During its regular meeting on Monday, May 12, the Solvang City Council discussed the viability of the Design Review Committee in the building permit process before ultimately deciding that the DRC should remain as a city committee.

Councilmember Elizabeth Orona was absent from the meeting.

The DRC was formed by the City Council in early 2021 as a successor committee to the Branding and Design Committee (BDC), and the Board of Architectural Review (BAR), which was disbanded in 2020.

However, in its Sept. 9, 2024, meeting, the council voted 3-2 to put a discussion item on a future meeting agenda on the possible elimination of the DRC. No reason was given, although some applicants had expressed to city staff that the DRC process was cumbersome and time-consuming.

In his report on the item, Solvang Planning and Building Manager Rafael Castillo stated that since the September meeting, changes in the city zoning ordinance had streamlined the application process and modified the role of the RDC. Among those changes were the codification of objective standards and elimination of subjectivity, establishment of a pre-application reviews to give the DRC flexibility, and the elimination of the requirement for DRC to review residential projects for consistency with adopted Housing Element policies.

Also in late 2023, changes to the application process introduced checklists that outlined minimum requirements for applications, helping alleviate the adversarial atmosphere between applicants and the DRC when the paperwork is incomplete.

Castillo said with these changes, DRC has been able to give clear direction to applicants, and “highly” recommended that the committee be retained.

When Councilmember Claudia Orona asked Castillo about recent feedback on the application process, Castillo said the checklist bring a “certainty” to the process with each side knowing what’s required.

Mayor David Brown stated he was one of the councilmembers in September who wanted the discussion on the RDC.

“I wanted to document the relevance, because the complaint came from a developer with difficulties in the process,” he said. “Now we’ve baked in codes, I’m for the DRC. It maintains our brand of why we’re the Best Little City in the West. I back keeping DRC.”

In public comment, Dennis Beebe wondered if, “with the state sticking its nose into our business,” the city shouldn’tgive even more influence in design decision and touched on Brown’s “Best Little City in the West” reference.

“Do you think Solvang would have won that ‘Best in the West’ award if not for the decisions of the DRC?” he stated.

DRC Chair Esther Jacobson Bates spoke to advocate for the role of her committee and complimented Castillo and his staff for objectifying and making clear the elements of design.

“With that clarification, we don’t have that adversarial role that Rafael described earlier,” she said.

After public comment, councilmembers all voiced support for keeping the RDC. As Orona put it, “If it isn’t broke, don’tfix it.”

Infanti moved for the RDC to not be eliminated, with Orona seconding. The motion passed 4-0.

In other business:  

During his Manager’s Report, City Manager Randy Murphy introduced Santa Barbara County Fire Battalion Chief Tom Himmelrich and Station 30 Capt. Andrew Weddle to brief council on the May 2 fire at the “Water Wheel Building” on 2nd Street and Molle Way.

Himmelrich said the “Molle Incident” was first reported at 5:29 a.m. that morning when two callers reported smelling smoke in downtown Solvang. Station 30, located in the same building on Oak Street as the Council Chambersresponded to the incident and arrived with the building in flames.

Himmelrich then said more engines were called, and four engines and one battalion chief answered the call. Answering questions from Infanti and Brown, he said the fire was currently under investigation and the building was a total loss.

Brown praised the firefighters for their efforts: “Thank you and your team for an awesome response and efforts to prevent damage to other buildings.”

After the item on the RDC, council voted to receive and file the Solvang Entitlement and Building Checklist.

Council unanimously passed a motion to change the name of the Measure U Citizens’ Oversight Committee to the Revenue Measures Oversight Committee.

Council agreed to table the discussion item on the city camping ordinance. The ordinance was amended in 2023 due to related court decisions in Idaho and Oregon, but those decisions have now been overturned. Brown suggested councilpostpone the item until they could properly review some “11th-hour feedback” from the county.”

With the fourth Monday of May being Memorial Day, the City Council will next meet on Tuesday, May 27, at 6:30 p.m.

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Two senior student-athletes from Santa Ynez High School are make plans for the next level.

Joined by their families, teammates, and friends, volleyball player Ben Stuerman and wrestler Santino Alvaro made their intentions known during a signing ceremony on the SYHS campus May 6. Both are headed for similar destinations: smaller NAIA schools on the West Coast.

Stuerman, team co-captain of the Pirates’ boys volleyball team that just won the CIF Central Section Division II championship, is going to Simpson University in Redding, California.

Stuerman, who also played water polo at SYHS, said he got on Simpson’s radar thanks to a couple of former teammates on Flight Academy, his club volleyball team.

“A couple of guys, my very best friends, were up there and said the coach was asking about me constantly,” he said. “I met with the coach (Steven Brasher), and he was really great. Plus, it’s a Christian school and I’m very religious, so that was awesome, and it seemed to good to be true.”

However, it was a visit to the Simpson campus that clinched it for Stuerman.

“I went up and had an amazing tour, and an amazing practice with the team,” he said. “The teammates were awesome, and the area was just really pretty. After that everything just kind of fell into place I had no doubt after the visit that I would be going there.”

