Issues & Ideas: Camp Roberts distancing, the Noriega closes and past vigilantes

KCBX | By Kathleen Schock/KVPR

Published May 12, 2020 at 10:23 AM PDT

On this episode of Issues and Ideas, we learn more of the history behind Bakersfield's Noriega Hotel, which recent closed its doors for good. A Bakersfield institution, it was the oldest Basque restaurant in town and a winner of the prestigious James Beard Award. Also, Camp Roberts’ garrison commander has a conversation with correspondent Tom Wilmer about modified training and adjustments made to daily life at the National Guard base due to social distancing. We speak with Avila Beach resident and author Pete Kelley about his new local history book. And we’ll take a look at the 2020 census, and some new strategies used to get the word out to undercounted communities. Finally, we'll hear from San Luis Obispo Repertory Theatre managing artistic director Kevin Harris about keeping a theater company alive during a pandemic.

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Tom Wilmer

Tom Wilmer produces on-air content for Issues & Ideas airing over KCBX and is producer and host of the six-time Lowell Thomas award-winning NPR podcast Journeys of Discovery with Tom Wilmer. Recorded live on-location across America and around the world, the podcasts feature the arts, culture, music, nature, history, science, wine & spirits, brewpubs, and the culinary arts--everything from baseball to exploring South Pacific atolls to interviewing the real Santa Claus in the Arctic.

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Brian Reynolds

Brian Reynolds is a contributor to Issues & Ideas, a weekly show that brings listeners a wide variety of perspectives on KCBX. Brian was born in Visalia, CA, and spent many years in the Central Valley before leaving for college at UC Berkeley. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree from UCB, and two Master’s degrees (UCLA and CSU Chico…Library Science and Public Administration). He lived abroad for two years in Spanish-speaking countries (Spain and Nicaragua) and is fluent in Spanish. He spent his career as a public librarian, serving as a Library Director for over 30 years. He retired from the Director position at the SLO County Library in 2013.

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