FIRST LOOK
Validation Ale founders Brian and Briana Deignan have used their backgrounds in tech to create a better experience—from the menu, to ordering, to the bathrooms—at their stylish new taproom in the Funk Zone. “Whether you’re a beer nerd like me or you’ve only had Coors your whole life, you’re welcome either way,” says Brian. “We want this to be about community.”
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ODDS & ENDS
••• The best look yet inside Bellosguardo.
••• Kule pop-up at the Montecito Country Mart.
••• The closed part of Bella Vista Drive has finally reopened.
••• An official answer about the left turn on red at Anacapa and Haley.
••• More on the Chumash plan for a 31,000-square-foot office building in Santa Ynez.
••• A fantastic 1920 postcard of Summerland.
→ Read the post.
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HOT PROPERTY
With only one sale over $3 million, last week was the slowest since the pandemic boom began—but San Roque remains hot. See what sold—and for how much.
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NEWS ROUNDUP
••• Santa Barbara’s police headquarters could be done by mid-2026.
••• Living Vehicle’s new sustainable camper (above).
••• Jury to decide Birnam Wood golf dispute.
••• Grand opening of the Carpinteria Community Library.
••• The argument for a better pool complex at Ortega Park.
••• The U.S. Navy will expand weapons testing off the coast.
••• Solvang Festival Theater has reopened.
••• The tree of the month is the dragon tree.
→ Read the post.
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Recent Comments
Renaming the post office and spending $500 k to do it. Is another great example tax payers money being wasted. — Dan Kolodziejski
Hallelujah! The return of that Southbound on-ramp is long overdue — Tammy
You've done a great thing for the hapless men of Santa Barbara with this series. Stopping by half of these stores. — Andy
The post office renaming will cost roughly $500,000 paid for by the USPS internal funds from stamps and fees. — Derek
Thank you, Erik, for reminding your readers to support local businesses; it is one of the critical ways to help our communities thrive. (I laughed… — Pat
I agree about the skimpy wine pour. However, we loved the shared entrees (chicken and salmon) with their special rice. Yes there were leftovers but… — ElizabethW
That 5% would go to all employees proportionate to their hours I would presume compared to tips where more skilled staff take a higher percentage,… — Don
Geo , you know absolutely nothing about the restaurant business. — Roy
What if, and bear with me here because this is complicated, restaurants just paid their staff normally and charged prices that reflected those expenses, i.e.… — Rich
Little Mountain just isn’t organized. Everyone is very nice and the atmosphere stylish, but there is something wrong with it. The food is weird, portions… — Joan