, Oct. 6, at Craft House at Corque, with Mayor David Brown reminding the crowd that while the city relies quite a bit on tourism, it needs to also take care of the people who live and work there year-round.

The afternoon event, which was emceed by Solvang Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Tracy Beard, also featured Dr. Mark Schniepp, the Director of the California Economic Forecast in Santa Barbara, as keynote speaker; and Bent Olsen, longtime baker and the event honoree, who led the crowd in a spirited rendition of a Danish folk song.

Before Brown began his address, he played a video he participated in with TikTok creator Wes Leslie, where Leslie would film in front of a few Solvang staples (bakeries, windmills, etc.) with Brown replying the city had many of those, and then when Leslie remarked that there must be many Danish-style towns in California, Brown replied “No there’s just one.”

The mayor began his speech by noting that Solvang was about to turn 40 years old as an incorporated city, an it saw progress on some of its main goals: Securing water independence, supporting tourism, and maintaining financial stability.

“Not only did we accomplish that, but kept our Danish heritage and brand at the center of our story,” Brown said.

He also pointed out how Solvang is a know entity outside of the area, winning the title of “Best Small Town in the West” in a USA Today online survey, and finishing No. 2 in Newsweek’s ranking of the “Best Christmas Towns in the U.S.” Brown said the town even got a shoutout from Oprah Winfrey, calling Solvang “one of the most magical Christmas towns in the world.”

“Not bad for a town that’s know for debating whether we have too many windmills,” Brown said.

Brown noted the good things for business over the past year, with the city issuing 71 new business licenses, and making an additional $2.5 million with the Measure M hotel-tax increase.

However, the mayor said that although Solvang’s name means “sunny fields,” there are “clouds on the horizon.”

Although the city makes two-thirds of it money from tourism, Brown reminded the crowd that “Solvang can’t just be a place to visit; its need to be a place where people can live and work.” He noted that when 750,000 people visit the town in a six-week span, as it happened this past summer, that has an effect on parking and traffic.

Other challenges the city faces, according to Brown, is the high cost of law enforcement, as Solvang contract with the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s office, and that won’t be getting smaller. Also, the city is still planning for the necessary upgrade on the town’s wastewater plant to comply with state standards. “If you’re not planning for water, you’re planning for trouble,” he reminded the crowd.

Brown noted the efforts being made to reach residents, like a recently launched newsletter and expanded surveys. He also mentioned the successful partnership Solvang has formed with entities such as VisitSYV, the Chamber of Commerce, Cottage Hospital and local school districts.

In summary, Brown expressed optimism on the path Solvang is taking, despite the aforementioned challenges.

“As we celebrate four decades of incorporation of city status, we can be proud,” he said. “Heritage is our brand, people are our strength in leadership. Let’s raise a toast to the next chapter — preferably with some aebleskiver.”

After Brown’s address, there was a Q-and-A, where questions touched on security, especially during yearly events, way to improve the weekly farmers market, and, of course, ways to improve traffic and parking in the city.

Before Brown, attendees heard the keynote speech from Schniepp, who touched upon the national and state economy and how it might affect Solvang and the Santa Ynez Valley.

Nationally, Schiepp said that growth was better than expected in 2025, and that the “hysteria” formed over the controversial tariffs issued by President Donald Trump this year has subsided. In fact, he said the fears over the tariffs are overstated, according to the forecast, though they could possibly affect future growth.

Statewise, Schniepp informed the crowd that the housing market and labor market have both struggled, and, of concern to the Central Coast, wine tourism has been in decline.

Schniepp said he expects more slow growth in 2026, with jobs growth been furthered threatened by the advance of AI.

Finally, Solvang presented a Legacy Award to Bent Olsen, longtime owner and proprietor of Olsen’s Danish Village Bakery. Olsen, who was born in Denmark and immigrated to the U.S. in 1965, came to Solvang in 1970, when he and his wife Susy purchased the bakery and settled into the city.

“I came here in 1965, and I saw this place that was just a little bit of town,” Olsen said after receiving his award and accolades from local representative. “I’ve been here since and 60 years later it’s still a little bit of town.”