Simpson is an NAIA school that competes in the California Pacific Conference with four other in-state college programs. The Red Hawks finished 7-17 overall this season, although they were .500 (4-4) within the CalPac. Stuerman said he plans to study kinesiology at the school and aspires to be a firefighter after graduation.

Alvaro, meanwhile, is coming off a high-school wrestling career that saw him win back-to-back CIF Central Section titles, having won the 126-pound championship this past February. He will continue wrestling at Southern Oregon a public university in Ashland, Oregon.

Alvaro had been hearing about SOU for awhile from a personal connection.

“My sister’s boyfriend went to school there, and she was always telling me how nice it was, and she took me for a visit,” Alvaro said. “It was really nice, and there were a lot of things to do outside of school. It’s real outdoorsy there, and I really liked that.”

The interest in Southern Oregon, as it turns out, was mutual.

“I had contacted a number of schools about joining their program,” Alvaro said. “And Southern Oregon was the one school that got back to me very quickly and showed a lot of interest.”

Alvaro said as far as a major and field of study, he is still undeclared and plans to take general requirement classes his first year while he decides.

The wrestler will be joining an SOU program that finished ninth in the NAIA Championships, it’s best finish in eight years. The Raiders had a 19-3 overall record in duals, including a 12-1 mark in the Cascade Collegiate Conference and a first-place finish in the conference championships.

Before Alvaro and Stuerman signed their letters of intent, they both took the time to thank their respective parents for their part in helping them along in this journey.

The parents of both were pleased with the schools that their sons selected.

“It’s great to see him reach this point — he’s been working toward this since he was 8 and started wrestling,” said Rudy Alvaro, Santino’s father. “We took him up to Southern Oregon and he like it right away; he’s gotten to know those guys up there and I think he’ll do well.”

With Santino ready to leave in a few months for SOU, the Alvaros are expecting more excursions up north.

“We’ll be taking trips, a lot of trips,” said his mother Tracy. “Me might even be looking at houses when we’re up there.”

For Stuerman’s parents, Shawn and Krista Sue, the process was made easier once Ben took a look at Simpson.

“It was a blast, but we just wondering what kind of school would be best for him, but once we went to Simpson we all knew that would be the best for him,” Shawn said.

“I actually went to school at Westmont [in Santa Barbara] years ago and was hoping he’d go there, too,” Shawn said laughing, “but they didn’t have a volleyball team, so that was out. However, we’re all very happy with Simpson.” 

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After months, and for some years, of anticipation, the newest building to be seen from Highway 246 now has out the welcome mat as the Chumash Museum and Cultural Center opened to the public on Thursday, May 15.

The opening culminates two decades of planning by the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians.

“Twenty years ago, we were an advisory committee and now we’re a board,” said Museum Chairwoman Kathleen Marshall. “It has been a journey, but we appreciate it.”

The 14,000-square-foot facility, which is located on the corner of Highway 246 and Edison Street in Santa Ynez, showcases a portion of the tribe’s collection of more than 24,000 historically significant cultural items, including baskets, musical instruments, hunting tools, ceremonial items, and regalia — highlighting the richness and diversity of Chumash culture.

A huge part of the “journey” leading to the museum’s opening was obtaining the artifacts, which was no easy feat, according to Marshall.

“Unfortunately we’ve had to purchase all our items, because they were stolen from us,” she said. “It’s been quite a process and we’ve been purchasing from personal collectors for a while, just trying to get our collection up to open a museum.”

Another feature of the museum is its unique architecture, which was designed by the award-winning Jones & Jones Architects (also designed the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian in Washington, D.C.), and is anchored by large dome structures that pay homage to the Chumash people’s traditional dwellings, the tule ‘ap. Outdoors, the 3.5-acre cultural park features exhibits and over 11,000 California native plants, including nearly 100 species used by the Chumash.

Although the museum had been open for a short time on the morning of May 15, Marshall marveled at the reactions she heard from visitors.

“The expressions we see when they walk in here [to the entrance] is something to see,” she said. “I just heard someone come in here and then say ‘this is unbelievable.’ It’s reactions like that I like to hear.”

While the museum was opening to the public for the first time, Marshall said it had already been open enjoyed by tribal members for a while.

“We had our grand opening for the tribal members a few weeks ago,” she said. “Opening the doors and seeing their emotions, their tears, their family unity, has been amazing. Clearly it was important for the tribal people to see it first. It was important to let them have their time with it before we opened it to the public.”

Now that the museum is open to the public, Marshall planning how to make it a destination for people in the Valley and beyond.

“Well, we’re looking to host school groups on visits and field trips,” she said. “We’ll probably start contacting schools at the beginning of the next school year. We’ll be closed to the public in the middle of the week, so we can bring those groups in on those days.

“We also want to bring in events and outside attractions, like basket weavers and flint knappers, or do an art show. The doors are wide open, and we have all kinds of things in mind. We’ll see how it plays out.”

Early on May 15, a good crowd came through to see the exihibit and explore the outside park, and reviews were very positive.

Tony Amastres and his wife Krista, of Goleta, said they had been driving by the building for months and wondered when it would open.

“We were at the golf course and someone told us it was opening today,” Tony Amastres said. “So, we came up to see if that was true, and it was.”

