News Roundup

November 2, 2021

Low Voter Turnout Expected in Today’s City Election

Other recent news: Drama at the election's finish line; monarch butterflies are slowly returning to Goleta, but in low numbers; Morro Bay's power plant stacks are to be demolished; an increase in women board members at the region's publicly traded companies.

October 28, 2021

Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi Bought Twice More in Montecito

Other recent news: Progress for 14-room hotel on State Street; the rain did little to alleviate the drought; the state attorney general classified the Bellosguardo Foundation as delinquent; mayoral candidate Deborah Schwartz vs. the local Democratic establishment; Alisal wants to annex 10 acres for glamping; the restoration of UCSB's North Campus Open Space.

October 21, 2021

What the Heck Is Going on With Bellosguardo?

Other recent news: The season's first real rainfall is expected on Monday; more than 70% of eligible county residents are now fully vaccinated; Thousand Steps construction to happen before next summer; Hope Ranch mulls offshore desalination. 7

October 17, 2021

The Alisal Fire Is Now 53% Contained

Other recent news: Costly damage to the county landfill's new recycling facility; how the Arroyo Hondo Preserve fared in the fire; Cottage Urgent Care to open on Coast Village Road; two friends opened a barber shop; the christening of the USS Santa Barbara; the Australian flame tree is the tree of the month.

October 14, 2021

The Feds Have Taken Over Efforts to Fight the Alisal Fire

Other recent news: Hollister Ranch is given an evacuation warning; a photo gallery about the fire; air quality is worsening; the Independent endorsed the three incumbents in this year's city council race; the Arroyo Burro Open Space Restoration and Trail Improvement Project is nearly done; a roundup of new state laws. 1

October 12, 2021

Gaviota Coast Fire Has Burned Nearly 4,000 Acres

Other recent news: Two media outlets endorse James Joyce III for mayor; a rash of smash-and-grab burglaries; groundbreaking for the Santa Ynez Valley Children’s Museum; controversial Los Padres forest clearing moves forward.

October 7, 2021

Indoor Mask Mandate Extended to November 5

Other recent news: A second Santa Barbara cannabis shop is being sold to a national company; winners and losers of a mayoral debate; homeowner manages to stall the Randall Road Debris Basin; two Bennett's wallabies arrive at the zoo for its forthcoming Australian Walkabout exhibit; Santa Barbara to join regional fire communications facility.

October 3, 2021

Timeline for Public Beach Access at Hollister Ranch

Other recent news: Santa Barbara County Planning Commission recommends denial of ExxonMobil project; who paid $28 million for Scooter Braun's Montecito estate; downtown landlord urges city to consider former St. Mary’s Seminary for homeless housing; how the mayoral candidates are faring; Cathedral Oaks road repair; Goleta to ban flavored tobacco products; Isla Vista and the imminent county redistricting; Vandenberg Space Force Base reopened beaches on base property. 4

September 26, 2021

Santa Barbara to Make Life Difficult for Liquor Stores

Other recent news: Los Padres National Forest has reopened; a long look at the cannabis situation in Carpinteria; Santa Barbara Ice & Propane appears to have closed; Goleta to fight Winchester Canyon cannabis farm; apartment complex at Castillo and Carrillo moves forward. 2

September 21, 2021

95-Year-Old Eastside Bridge to Be Replaced

Other recent news: A clear explanation of the state's new housing laws; Randall Road Debris Basin should be done by year end; U.S. Bank to buy Union Bank; the tree of the month is the Nile tulip tree.