Olsen hopes it can stay that “little bit of town.”

“It is different now, but it is still a very nice town. I hope we can keep Solvang as it is,” Olsen said. “As it is, Solvang is special, and it needs to be small, special and quiet.”

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Santa Ynez resident Jeff Gourson enjoys taking his restored maroon 1964 Pontiac GTO out to car shows, and even taking a drive in it with his wife Stacey to have lunch in Los Alamos. However, that doesn’t mean he completely enjoyed the road he took to finally get the vehicle in its current shape.

“It was nightmare; I never want to do it again,” Gourson said in Solvang on Saturday, Oct. 11, during the third annual Viking Classic Car Show. “If I decide to get a new car, I’ll go to one of the dealerships and get the finished product.”

However, he didn’t mind the attention the GTO got, as he won the Solvang Mayor’s Award, as Mayor David Brown picked that one as his favorite of the approximately 250 entries in the show.

It was the fifth annual car show put on by the Vikings of Solvang since the organizers of its predecessor, the Wheels and Windmills car show, decided to discontinue the event. The Vikings are a 501(c)(3) organization that provides funding for the medically related needs of qualified individuals and health care organizations in the Santa Ynez Valley and throughout Santa Barbara County. All money raised from the show went toward that goal.

The show’s Mayor’s Trophy pick seemed like it would be a difficult one for Brown, and maybe it was, until he talked to Gourson about his ride.

“I looked around at the cars, and I just saw this as one I would really love driving if I owned one,” Brown said after he presented Gourson with the award. “And then he told me the story about what he went through to get it this way, I knew I would pick this one.”

Ah, yes, the story behind the Pontiac. We’ll let Mr. Gourson continue with it.

“In 1964 my dad said he would co-sign for a car, and I told him I wanted a Pontiac LeMans Tempest,” he said. “Well, they didn’t have that one, so they offered me at GTO, and $3,100 later I brought it home.”

After a few years, Gourson decided to sell the car, but then started missing ownership of the car.

“I got a bug and I wanted my old car back,” he said. “So, my wife Stacey found a restoration company in Burbank and the guy there found the old frame for the model. 

“However, shortly after he started restoring it, he went bankrupt,” Gourson said. “I got a letter from his lawyer saying I’d better come and get it or they will impound it, so I went down there with a trailer and brought it back. After we stored it for about five years, we got a new restorer. Then we found out none of the parts we had fit. After contacting the previous restorer, the one who went bankrupt, he claimed he got robbed and they stole all the original stuff off the car. But we got it done, eventually.”

And now Courson takes his car to the weekly Cars and Coffee event at El Rancho Marketplace in Santa Ynez, and it has now won an award.

“I’m very proud of it,” he said. “I certainly didn’t see it [the award] coming, but it’s nice.”

What was also nice was the turnout for the show, both in entries and audience, according to car show co-chairmans Gregg Weitzman and Jordan Sideris.

“We sold out with the 250 show entries ahead of time, but then we had some drop out, which happens,” Wietzman said. “But then we had some entries show up this moning to make up for that, so we had it pretty close to sold out.”

Not only was it a sellout in excellent weather conditions, but it was all for a good cause, Sideris said.

“This and the golf fundraiser are our main fundraisers,” he said. “We have no overhead and 100% goes to those families in need.”

Downtown Solvang saw cars lined up along Copenagen Drive and both 1st and 2nd streets, as folks admired, or showed off, plenty of motorized masterpieces.

One group displaying their wheels were member of the Nite Life car club in Santa Barbara, who had eight vehicles on the east end of Copenhagen.

“Our club started in 1980 and we have about 20 of these events every year, tradition lowrider stuff; and this is one we like to come to,” said Danny Trejo, one of the club members. “We like to promote the fact that we’re going outside and enjoying the fresh air instead of sitting at home or being on drugs.”

A couple more of the Nite Life members Cesar Palma and Bobby Pulman, however, were just here to enjoy the scene.

“I love it here, it’s really nice,” Palma said. “We get to see some cars and meet some people to talk cars. it’s really nice,” Palma said.

Pulman agreed: “We like to see the vehicles, but making interactions with the people here is great.”

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