The Amastreses were very pleased with what they saw.

“It’s fantastic. It’s a great thing to have here,” Tony said. “I look forward to coming back, and bringing some other people we know in Goleta.”

Tony Amastres said he enjoyed the walk-through main exhibit.

“I love the way that it transitions from the ancient history to, for lack of a better word, current era and the mission history,” he said. “It obviously has a lot geared for kids, but if you really sit there and dig through it, you get a ton of information.”

Meanwhile, Courtney Connolly of Grover Beach, was getting ready to go into the museum with her kids Ortiz, 4, and Orla, 2, who go to Acorn Village Forest School in Santa Ynez Valley.

“I’ve been waiting for it to open ever since I’ve been driving past it, and I saw it was opening day, so I decided to check it out,” she said. “I’m planning to get a membership so the kids and I can do some stuff together, and then I can come by myself and actually digest all the stuff.”

Reactions like that are what pleases Marshall and hopes they bring more people to the museum.

“We’re honored to have this, and I think people are really going to have a great experience, walking in our footsteps for a little bit,” she said. “I’d just like to tell them, ‘Come visit and learn about our people. You will learn so much about who we were and who we are.'”

The museum’s hours of operation will be 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursday through Sunday, and tickets are available for purchase at www.sychumashmuseum.org. Admission is $15 for adults (18-64), $12 for seniors (65+), $12 for teens (13-17), $10 for children (3-12), $12 for military members (with ID) and free for toddlers (2 and under).

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After taking on a science fiction air last year, with the event being on “May the 4th,” this year’s Buellton Brew Fest, the 12th annual food, drink, and fun event at River View Park took on more of a “down-home” feel.

“Bust out those cowboys hats and boots,” organizers proclaimed in the lead-up to the May 3 event, and many in the crowd followed suit with western wear evident throughout the park. Along with that, the Burbank-based band Country Nation belted out several honky-tonk hits from the main stage, and behind the audience could be found a mechanical bull, where Brew Fest attendees could test their ability to last 8 seconds on the contraption.

Entertainment on the stage also included Santa Barbara-based musician Will Breman and Santa Ynez Valley local DJ Peete.

The “country” atmosphere of the event was proving to be a success, according to Buellton Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Kathy Vreeland.

“We’re getting a good turnout; it looks like we’ve got about 1,500 people here,” she said while enjoying the Country Nation concert. “We brought in some new things this year, like the mechanical bull, and more things for photo ops. Also, while we have a lot of breweries here, we also have some vendors offering non-alcoholic drinks for those who want that.”

While the event would fall under a different theme (like last year’s “Star Wars” vibe), Vreeland speculated the country theme might not be going away.

“We had some fun with the ‘Star Wars Day’ thing last year, with the event being on May 4, people really seem to be enjoying this,” she said. “We might decide to stick with this and keep it to a country theme for the next few years.”

Of course, the main attraction of the Brew Fest is the number of breweries and beverage-makers setting up shop for the public. More than 50 breweries were in the lineup for this year’s event offering up their libations.

Local standouts like Firestone Walker and Figueroa Mountain were on the grounds, along with many others from the Santa Ynez Valley. One notable business there was Solvang Brewing Company, along with it offshoot brand Sunny Fields Cider, which was serving its drinks along with some great news.

The SBC’s location on Mission Drive in Solvang has been closed since Jan. 20, when a fire gutted the kitchen and did a little damage to the smoke area. However, SBC Brewer Josh Sabin, who was manning the booth, said the location will be opening back up on May 15. 

“It’ll be great to be back,” Sabin said.

Also at the Brew Fest was a booth for The Sports Bar at Chumash, an establishment at the top floor of the Chumash Casino, serving up its exclusive Valley Fog brew.

“We just opened last year, and we’re getting the word out about the bar,” said Assistant Manager Heather Gill. “We have a big screen TV and then a bunch of them along the walls, where you can watch a lot of games at once. We also have five small kitchens around so you can pick from five different kinds of food.”

There were more things folks could do aside from imbibing — in addition to the mechanical bull, games of cornhole and giant beer pong (substituting plastic trash barrels for red Solo cups) could be played, along with a rotating camera for anyone that wanted to take a revolving selfie.

Codie Blea and Jacob Powell, of Lompoc, were in a spirited game of giant beer pong (using volleyballs) with their friends Luis Hernandez and Garrett O’Reilly, also from Lompoc. Blea said coming to the Brew Fest is a yearly thing.

“We always enjoy coming over here for this,” he said. “It’s just a chance to get outside and enjoy some refreshment. We always have a great time here.”

Also enjoying the atmosphere in the food-truck area were longtime locals like Ron and Kim Williams, who were with Vickie and Matt Mendenhall, all sporting their best cowboy hats.

“I’m actually working the event, and it’s just good to see people coming to see what Buellton has to offer,” she said.

Across the table from the Williamses and the Mendenhalls were Vanessa Ando, Penny Patel, and Britney Carranza. The three were there to celebrate Ando’s birthday.

“We’re all from Santa Maria, and we thought this was an excellent place to celebrate Vanessa’s birthday,” she said. “Buellton’s always a lot of fun.”

