March 3, 2026
Odds & Ends
Huge New Building Proposed Between the Funk Zone and East Beach
Plus: Let's help get Old Romero Road trail reopened; tour of six Jeff Shelton buildings and his office; Santa Barbara Literary Festival tickets; Chet Taylor show at Separate Reality; pianist Hershey Felder's change of plans; impressive new artwork in the Funk Zone; another Santa Barbara Bowl show announced. 2
February 25, 2026
La Ligne Is Opening at the Montecito Country Mart
Plus: The return of Habitat for Humanity's ReStore; four more Santa Barbara Bowl shows; Best Western Plus Pepper Tree Inn appears to be getting reflagged; answers to the "Where in Santa Barbara…?" roundup of restaurant restrooms; two new exhibits at Sullivan Goss; opening date for Highway 217/Hollister Avenue roundabouts. 4
February 10, 2026
February 2, 2026
An Update on the Ornate Mission Inn
Plus: Free People has opened near the bird refuge; hotel conversion on E. Haley Street; UCSB bought two more downtown buildings; Cottage Hospital is looking to expand again; the perils of Tangerine Falls; Trevor Noah returns to the Santa Barbara Bowl; thanks for the tip? 10
January 27, 2026
Thieves Are Said to Be Hiding Surveillance Equipment Outside Houses
Plus: Salon Providence has soft-opened at The Post; Scenery Florals leased a space in the Funk Zone; Lord Huron to play the Santa Barbara Bowl; intermittent closures on Highway 154; downtown salon closing; Palma Colectiva's new events studio; "mythical landscapes and fanciful botanicals" at Sullivan Goss. 13
January 20, 2026
Stylish Apartment Building Proposed for Los Patos Way
Plus: The Santa Claus Lane bike path; might Montecito ban gas-powered leaf blowers?; update on the row of eucalyptus trees on East Valley Road; another Santa Barbara Bowl show announced; parts of Goleta Beach County Park to close for storm-related repairs; Vandenberg Space Force Base's self-mythologizing; group show at Marcia Burtt Gallery; taking San Ysidro Trail all the way to the top. 10
January 14, 2026
A Better Look at the Health Resort Proposed in the Foothills
Plus: Hotel Milo got renovated and a name tweak; Arroyo Hondo Preserve closed for months due to storm damage; new bank branch downtown; the quest for quality magazines; James Taylor concert; Rodeo Riviera opened in the Funk Zone; Heal the Ocean talk at La Casa de Maria; San Ysidro Ranch added a paved parking lot. 10
January 13, 2026
January 6, 2026
December 24, 2025
Burning Questions
- Why Did the Rosewood Miramar Beach Install Gates?
- How Long Will This Big Pipe Be at East Beach?
- Is Cabrillo Boulevard Going to Be Widened Under Highway 101?
- Was There a Fisherman Inn in Downtown Santa Barbara?
- What Are Those Old Buildings at the Corner of Castillo and Montecito Streets?
- When Will the Coast Village Road Medians Be Completed?
- What’s This Scaffold Structure on Las Positas Road?
Recent Comments
Agreed 100%! — Mia
My husband and I love your posts. Keep up the good work!! You keep us informed and aware of new places to visit and we… — Carol
I used to read Edhat daily, and sometimes just to get more information in the comments on a local news event. Now all I get… — Victoria
SB/Montecito was long known as a place for the "newly wed and nearly dead." Not so many newlyweds can afford our towns anymore, I'm afraid. — Leslie
So good to see you this week at Cafe Luxxe. I agree the trout is the best thing I’ve ever had in SB!! — Carolyn Frey
I agree Erik, “Montecito gerontocracy“ would make a great T-shirt! “Santa Barbara gerontocracy” would probably be more accurate. Is the average age of SB residents… — Melinda
Jason isn't the only candidate in District 4. Check out monte4sb.com! — MW
This list is making my mouth water. I want to try all of them! Thank you Erik! — Dave
Hugette’s choices were made with a broken heart. To live there, would have kept her pain alive. Maintaining the property, kept her family alive….yet she… — Kim kellner
When I was a little kid, "go to lower State" was a slur. It implied you were seedy, a bum, criminal. As long as the… — el_smurfo