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T U E SDAY, M A RC H 8 , 2 02 2
Business helps Ukraine Santa Barbara Home Improvement Center hopes to raise $5,000 for Direct Relief
SB gas prices reach new high Here’s how costs compare to state, country By KAITLYN SCHALLHORN NEWS-PRESS STAFF-WRITER
Gas prices across the country are continuing to climb — and Santa Barbara is no exception. In fact, the Santa Barbara, Santa Maria and Lompoc areas set a new record Monday with the
average for regular unleaded gas reaching $5.287 per gallon and diesel hitting $5.648, according to the American Automobile Association. The previous record for the area was set on June 18, 2008, with $4.7081, an AAA spokesperson Please see GAS on A2
KAITLYN SCHALLHORN / NEWS-PRESS
Gas prices exceed $5 a gallon at the Fuel Depot on Carrillo Street in Santa Barbara. The average price in the city reached a record high Monday of $5.287 a gallon for regular unleaded gas.
DAVE MASON / NEWS-PRESS
“We are matching donations, dollar for dollar, to everything we collect,” said Gary Simpson, president and owner of the Santa Barbara Home Improvement Center, which is raising money for Direct Relief’s humanitarian aid for Ukraine.
By KATHERINE ZEHNDER
Board of Supervisors to discuss ExxonMobil Hearing to cover proposed trucking plan By KAITLYN SCHALLHORN
NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
The Santa Barbara Home Improvement Center has raised more than $1,300 for Direct Relief’s humanitarian aid for Ukraine. “We started this fundraiser last Wednesday after not being able to stand seeing it (the Russian invasion) on the news anymore,” Gary Simpson, president and owner of the store, told the NewsPress. “We are matching donations, dollar for dollar, for everything we collect,” Mr. Simpson said. “Since Wednesday, 2,600 people have donated. So far, we have raised over $1,300. My hope is to raise $5,000 by the end of the week and deliver it to Direct Relief.” His store’s cashiers ask customers as they ring up their purchases if they would like to donate to Ukraine or round up their purchase. “The average donation so far is 51 cents, which means that most customers are rounding up their purchases,” Mr. Simpson said. “Approximately one in four people have donated. “On an average day, we have about 1,800 transactions,” said Mr. Simpson, whose Santa Barbara Home Improvement Center is the locally owned Ace Hardware store. His store’s donations go to Direct Relief, which is based in Goleta and is well-known for sending medical supplies to nations around the world, as well as to communities across the U.S. “Direct Relief has been working closely with the (Ukrainian) Ministry of Health and other organizations for the
NEWS-PRESS STAFF-WRITER
Goleta-based Direct Relief prepares medical supplies for shipment to Ukraine.
past few years, providing medical supplies and medications to bolster Ukraine even before the conflict began,” Heather Bennett, vice president of partnerships and philanthropy at Direct Relief, told the News-Press Monday. “The ministry has provided us with a list of the most needed Please see UKRAINE on A2
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TO HELP UKRAINE You can help Direct Relief’s efforts for Ukraine by making a purchase at the Santa Barbara Home Improvement Center, 415 E. Gutierrez St., Santa Barbara. If you don’t need to make a purchase, you can drop off a check, made out to Direct Relief, at the store. You also can donate directly at www.directrelief.org.
email: kschallhorn@newspress.com
LOTTERY
i n s i de Classified.............. B4 Life..................... B1-2 Obituaries............. A4
LARA COOPER / DIRECT RELIEF
The Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors will hold a hearing today in Santa Maria regarding ExxonMobil’s plan for interim trucking of crude oil on area highways. The county planning commission has recommended the board deny Exxon’s interim trucking project in part due to “unavoidable impacts” on biological, cultural and water resources in the event of potential oil spills. Exxon’s modified project plan included interim trucking of crude oil to the Santa Maria Pump Station until its estimated shutdown in 2023. The plan would include an estimate of 78 round trips per day, seven days a week. The plan would then pivot to the Pentland Terminal either for seven years or until a pipeline becomes available. This would require about 34 round trips per day when the SMPS has temporarily shut down or 68 round trips per day when it has been permanently closed, according to a prepared presentation. ExxonMobil’s plan set an annual limit of 24,820 trucks. Exxon has said the plan would bring additional revenue and trucking jobs to the area. Representatives also said the plan would be a better environmental choice because it would reduce the amount of oil shipped into the U.S. from foreign countries. But the planning commission’s findings, which recommended denial, said the proposed project would only have a trivial impact on domestic oil use and demand. The commission also said there
was not enough evidence to show the project would increase local jobs or expenditures at area businesses. The planning commission is asking that the Board of Supervisors “finds that there is not substantial evidence in the record to support a determination that the benefits of the project outweigh the project’s significant and unmitigable impacts on the environment.” ExxonMobil’s current permit for the Las Flores Canyon facility stipulates that oil transportation can only be done by pipeline unless the entitlement is changed. The Santa Barbara, Santa Maria and Lompoc areas set a new record Monday with the average for regular unleaded gas reaching $5.287 and diesel hitting $5.648, according to the American Automobile Association. In comparison, California’s average was $5.343 as of Monday, per AAA data. Today’s Board of Supervisors meeting will begin at 9 a.m. and will be held at the Joseph Centeno Betteravia Government Administration Building at 511 E. Lakeside Parkway in Santa Maria. People can also attend the meeting virtually. The meeting will be televised on local cable channel 20 and live-streamed at countyofsb.org/ceo/csbtv/ livestream.sbc and youtube.com/ user/CSBTV20. The board consists of Supervisors Das Williams, Gregg Hart, Joan Hartmann, Bob Nelson and Steve Lavagnino. For more information, go to www.countyofsb.org/bos.
Sudoku................. B3 Sports ................... A3 Weather................ A8
Saturday’s SUPER LOTTO: 5-7-13-36-44 Mega: 16
Monday’s DAILY 4: 5-8-6-8
Friday’s MEGA MILLIONS: 11-19-28-46-47 Mega: 5
Monday’s FANTASY 5: 3-13-24-34-36
Monday’s DAILY DERBY: 10-11-07 Time: 1:45.65
Saturday’s POWERBALL: 8-23-37-52-63 Meganumber: 13
Monday’s DAILY 3: 2-1-2 / Midday 8-4-1