The 2025 Buellton Brew Fest was presented by Rio Vista Chevrolet, with additional sponsors including Chumash Casino Resort, Mechanics Bank, Jim Vreeland Ford, Buellton Chamber of Commerce, Sable Offshore, Farm Supply Company, 805 Selfie Booth, En Fuego Events, GPM Pavement Management, UVA Design Studio, Allan Hancock College, 13 Stars Media, First American Title, and Marborg Industries.

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Santa Ynez High boasts this year’s Mountain League individual Mountain League champion after the Pirates No. 1 player Bryce Wilczak defeated Grant Vanclef of San Luis Obispo 6-3, 6-3 in the finals of the Mountain League CCAA tournament at SLOHS on April 17. 

Wilczak went into the tournament only losing one match this year, which came in the Pirates’ last team match of the season. With the win, he advances to the area tournament, also at SLOHS, on Friday, May 9, where the top players from the Mountain, Sunset, and Ocean leagues will play to qualify for CIF. 

As one would assume, the Mountain League final pitted two of the best players in the league in Wilczak and Vanclef, a situation Wilczak was happy with.

“Grant’s a really good player, and that really helps me stay at the top of my game,” Wilczak said during practice in late April. “I think I sometimes have difficulty, and I don’t want to come off as arrogant, when I’m ‘playing down’ against a lower-ranked player. That wasn’t the case in the league final.”

In fact, while the final match was won in straight sets, the new champion said it wasn’t easy by any means.

“I think we had about nine deuces [40-40 score] during the match and I was able to win most of those,” Wilczak said. “It was a touch and well-played match.”

Wilczak nears the end of what’s been an unusual high school career. He was actually home-schooled in his past grades while concentrating on his tennis, and started becoming a “regular” student in this, his senior year. After graduation, he plans to go to Santa Barbara City College.

“I’m going to stay near home for a couple of years and play with the tennis team there,” Wilczak said. “After that, I’m looking to go to Cal Lutheran and major in business management.”

Wilczak and the Pirates were able to earn a CIF Central Section playoff berth as a team; however, SYHS lost 5-4 to Reedley in the first round. Wilczak (6-0, 6-2) and No. 2 Cooper Haws (6-7 [7-9], 6-4, 10-7) won their singles matches and teamed for an 8-5 victory in doubles, but four singles wins by Reedley clinched the match for it side.

In other Santa Ynez High sports action:

Boys volleyball: SYHS closed its Mountain League season out with a 25-17, 25-21, 25-23 sweep over Arroyo Grande. The Pirates finished 8-0 in league for its first championship since 2017, after going 2-6 in 2024.  

“I am super proud of the team effort to go from fourth last year first this year, ” said Pirates head coach Chip Fenenga. 

Senior setter Manny Sanchez had 37 assists against the Eagles, while Nate Biron hammered 13 kills, Ben Stuerman added 10 and Jadon Bailey had 6.

The Pirates now enter the CIF Central Section Division II playoffs seeded eighth, and will play ninth-seeded McLane on Tuesday, May 6, at SYHS. If the Pirates win that match, then they will have a rematch against Arroyo Grande, who as the No. 1 seed has a first-round bye.

Baseball: SYHS split against Nipomo last week, defeating the Titans 9-5 at Nipomo on April 29, and then losing to NHS 9-1 on May 1 at SYHS. The Pirates stand at 4-6 in the Ocean League and 9-10 overall. SYHS will wrap up the regular season with games against Orcutt Academy on Tuesday, May 6 (away), and Thursday, May 8 (home). 

Softball: The Pirates got their first win of the season April 15 with a 19-1 win over Morro Bay. Head coach Felicity Yanez credited sophomore starting pitcher Maleah Knightley for a superb outing, as she struck out a personal-high 9 strikeouts to earn the win.

The Morro Bay game started a bit of a trend, as SYHS won the next two games, 14-7 over Carpinteria on May 17, and 17-7 over Santa Maria on April 29, its first game after spring break.

The Pirates (2-7 in the Ocean League, 3-10 overall) will close out the regular season with its final home game, against Nipomo, on Tuesday, May 6, and the season finale at Morro Bay on Thursday, May 8.

Boys golf: SYHS played in the sixth Mountain League tournament on Friday, May 2, hosted by Mission College Prep at San Luis Obispo Country Club. The Pirates placed fifth of the five teams present with a 437. Templeton won the team competition with a 392.

Brayden Mlodzik was low man for SYHS with an 81, while Cody Armenta finished two shots behind him at 83. Other scores for the Pirates were Max Andrade, 88; Elijah Navarro, 92; Seb Perez, 93; and Cameron Celestin 96. 

On Wednesday, April 30, SYHS defeated Cabrillo 449-488 in a non-league dual match at the par 72 Mission Club. Mlodzik had a team-low score of 83, with the other Pirates scores being Ernesto Suarez, 86; Seb Perez, 91; Cameron Celestin, 94; Elijah Navarro, 95; Max Andrade, 95; and Sebastian Jacobs, 100.

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The lawn at River View Park in Buellton was a sea of eggs a day before Easter, ready to be picked clean by a swarm of kids accompanied by their parents and other adults during the 35th annual Buellton Easter Egg Hunt (also known as the Easter Eggstravanza) on April 19.

