City Facilities Close for Holiday

Carpinteria City Hall, Carpinteria Community Library and Carpinteria Community Pool will adjust their public hours to allow staff to celebrate the New Year’s Day holiday. City Hall is closed Friday, Dec. 30 and Monday, Jan. 2. The library will be closed only on Saturday, Dec. 31. The pool, which has been closed for winter maintenance, will reopen on Tuesday, Jan. 3. Thank you for your understanding. We wish everyone a wonderful 2023!

Recycle Your Tree & Double Your Trash!

If you missed this week’s EJ Harrison & Sons pick-up, don’t worry, you still have a chance to recycle your Christmas tree and have extra garbage and recycling collected. For two weeks after the holiday, EJ Harrison & Sons will pick up trees for recycling and will allow for twice the usual amount of residential customers’ trash at no extra cost. 

To have your tree recycled, remove ornaments, hooks, lights, tinsel, bows, nails and the tree stand; cut the tree into 4-foot sections; and place it in your tan yard waste barrel on your scheduled pickup day. Flocked Christmas trees are accepted. Collected trees will be processed into various sizes of mulch used on local farmlands, orchards, and nurseries.

To have EJ Harrison pick up extra trash, place it in bags alongside your regular green trash barrel. Be sure to flatten all boxes and place them alongside your blue recycling barrel.

Community Pool Announces Schedule Changes

When the Carpinteria Community Pool reopens on Tuesday, Jan. 3, patrons will enjoy some new opportunities for recreation and exercise. On a trial basis, the pool will be open on Sundays in January for lap swim from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. This addition to the schedule was made due to high demand and will be made permanent if use justifies increased staffing. Also, Masters water polo will return twice a week, on Mondays and Thursdays. The evening lap swim schedule will be reduced to twice a week: Tuesdays from 7 to 8 p.m. and Wednesdays from 6:15 to 8 p.m. Finally, Carpinteria High School’s water polo matches will prompt 2:30 p.m. closure of the pool for public use on Monday, Jan. 9; Tuesday, Jan. 10; Thursday, Jan. 12; and Tuesday, Jan. 24. To learn more, visit https://bit.ly/CarpinteriaPool.

Carp Connect Offers Two Free Winter Courses for Teens

Carpinteria teens are invited to participate in a free writing workshop and a 10-week drama class this winter. The classes are coordinated by Carp Connect and funded by the City of Carpinteria.

The writing class, “Going Viral: Sharing How You See the World,” will teach teens ages 13 to 18 the tools and techniques to create a bestseller, whether it be a podcast, blog or news article. Led by writers Amy Marie Orozco and Lisa Osborn, the class will take place on Saturday, Jan. 21, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Carpinteria Library Community Room, 5141 Carpinteria Ave. Learn more and register at carpinterialibrary.org or call (805) 684-4314.

“Listen to Me” is a 10-week drama workshop to help middle school students who live in Carpinteria identify and open up about their feelings using their own words and challenges as tools to create short plays. Led by artistic director and drama coach Asa Olsson, the class will culminate in a full fledged performance at the Alcazar Theatre. Sessions will be held on Wednesdays from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m., beginning on Jan. 18, in the MPR (Multi-Purpose Room) at CMS, 5351 Carpinteria Ave. Register at the CMS Office, by calling (805) 684-4544 or on the first day of class.