BIG CHANGES
Proposed 66-room hotel entails demolishing the Press Room: two years ago, SIMA began the process for a large apartment building fronting State and Ortega—and then pulled the plug when the city council agitated for more affordable housing. The solution? Make it a hotel.
·················
·················
HOT PROPERTY
While the real estate market has pretty much ground to a halt since Thanksgiving, there have still been a few notable sales, including a Padaro Lane mansion for $30 million, a Summerland three-bedroom with lots of views; houses from 1890 and 1930 on the same San Roque street; and a funky fixer/teardown on Mission Canyon Road. See what sold—and for how much.
·················
·················
CHAPTER TWO
Longtime favorite Toma is under new ownership: After 20 years, Tom and Vicki Dolan are retiring, handing over the reins to a new pair of owner-operators who have no plans to mess with the tuna cones.
·················
FAVORITE THINGS
Next up in the Shop Local Gift Guide: Montecito Mercantile and Diani Living—and of course both stores have far more than whatever happened to catch my eye. So get out there and browse!
·················
Please forward this to anyone who might enjoy it. Click here to subscribe.
·················

















Recent Comments
You should talk to an actual restaurateur. Labor is by far their highest expenses, followed by cost of goods sold, with a rent a distant… — Jefferson A.
Truth! Rules for thee but not for me doesn’t work well when refrigeration of raw meat is involved! — Christine!
because they are policing more important things. everything should be enforced, thats not what im saying. im saying they are busy. — Seth
Feels like we’re aiming all our attention at vendors instead of the root problem: high rent and a permitting environment that makes affordable food nearly… — CH
Either that, or go the Reddit route, where, after so many downvotes, a post gets hidden or removed. And who doesn't love UP votes? — Michael G.
85 bucks for lasagna? People with that kind of money have a health insurance plan that covers Zepbound, and definitely don't have 6 mouths to… — Michael G.
No Street Kitchens crackdown not going so well, they have expanded, you have over 20 hot dog carts downtown and all the other food stands… — Sophia
“The Copper” name was a smart move. No longer sounds like another breakfast spot. Well done. — Cee Oh
The street kitchen at Mission liquor(Mission and San Pascual) is back up and running. Lower State street was full of vendors last Friday night. Can… — Don
FWIW, ChatGPT passed the bar exam. I subscribe to the pro version and have stopped using attorneys to go over contracts (as an entrepreneur, I’ve… — Luke