The event, put on by the Buellton and Solvang parks and rec departments and billed as the Santa Ynez Valley’s largest egg hunt, kicked off around 10 a.m., with areas cordoned off for four different age groups.

The young participants were so eager to fill their baskets with the plastic colored eggs that they jumped the boundary and started searching before emcee Fred Lageman had a chance to finish his countdown. Lageman stationed out in the middle of the vast park lawn, just went with it and quickly completed the countdown, before the hunt was on, with most of the eggs accumulated within a few minutes.

Buellton Recreation Coordinator Kristen Thomsen said over 15,000 eggs were put out for the hunt.

“A bunch of us were all out here last night until 7:30 putting them out there,” Thomsen said.

The eggs had candy and other little goodies for the kids, and as in years past, there was a golden egg placed in each section, and the person who found it was awarded with a giant easter basket with candy and prizes.

Unlike last year, the egg hunt came under sunny skies and good weather. In 2024, there was intermittent rain throughout the day, with many activities canceled. Not so this year, with games, activities, and a petting zoo available after the egg hunt was done.

Out on the lawn, after the hunt, the Pfefferle family — Logan and Aubrey, along with their kids Tatum, 3, and Parker, 1 — were opening the eggs the kids got and enjoying the nice day.

“We just moved to Solvang, and this is the kind of event we love to find in the area,” Logan Pfefferle said. “The kids are having a great time, and I’m glad the weather in fine.”

Eric Hanse of Buellton was sitting with his daughter Carter, 4, and son Logan, 2, while they were perusing through their eggs.

“We come to this every year,” Eric Hanse said. “It’s just a good event and they have a lot of things to do here to keep the kids interested.”

Off at the end of the park, there were plenty of booths set up: A Lego station where kids could build their favorite creations, an art table with markers and sketch paper, and a booth for Valley Music Magic, the organization run by local musician Dewey Roberts that offers musical lessons for all ages.

Roberts manned the booth, answering any questions about Valley Music Magic and offering a few guitars and ukelelesfor attendees to try out.

“This is such a great community event, and a chance for me to share the word of music,” Roberts said. “This is the perfect place to inspire, share, and love music.”

Meanwhile nearby there was the return of the petting zoo, where a few kids at a time were able to get acquainted with, and of course, people were lined up to get their pictures taken with the Easter Bunny. A good time seemed to be had by all.

The Eggstravaganza is expected to be back next year, as always the day before Easter, on April 4, 2026.

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The Buellton City Council met for its regular meeting on Thursday, April 24, and moved forward two items involving the further development of the Willemsen property on Dairyland Road.

Mayor David Silva attended the meeting by remote from Sacramento, so Vice Mayor Elysia Lewis conducted the meeting.

The first item having to do with the Willemsen property was actually one pulled from the Consent Calendar: Item 5, which dealt with the awarding of a contract for the parking lot project for the recently opened Buellton Library and future projects on the site.

Public Works Director Rose Hess reported that the project was put out for bid in February, and by March 13, four bids had been received, with V. Lopez and Sons submitting the low bid at $2,147,561.10.

Hess also said the project would be divided into two phases: Phase 1 is the main parking lot, stairs and existing access road rehabilitation, while Phase 2 would be the drainage modification and the access drive directly between parking lots.

Councilmember Hudson Hornick, however, pulled the item for discussion as he was unsure the city should be paying right now for a parking lot near property that isn’t fully developed. Although the library has been completed, the Santa Ynez Valley Children’s Museum is a work in progress and much of the land behind it hasn’t been improved.

“My reservation is that it’s a lot of money to build a parking lot before we even have a demand for it,” Hornick said.

However, Councilmember John Sanchez said this is the right time to spend the money for the lot.

“We’re going to have a parking lot there, we should just do it now,” he said. “It’s not going to get any cheaper.”

Silva agreed with Sanchez, saying “I’d rather spend now, instead of spending more later.”

Lewis added that the city had told residents near the property that the parking lot would alleviate traffic problems.

“We already have events planned for the property,” she said. “We’ve promised people in that area we wouldn’t get [the roads] congested.”

Eventually, Hornick was swayed to the others’ side, and after a motion by Sanchez to approve the item, it passed 4-0.

Later, the council discussed a future facility that will be served by the parking lot: Mainly, the possibility of a partnership between the city and the Santa Ynez Valley Children’s Museum, which is planned for the space next to the library on Dairyland Road.

As City Manager Scott Wolfe noted in his report, at the March 13 City Council meeting, the council appointed an ad hoc committee comprising of Silva and Lewis to investigate a potential partnership with the Children’s Museum. This was made following a request for a partnership with the city by SYVCM Executive Director Ashley Jenkins during a public comment at an earlier meeting.

After some discussion between the committee and Jenkins, the committee recommended that the city provide short-term financial help to get the necessary projects built and the museum off the ground. 

