GOOD NEWS REAL NEWS HOMETOWN NEWS
SINCE 1916 Making Communities Better Through Print.™ VOL. CVIII, NO. XIV
THURSDAY, APRIL 13, 2023
CITY
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Council Hears Updated Financial Strategy Report City Council also discussed SLO County rejoining the Integrated Waste Management Authority By CHRISTIANNA MARKS christianna@atascaderonews.com
ATA S CA D ERO —T h e Atascadero City Council met for their regularly scheduled meeting on Tuesday, April 11, at 6 p.m. The hybrid meeting was held in the City Council Chambers. The agenda passed unanimously. Before the Consent Agenda passed, Mayor Pro Tem Susan Funk pulled Item 3, General Plan & Housing Element Annual Progress Report 2022. She gave a little bit more of an update stating that with housing already built and projects that are being built or have been approved that we are close to 78% of what is expected in the eight-year time frame, which is exceeding our current goal at the halfway point. She also stated that we are only behind on very low-income housing, with only four of the 207 units that the state expects our population will need. “The bottom line is in all the other categories of income, we are substantially exceeding what the targets of the state says our community would need for affordable housing,” concluded Funk. The Consent Agenda was then passed unanimously. Deputy City Manager Terrie Banish gave the council a Marketing Update for the 22/23 year. She went over all the events that Atascadero has added and or continued in 2022. She also reviewed social media reach, email newsletter reach, local city and tourism marketing, county marketing, and Atascadero’s tourism focus to Los Angeles, The Bay Area, and further. In CONTINUED ON PAGE A7
NEWS
(From left) Karina Velazquez (Membership Services & Outreach Coordinator), Gloria Balderas (Workplace Development Coordinator), April MacLean (Administrative Assistant), Julie Matthews (Director of Membership), Logan Zook (Marketing Assistant), Jose Guadarrama (Digital Marketing Specialist), Josh Cross (President and CEO), and Michaela Haniger (Operations Manager) celebrate the 100th year of the Atascadero Chamber of Commerce. Photo by Dawn Smith, Atascadero Chamber of Commerce Director of Communications.
Atascadero Chamber of Commerce Celebrates Its 100th Year on the 100th Day of the Year Over 10 new businesses joined the Chamber on April 10 By CHRISTIANNA MARKS christianna@atascaderonews.com
ATASCADERO — The Atascadero Chamber of Commerce has been a driving force in the community since 1923. On Monday, April 10, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.,
the Atascadero Chamber of Commerce held a celebration on the 100th day of the year to highlight their 100 years in Atascadero. Over 24 community members and business
owners walked through the door to help celebrate the day. “I always love how my kids celebrate 100 days of elementary school, and I thought it would be fun to do some-
SPRING
thing similar here,” stated the Chamber’s CEO and President Josh Cross. The day’s festivities included perks for business owners who CONTINUED ON PAGE A7
EDUCATION
School Board passes the 19six Architectural Services Agreement for Improvements to the High School
Charles Paddock Zoo Celebrates Spring with Baby Chicks and Smaller Fest Refuge Church hosts an Easter worship service at Sunken Gardens
New Assistant Superintendent of Human Resources Dan Neff introduced to the board
By CHRISTIANNA MARKS and CAMILLE DEVAUL
ATASCADERO — With Easter just passing and spring break well on its way, Atascadero and its residents have been busy getting out and enjoying the beautiful spring weather while spending time with their families. On Easter Sunday, April 9, Refuge Church held an outdoor Easter service in Sunken Gardens for anyone in the community to attend. The service started off with a free breakfast at 9 a.m. and was followed by the worship service at 10 a.m. The Charles Paddock Zoo has been celebrating the arrival of spring with its much-loved Spring Festival. The festival started on April 2 and is
continuing through April 16. During regular opening hours, the festival and all of the additional activities are included with general admission into the zoo. This year, the festival is downsized while the zoo prepares to switch its focus to featuring pollinators and plans to talk more about the pollination side of spring in
the future instead of featuring baby animals of spring. Zoo Supervisor Flavia Parotti said they did bring back the adored baby chicks this year because they are always such a big hit with zoo patrons. “We have another whole week and a half of chicks being here at the zoo,” added Parotti. The chicks are borrowed
from Atascadero Hay and Feed, where they are returned after their stint at the zoo. This week the zoo has also been doing scheduled animal feeding for the public along with zookeeper talks. Thursday at 11 a.m., you can see the Aldabra tortoises eat, and on Friday they will be feeding the tiger.
COUNTY
NORTH COUNTY LIFE
SPORTS
WEATHER
By CHRISTIANNA MARKS christianna@atascaderonews.com
Visitors to the Charles Paddock Zoo watch an animal feeding. The zoo has been doing public animal feedings along with zookeeper talks. Contributed Photo
CONTINUED ON PAGE A7
ATASCADERO — Overcrowding the district was a topic of concern for teachers and parents at the Atascadero Unified School District (AUSD) school board meeting on Tuesday, March 21, at 7 p.m. The meeting took place in person at the Kenneth Beck Building. Since August 2022, the district has remained with in-person meetings only, without a live streaming option. During Oral Communications from the Public, both parents and teachers expressed concern about overcrowding in CONTINUED ON PAGE A7
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AG PASS Program Approved by Supervisors | A3
AG OFFICIALS ATASCADERO Searching for Detrimental CHAMBER Invasive Insect Pests | A4 Auction Reader | B1
HIGHLIGHT ROUNDUP Local Student Athletes Dominating the Fields | B8
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