News Roundup

November 21, 2024

250-Room Funk Zone Hotel Gets the Go-Ahead

Plus: Biltmore renovation allowed to proceed; city to help remove Las Alturas landslide house; the county Planning Commission rejected a cannabis project for the first time; Cost Plus World Market could be around for three years; Tunnel Trail reopened; the history of Goleta's Encina Royale neighborhood; Milpas Street improvements likely. 2

November 14, 2024

Caltrans to Install Underdrains at the Castillo Street Underpass

Other recent news: Hedgerow residents push back on plans to add dirt sidewalks; another look at the monstrosity proposed for behind the Mission; Mountain Fire update; no more fence around the huge Moreton Bay fig tree; X Games won't return to Ventura next year. 3

November 7, 2024

Ventura County Fire Has Burned More Than 14,000 Acres

Other recent news: Local election results; the Miramar resort's expansion moves forward; more events to be allowed at the Music Academy of the West; Art & Soul Gallery is leaving the Funk Zone; profile of the Couture Pattern Museum; Modoc Road bike path agreement; more back-in angled parking.

October 31, 2024

The CVS Store on State Street Is Closing

Other recent news: The downtown library plaza has opened; oak trees to replace stone pines on E. Anapamu Street; Caruso and All Saints by-the-Sea church make a deal; the head of UCSB Arts & Lectures is retiring; free digitization of local home movies; the tree of the month. 6

October 24, 2024

How the Montecito Planning Commission Shot Itself in the Foot

Other recent news: Biltmore's family pool complex moves forward in slightly smaller form; Isla Vista now has a vending machine with Narcan, fentanyl test strips, and emergency contraceptives; land preservation on Goleta ballot; another Huguette Clark estate is on the market. 3

October 17, 2024

Santa Barbara Is Finally Getting Serious About E-Bikes

Other recent news: Art Essentials is moving at year end; Montecito police blotter; the latest on the proposed Rosewood Miramar Beach expansion; the city council's District 3 race; the Lobero Theatre’s executive director is stepping down; California Coastal Commission refuses to allow more SpaceX launches. 14

October 3, 2024

Debate Rages Over the 250-Room Garden Street Hotel

Other recent news: Debunked rumor that the Bidens bought in the Santa Ynez Valley; District 1 candidate forum recap; Funk Zone art gallery closed; city councilmember Alejandra Gutierrez's poor attendance; criticism for cannabis stink abatement plan; Goleta library to close for up to two years; Mission Creek restoration; Cottage Health to create employee housing; what's next for Andersen's Pea Soup in Buellton. 3

September 26, 2024

A Faster Track for the Miramar’s Retail and Housing Expansion

Other recent news: The new owner of Buellton landmark Pea Soup Andersen's; California to finally ban the sale of all plastic bags at grocery stores; buyer found for the News-Press's physical archive; bomb thrown inside a Santa Maria courthouse building; the tree of the month; the Riv's ode to Bianca Censori. 3

September 19, 2024

The City Council’s Current Thinking About State Street

Other recent news: CVS is said to be closing downtown; Metropolitan Theatres has left the Fiesta Five on State Street; interview with city administrator Kelly McAdoo; what to do with two dilapidated airport hangars; Fuel Depot opened on Storke Road; candidates for Goleta elections; progress for the Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary. 11

September 5, 2024

The Debate Over Rent Control in Santa Barbara

Other recent news: A rise in stolen checks; vintage shop updates; Lucidity Festival is shutting down for good; Goleta likely to lower speed limits; Platform Holly has been plugged; the county's agricultural enterprise ordinance moves forward; Eric Goode's huge Ojai spread; positive feedback for the proposed Tri-County Produce project; SBCC wants a bond extension; the Surfliner Inn's slow progress. 31