The funding plan proposed by the ad hoc committee calls for an initial contribution of $500,000 for FY 2025/26, followed by $300,000 for FY 2026/27, and a final contribution of $200,000 (on a matching basis) for FY 2027/28. This recommendation also requires the periodic review of expenditures of city funds by SYVCM and progress reports, with the result of these reviews and reports informing the City Council’s consideration of the subsequent year’s budget.

At the start of council discussion, Hornick inquired about the nature of the initial $500,000 contribution, whether it was limited to agreed expenditures or just a “gift.” Wolfe replied it would be contigent on an agreed-upon list of projects the museum would have to complete. 

Hornick also wondered about any perks or discounts Buellton residents might be able to benefits from. Silva agreed that giving more consideration to Buellton residents would be a good idea, although drawing people from beyond city limits would be good too.

John Sanchez asked about liability: Would their involvement carry legal risk. Wolfe said the city attorney would be able to draft an agreement that would keep the city protected.

In Public Comment, Melissa Miller who lives in the neighborhood, was looking forward to seeing a completed Children’s Museum.

“It’s exciting to be a part of this, it’s needed to help children grow,” she said. “Children’s museums are destinations; this is an exciting opportunity, and I’m excited for it.”

Shelly Silva came to the podium with her daughter Sammie, and identified herself as a funder and supporter of the museum.

“I’d like to establish a destination for interactive play,” Shelly Silva said. “Just the possiblities: A water slide, imagine the soccer field that could be there.”

Jenkins came up to speak and give her vision of the museum and its effect, about how she wants to first get her programs online and then go from there, and how she wants her museum to be a “supplement” not a replacement for school.

“I’m proud to be part of this community,” Jenkins said. “I’ve been pushing this hard, but it’s what this city wants.”

Hornick expressed concern about the cost, especially with the first-year amount of $500,000, but emphasized he loves the idea of a children’s museum.

“I’m all for fiscal responsibility,” he said, “but don’t be afraid to come to us if you need something.”

Ultimately, Silva made the motion to move forward with the partnership, with Hornick seconding, and it passes 4-0.

The Buellton City Council will have a special joint meeting with the city Planning Commision on Wednesday, May 7, at 6 p.m., and then meet for its next regular meeting May 8 at the same 6 p.m. time.

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In a longer-than-usual regular meeting on Monday, May 28, the Solvang City Council heard from a dozen organizations asking for grant funds for fiscal year 2025-26, and also gave staff direction on changes for the city sign ordinance.

The meeting, which ran for 3 hours and 53 minutes, began with three proclamations, as the council honored retiring Sheriff’s Lt. (and de facto Police Chief) Mark Valencia, who is retiring, recognized Child Abuse Awareness and Sexual Assault Awareness Month, and one on Drinking Water Week.

After a presentation from the city’s marketing consultants, and the consent calendar, Mayor David Brown asked to move up Discussion Item 8b up on the agenda, a motion the council unanimously passed.

Brown then recused himself because his wife was one of the people scheduled to request grant funds for her organization. Mayor Pro Tem Claudia Orona took over the gavel for the item as Brown stepped out.

Speaking on remote from Huntington Beach, City Administrator Wendy Berry gave the report for the grant requests and said the grant fund request period lasted from Feb. 1 to March 31, workshops on Feb. 19 and March 11 to help with the paperwork.

Berry said city staff received 12 grant-fund applications, but only four were actually complete. The city’s ad hoc committee gave a week’s extension to those applicants who didn’t have all the paperwork.

The applicants were called up one-by-one by City Manager Randy Murphy. The grant request were as follows:

Atterdag At-Home Meals on Wheels: Director Karen Brown said the program, which was nearly discontinued in 2016, delivered over 25,000 meals last year and the number of seniors to serve are growing. Atterdag is asking for $20,000.

Bethania Food Distribution: Linda Marzullo said the operation has been going on for five years, but food is still needed. Marzullo said she asked for $2,000 last year but will probably ask for more.

Santa Ynez Valley Aquatics: Lisa Palmer said the mission of the foundation to bring aquatics access to all of the Valley, and is looking to build new aquatics center. Her group has raised $1 million, goal is $13.7 million by end of 2026.

SYV Fruit and Vegetable Rescue: New Executive Erin Shugart looking for $10,000 grant for group that provides freshnutrient-rich food with minimal environmental impact.

SYV Historical Museum: Absent

SYV People Helping People: CEO Erica Flores asked for $15,000, saying Solvang is the heart of their operation. The group networks with family resource center to provide an emergency food pantry.

SYV Western Heritage Foundation: Kevin Murphy, president of nonprofit foundation formed to fund Santa Ynez Old Days rodeo and preserve ag and western heritage.

Solvang Chamber of Commerce: Linda Palmer, community outreach, asking $46,500 to fund new Solvang Safe program, which encourage businesses to help in emergency.

Danish Days: Co-Chair Cassandra Ferris, who organizes the Danish Days Festival said the nonprofit relies on donations from public and city and use sponsorship. President Thomas Birkhold said grant fund helps them add bathrooms, PAsystem, table and chair rentals. the number increased from 2,000 to 6,000. 

10. Rotary Club: Steve Palmer, Chairman of 4th of July parade with Valerie Kissell. “The 4th of July parade speaks for itself,” he said. 

