School Board elections used to be straightforward enough. Just select a candidate that had the will and experience to improve our schools and keep them current in this changing world. Now, national political and/or religious factions are targeting school board elections. Their aim is to control boards and thereby control the learning agenda. Look around the world to see countries where political philosophy or religion dominates the schools. Not good, and not what we are in this country. Fortunately, I can recommend a good candidate for the San Luis Coastal Unified School District trustee area 1 for the upcoming November election, Marilyn Rodger, whose only aim is to stick up for what’s best for the children. She’s getting my vote and I hope yours too.
Lynda Merrill
Morro Bay
Vote Galvan for School Board of Trustees
I don’t usually like to write about politics, but this one is personal for me!
Michael Glavan is my partner in life, and I’ve had a front row seat to all the work, the conversations, and the thought he’s put into running for San Luis Coastal Unified School District Board of Trustees – Trustee Area 2.
What you see publicly is only part of it. Behind the scenes, he’s constantly listening to parents, teachers, school staff, and community members trying to understand what’s working, what’s not working, and where we can do better for all our kids. He genuinely believes strong schools come from strong partnerships between families, educators, support staff, and the community; and I’ve watched him put that into practice every single day!
He cares deeply about transparency, open communication, and making sure parents feel heard and included. He talks a lot about supporting teachers, improving trust in district leadership, and keeping the focus where it belongs, on all our students and their success!
I know I’m biased, but I also know his character. He shows up, he listens, and he follows through. Our schools matter to him not just as a candidate, but as someone who is invested in this community long-term.
If you’re starting to look into school board candidates for the November election, I hope you’ll take a few minutes to learn more about him and what he stands for glavanforschools.com
Brandon Leibowitz-Glavan
Los Osos
Prepare to Vote Now
The November 3 election is fast approaching. Now is the time to find out who is on your ballot and where they stand on the issues. The League of Women Voters of San Luis Obispo County is joining with community sponsors to moderate candidate forums throughout the county. Candidate forums provide the public with an opportunity to hear from the candidates and ask them questions.
Visit slovote.gov to check your registration status, register to vote, or change your address.
The League of Women Voters reminds voters that elections in California are secure. To make sure your ballot is counted, mail or drop it off before October 30.
Your vote is your voice and your power. It may be the only power you have to influence the political decisions that affect your daily life. Use it. Make sure you are registered and cast your ballot with confidence that your vote will be counted.
Janice Langley, Joanne Schultz, Wendy Brown
League of Women Voters of San Luis Obispo County
Cheers for Art in the Park
Wow, what a wonderful Art in the Park Labor Day weekend!
I want to give a very special and heartfelt thank you to all of the amazing musicians who shared their time and talent with us at our two music venues. I honestly can’t tell you how much I appreciated having you there. Your music brought such a wonderful energy to the park and made the weekend feel alive.
I personally loved being able to stop, listen, and enjoy the incredible talent we have right here in Morro Bay. You didn’t just provide music; you helped create the atmosphere and the memories that made this weekend so special.
The vendors were happy, our visitors were enjoying themselves, and our volunteers had a great time. But for me, one of the best parts was seeing our community come together around the music, the art, and each other.
To all of you musicians, thank you for making the weekend so much fun. I loved hearing you play, and I hope you had as much fun as we did listening to you. You guys were terrific!
And a special thank you to Ray [Riordan] for organizing and scheduling all of the musicians and filling the weekend with such great sound. Ray, you made it look easy, but I know there was a lot of work behind the scenes to make it all come together. We really appreciate you!
We so hope you’ll join us again in 2027. You are now part of the Art in the Park community, and it just wouldn’t be the same without you.
Kathleen Heil
Morro Bay Art Association
Setting the Record Straight on a Tough Decision
My job as a council member is to balance risk with fiscal responsibility on behalf of this community in the decision-making process. I don’t have the luxury of basing decisions on desires. That’s not what you want from an elected. It makes many of the decisions brought before us tough. Therefore, understanding the context of a vote is as important as casting it.
For the record, I voted “no” on the purchase of the Morro Bay Elementary School. A vote I based on the findings staff presented and rooted in a history of decision-making in our city.
The article published on September 10 was correct that Council voted to move forward with the purchase of the elementary school and that a due diligence report presented identified a series of findings organized around the “suitability” of the purchase.
From my perspective, the report’s findings were revealing and left me with grave concerns including cost and balance considerations. Not just the initial cost of purchase, but the costs moving forward based on one singular working scenario of moving city hall into the school house and developing housing. A scenario that has not been voted on nor have other options been presented publicly.
Given this scenario, I believe we will need to collectively affirm the housing development and have a concrete funding plan in place in order to offset the future costs. As stated in the report, we would need between 100-200 units to get close to satisfying the funding gap. The fewer the houses means the bigger the gap. Moreover, we will likely need to offload additional surplus land to avoid dipping into our reserves. Furthermore, affirming housing could mean a loss of green space. I’m not sure our community can reach consensus on this.
Regardless of my vote, I remain optimistic. I want to have faith in this staff, this council and those to come, and in this community even when there’s differing opinions. There’s a lot of work to do now that we made the decision. I encourage every citizen to watch or attend council meetings as we will be looking at the funding, site options, and how this item works in with other priorities in future goal setting.
Please feel free to contact me at cedwards@morrobayca.gov
Council Member Cyndee Edwards
Morro Bay
Police Blotter Cheers
I would like to echo the words of Pete Swanberg of Modesto (Vol 8, Issue 18), who complimented the Police Blotter writer.
We were visiting from Fresno and the San Francisco Bay Area. I cut out the blotter section and kept it on the dining room table so the five of us could each read from it and laugh. I never thought I would be so entertained by what is normally a dull section.
Whoever the writer is, maybe they have a future as a standup comedian in your area — and beyond?
Thanks for employing this writer and for making the newspaper a special part of our trip. I kept two copies (after scouring a few stores to find extra newspapers) and I will mail them to friends.
Dianne Jacob
San Leandro, CA
