KCRW The 805 Stories from the Central Coast

An investigation by the Ventura County Fire Department says power lines owned by Southern California Edison started the Thomas Fire. The debate continues over whether or not the county should approve new onshore oil drilling near Santa Maria. And hundreds of ultramarathoners will descend on the Los Padres Mountains this weekend for the Nine Trails Race.

Birds are chirping, creeks are flowing and wildflower buds are beginning to pop up and down the Central Coast. A landscape architect who understands the complicated and delicate nature of creating public memorials offers advice to Montecito. And neuroscientists from UC Santa Barbara have developed a new theory that helps explain why some people drink too much.

A new Crisis Intervention Team in Santa Barbara County pairs a sheriff’s deputy with a mental health specialist. Photographer James Balog explains the massive impact humans are having on the elements. And KCRW tours Santa Barbara's largest landfill, which is nearing capacity.

Confidential records detailing police misconduct and use force are on the verge of becoming public in California, but the union representing Ventura’s sheriff's deputies is pushing back. There’s a new executive director at the Santa Barbara Museum of Contemporary Art, and her first exhibit feels like walking through a car wash. And the Goleta Chamber of Commerce wants to freshen up Old Town, but a number of property owners are worried they won’t stop there.

The president of Santa Barbara City College announces his retirement as students fume about how he handled disputes over race and gender. A local historian walks through a 4-mile-long tunnel below the Santa Ynez mountains to learn about Santa Barbara's complicated history with water. And the Santa Barbara City Council selected 32-year-old Meagan Harmon to represent the downtown district.