11. Viking Charities: Car Show Chair Greg Wietzman car show chair seeks funding for Viking Car Show, asking for $3,000. He said he’s asking for less this year, while eliminating beer garden and food vendors.

Claudia Orona said council has received the requests have been received, and Murphy said the requests would go back to the ad hoc committee and be discussed again at the June 9 council meeting.

Later in the meeting, Planning and Building Manager Rafael Castillo addresses the council on Item 8d, on Modifications to the Sign Ordinance.

Castillo recounted how city staff was directed in November to do a workshop on new design standards and held a joint Planning Commission and Design Review Committee Workshop on March 13, to discuss six key items:

• Objective Design Standards with the R-3 Lots and maintain control with DRC input over new projects.
• Incorporation of a “Design Handbook” including the use of approved color palettes.
• Use of A-frame Signs and Sandwich Board Signs within the Village/City.
• Additional Temporary Signage
• Use of Banner Signs in the Village
• Elimination of Content Based Regulation and replacement with objective standards.

Castillo told council he was looking for direction on which of those items to start work on.

Councilmember Elizabeth Orona, however, asked why there was no progress on any of those items, and Castilloanswered that those items were established to come back and get direction over which took priority.

“Basically, I’m doing an overview, no redline changes,” he said. “we’re bringing the workshop to you and getting direction. We’re waiting to see if we get direction.”

Brown saw that and suggested Castillo concentrate on the A-frames and temporary sign to begin.

At the end, Murphy assured the council that they would properly be apprised of any changes in the future.

The next meeting for the Solvang City Council will be Monday, May 12, at 6:30 p.m.

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The first weekend of May 2025 renewed a Solvang tradition as Alisal Road contained a procession of not cars or trucks, but horses and horse-drawn vehicles as the Rancho Visitadores riding group came through Solvang for a blessing at Mission Santa Ines on Saturday, May 3.

Although the event has skipped a year or two, it is generally a yearly happening where members of the Rancheros Visitadores ride up from their camp in Santa Barbara and go down Alisal turning right at Mission Drive/Highway 246, and into Mission Santa Ines for a blessing.

The riders made their entrace into Solvang a little after 3 p.m. and were greeted by crowds of people lining the street, many waving American flags.

According to the website highnoon.com, The Rancheros Visitadores is a riding group that was formed in 1930 in Santa Barbara. The ride was inspired by the early California “Mission days” tradition where Rancheros from the neighboring countryside would gather in the spring time at the nearest Mission with their cattle herds — then advance towards the next Mission working the cattle as they went — branding the calves, cutting out the beef for hides and tallow, castrating the calves and old bulls, and sending the sickly or injured cattle back to their respective ranchos.

The group had the idea of doing that ride and stopping off at Mission Santa Ines, where the priest would bless the herd and the riders before they moved on.

Among the Los Rancheros Visitadores members who would make the ride over the years were celebrities like Clark Gable, Walt Disney, Gary Cooper and Chuck Yeager. And in the 1970s, former actor and future President Ronald Reagan would make the traditional trek.

In this year reception at the mission, Father Donald Burke opened with his blessing to the riders.

“We ask you, Lord, to bless these Ranchero riders,” he said. “Bless them as they ride through the hills and valleys of the Santa Ynez Valley, but Lord, keep them safe.”

After the blessing, Amanda Martinez Combs sang a rousing rendition of the national anthem.

As in previous years, announcer Bill Feist announced the arrival of the riders as they came, and with it he added in a good amount of good-natured joshing.

Especially when the group of “Mavericks,” members participating in their first ride and notable by the yellow hats they wore, arrived.

“We welcome the 2025 Maverick class,” Feist said, drawing laughs with his next line, “Welcome, gentlemen, half of you won’t survive the trial.”

As the riders settled with their horses on the lawn in front of the mission, a presentation was made and pointed out why the ride is such a fundraiser.

Rancheros Visitadores Corky Ullman led the presentation of a check of $200,000 to the Cancer Foundation of Santa Barbara. The check was presented to Lori Willis, ED, and Stephanie Carlyle, head fundraiser.

Feist, who pointed out how many of the riders wear pink scarves to promote cancer awareness, said “This is what we do, and this is why we do it. Thank you for letting us be a part of this.”

The afternoon culminated in the now-customary performance of Ranchero George Stillman playing “The Vaquero Song,” for “all past Rancheros.”

While there are riders like the Mavericks, who are just starting out, and others with a few years under their belt, Stillman is one who can boast of 25 years on the ride, and is happy to display his new commemorative pin for the milestone on his hat. 

“Funny thing is, I didn’t start riding until later in life,” Stillman said. “I was surfing until I was 55, then some friends invited me up north to a ranch in Sun Valley. They said ‘hey, you want to do some roping,’ so I joined them and was roping for three days.

“I came back, bought a horse, then joined the Santa Barbara Straw Riders, and then the Rancheros,” he continued.”Now I’m on that horse six days a week.”

Another rider, Travis Baker of Morro Bay, said the ride went well.

“We came from Jackson Camp, and took about an hour to get here,” Baker said. “We had a great ride, just having a great time.”

