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SLO County bolstered its community testing sites from three last year to four this year, adding one in Morro Bay, plus the existing sites in Paso Robles, SLO, and Grover Beach. While walkins are usually available, Shoresman recommended that people make appointments. As of Dec. 27, the Vets’ Hall testing site had to stop taking walkins in order to accommodate for everyone who made an appointment. —Malea Martin
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A conflict between the California Coastal Commission and Pismo Beach could mean that having a beachfront property is more trouble than it’s worth for some homeowners. The state agency appealed the Pismo Beach Planning Commission’s approval of coastal development permits that allowed seawalls to be built in front of two separate private residential homes. “The applicant at that time accepted and internalized the risk of developing a house in a known hazardous area based on a 100-year evaluation at the time, which was also relied upon by the city. Now, 20 years later, the applicant is telling a different story after an estimated 10 feet of erosion in the time frame,” said Dan Carl, the Central Coast district director of the Coastal Commission, at a Dec. 17 meeting. Carl is referring to applicant James Gentilcore, who received Pismo Beach authorization to build a 120-foot-long and 40-foot-high textured and colored seawall in front of his residence. Pismo Beach residents Tony Hyman and John Okerblom would construct the other seawall in front of their private property. Both barricades would cover entire beach bluffs, which are erosion-prone rounded cliffs that overlook water bodies. “The seawalls’ construction is funded privately by the property owners, but their impacts affect public resources such as beaches and public coastal views. So there is a public cost to their construction,” Kevin Kahn, the Coastal Commission’s Central Coast district manager, told New Times. Coastal Commission staff found “substantial issues” with the seawalls, and the appeal transferred the developmental permits from city jurisdiction to the state. The main objection is that seawalls don’t conform to local coastal program (LCP) requirements. LCPs are planning tools used by local governments in partnership with the Coastal Commission to guide development in coastal zones. While the Gentilcore and HymanOkerblom residences came into existence in 2003 and 2013, respectively, the LCP only allows shoreline reinforcement to protect structures that have been around since Jan. 1, 1977. “Not only is the residence not an ‘existing principal structure’ as the commission understands that term, but the residence was also approved on the basis that it was adequately set back to be safe for at least 100 years, as required by the LCP, without the need for armoring,” the Coastal Commission staff report stated. Kahn told New Times that Pismo
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6 • New Times • December 30, 2021 - January 6, 2022 • www.newtimesslo.com
Beach doesn’t have the authority to challenge the Coastal Commission’s decision. They will reach out to both sets of applicants after the holiday season regarding the next steps for their applications. The Coastal Commission will hold a de novo hearing next year to discuss the merits of the development permits. This means that the commission will assess the matter without reference to any legal conclusion Pismo Beach made when it greenlit the permits. “The project raises issues of regional and statewide significance, given that climate change and sea level rise-related effects (such as coastal erosion) impact the entire coastline, and the issue of how to address them has become a top regulatory and policy priority for the state of California,” the staff report said. —Bulbul Rajagopal
Unemployment rate continues to drop, labor force falls short
While the struggle to find employees is hard on business owners right now, Dantona said it’s not all bad. “People are employed who want to be employed: they’re getting jobs, their wages are increasing because there’s a lot of demand and a short supply of labor, so people can spend money in the economy,” he said. “So from that perspective, that’s good news.” For businesses though, it means increasing wages to entice people to come and work, and in turn, raising prices to compensate for that, Dantona said. “But because those two things are happening, I think it’s healthy,” he said. “People are earning more so they can spend more, you have to pay more and you have to raise your prices, but all those things are in the right way to drive an economy forward.” —Malea Martin
Creek bed homicide trial delayed
SLO County’s unemployment rate New and unusual delays plague a dipped below 4 percent for the first time homicide case that took place in San Luis since the pandemic started, a milestone Obispo’s Bianchi Open Space. for economic recovery. But experts say the The suspect, Marco Cota Jr., allegedly labor force may be forever changed by the murdered a homeless man on Nov. 20 events of the last nearly two years. after getting into a fight with him. The According to data released on Dec. 17, SLO County District Attorney’s Office SLO County’s unemployment rate was accused him of first-degree murder and 3.6 percent in November. The last time mutilation and sexual contact with the the county’s rate was below 4 percent was remains. in March 2020, right before it spiked to But Cota had a Dec. 27 arraignment in more than 14 percent a month later. SLO County Superior Court for a prior “It’s very close to the pre-pandemic traffic misdemeanor charge stemming level, and it’s definitely heading in that from an October incident. Cota was direction,” said Andriy Moskalyk, the arraigned for driving a vehicle without a Central Coast’s labor market consultant seatbelt while have a suspended license from the Employment Development due to a DUI. Judge Tim Covello set Division. “But there’s still a few his bail at $0 due to the emergency bail percentage points that we could go down.” schedule, which means Cota could have The unemployment rate typically been released from jail. fluctuates throughout the year due to However, Cota is still in custody at the different industries being in or out of SLO County Jail for a slew of criminal season, such as agriculture. In 2019, on charges he racked up over previous years, average, it was around 2.5 to 3 percent in with the homicide being the most recent. SLO County. The other charges include elder abuse, Looking at the month of November, the domestic violence, and parole violation. rate was 3.2 percent in 2017, 2.8 in 2018, Chief Deputy District Attorney Jerret and 2.7 in 2019. Then in 2020, due to the Gran told New Times that multiple pandemic, it was 5.4 percent, compared to conflicts involving public defenders 3.6 percent this year. have delayed Cota’s homicide case from “It’s almost there [at pre-pandemic progressing through the court system. levels], and definitely much lower than Currently, three different levels of what we saw last year,” Moskalyk said. public defenders have been dismissed That being said, this metric alone because the court found conflicts of doesn’t tell the full story. interest when it came to providing ethical “Because the unemployment rate is a representation for Cota. With every calculation of the unemployed divided by lower level public defender is the labor force, it’s worth mentioning that dismissal, a MUSIC brought in for review. even though the unemployment rate is “We call the fourth level the ‘wheel’ down significantly, we still have people because it runs on a revolving basis,” who have not rejoined the labor force,” FLAVOR/EATS Gran said. “They [the court] have to keep Moskalyk explained. going, so they might go grab another In SLO County, the labor force is still of Santa Maria.” short 6,200 people right now compared to attorney outINFO Gran added that public defenders this time in 2019, Moskalyk said. are usually dismissed because they SLO Chamber of Commerce President represented CALENDAR either the current victim and CEO Jim Dantona said the labor or witnesses in past cases. Cota’s force may never look quite the same as it arraignmentOPINION for the homicide is set for did in pre-pandemic times. Jan. 10, 2022, where “The pandemic changed the fourth choice for a lot of people’s idea of NEWS public defender will be work, and how they do reviewed. work,” Dantona said. “All Send any news If he is found guilty on you have to do is look or story tips to STROKES all prior charges and the around town and see how news@newtimesslo.com. homicide, Cota stands to many ‘help wanted’ signs receive a jail sentence of there are. There’s still ARTS room for economic growth, certainly, but I “65 years to life,” Gran said. ∆ —Bulbul Rajagopal think the pandemic changed a lot.”
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