Baker said the riders were going back to Jackson Camp for the night, and on Sunday would take the 26-mile trip to Janeway Camp near Cachuma Lake, where they would stay for a week.

Another rider, Jamie Hastings, who’s been part of the event since 2015, said it was another great experience.

“Seemed to go well as I could see; nobody got bucked off, so that’s good enough for me,” he said.

Hastings, who is originally from Paso Robles, but now lives in Clovis, said the ride is always an enjoyable part of the year.

“It’s my favorite week of the year,” he said. “Meeting up with your best friends is part of the deal, just a great time to get together.”

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The Santa Ynez boys volleyball is on a great run in the middle of its Mountain League schedule and hopes to put itself in good shape for the upcoming CIF Central Section playoffs.

After a three-game sweep over non-league opponent Cabrillo (25-12, 25-14, 25-9) on Tuesday, April 8, the Pirates stood at 4-0 in the Mountain and 13-3 overall. SYHS has won seven straight regular matches; it’s only recent blemish was the Bishop Diego Tournament in Santa Barbara on Saturday, April 5, where the Pirates won four (two-out-of-three-sets) matches before losing to host school Bishop Diego, 25-22, in a one-set final.

The success shouldn’t be all that surprising: SYHS is in the second year of the return of Hall-of-Fame coach Chip Fenenga, who actually established the boys volleyball program in 1992 and won seven CIF Southern Section championship in his first stint coaching the boys. He recently won his 500th as boys coach, and also won 199 in a previous stint as girls volleyball coach.

“Oh, I’ve had good players,” Fenenga said with a laugh after the Cabrillo game. The coach said the key with this year’steam is its defense.

“We’re very good defensively,” he said. “We are just able to force teams to get out of their game and make mistakes.”

Sophomore outside hitter Nathan Biron agrees.

“Our defense is like no other on the Central Coast,” he said. “It’s our backbone. It allows us to get our setters to pitch it out to our hitters.”

According to senior team captains Manny Sanchez and Ben Suerman, a pair whom Fenenga calls “the backbone and heart of the team,” has been a team that been very in sync.

“Our communication is how we’re doing so well,” Sanchez said. “We’re better this year at talking and making sureeveryone knows what they’re doing.”

Suerman said that extends outside the court.

“The morale on this team is amazing,” he said. “It’s the closest team I’ve ever been a part of.”

The Pirates played at Templeton on April 10, and will close out its regular season with three home games, against San Luis Obispo (April 15), Atascadero (April 17), and Arroyo Grande (April 17), all starting at 6 p.m. After that, the team will find out where it will be placed in the CIF Central Section playoffs; the Pirates were placed in Division at the season’s start, but could be moved up to Division I

“We have great expectations for CIF whether or not we go Division I or II,” Sarumen said. “We’ve scouted the teams up in the Central Valley in the Fresno and Clovis area; they’ll be tough, but were excited about playing some heavier-hitting teams.”

SYHS golfer shoots personal-best score in dual match

Santa Ynez senior golfer Brayden Mlodzik shot a career-low one under par 71 as the Pirates boys golf team defeated Sierra Pacific 403-458 in a non-league dual match on April 9 at the Alisal River Course in Solvang.

Mlodzik’s score beat his previous low by one stroke, and he has had a solid scoring average of 77 through 12 rounds this season, according to head coach Sara Ovadia.

Mlodzik also shot 78 for the Pirates’ low score in the fourth Mountain League tournament of the season, this one hosted by SYHS on the Alisal course. The Pirates shot a team low in league with a 426, with placed them fourth on the day.

San Luis Obispo was low team with 386, one stroke Arroyo Grande, who had the medalist in Ned Tarter with a score of 70.

Beach volleyball squad loses tough one to Arroyo Grande

The SYHS girls beach volleyball squad lost another tight one to Arroyo Grande, whom they lost to in the CIF Central Section final last year.

In this matchup, on April 1, the Eagles beat the visiting Pirates 2-1. Arelie Perez and Natalie Bailey teamed up for the Santa Ynez win, defeating Bixby Hardy and Diana Sorondo 21-14, 21-18.

The Pirates’ Scarlett Ollenburger and Jordan Gann won their first game against AG’s Bella Strickland and Grace Kennedy 21-13, but lost the second game 21-16, and the decided third game, 15-8. Helina Pecile and Kailyn Snekvik also went three games, with Elizabeth Trimble and Isla Smith, as AGHS took the first game 23-21, SYHS won the second 21-15, and the Eagles’ duo won the decider 15-10.

“AG has great ball control and does a really good job of limiting their errors,” said SYHS head coach Melissa Rogers.”In addition, they are a tough serving team. Our 1’s and 3’s struggled today with their serve receive and as a result did not get into system consistently enough to pull out a win.” 

However, Rogers had praise for her winning duo.

“On the 2’s court, Arelie Perez and Natalie Bailey cruised to victory, playing a very solid match,” Rogers said. “They are playing very dominant volleyball right now.  Their strengths and weaknesses really complement one another.”

The Pirates (4-1 in league, 12-5 overall) followed up that match with wins over San Luis Obispo (2-1) and Bishop Diego (5-0). They will end the regular season with a home game against AGHS, and then await their first CIF opponent.

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