On the Saturday September 29th show we talked about the opening for Commissions and Advisory Panels for the city. You can give them a look at the citys website http://www.santabarbaraca.gov/home.htm. If you want to have a say in city government this is a great place to start.
We also talked about the fact that the city is going to give back to the city of Carpinteria a portion of Carpinteria thats been owned by Santa Barbara for as long as anyone can remember.
There are some great events going on for the weekend, many off which are happening at the city library at Anacapa and Anapamu. Among those events is a writers fair. As the Mayor said, were entering festival season, so hang on to your hat and go out and get involved.
Ive known Marty Blum for several years and weve swapped Emails for most of that time. Recently she got a radio show on AM990 in Santa Barbara from 12PM to 1PM on Saturdays and I started listening and sending her some thoughts I had on how to make the show better. One of the things I told her was that she needed a sidekick, and not just any sidekick, but ME! After a few months of bugging her she relented and gave me a shot. She has graciously allowed me to fill that sidekick roll for the foreseeable future so I decided what the world really needed was to immortalize these events by podcasting them.
On the show for Saturday September 22nd 2007 we talked about the Mayors trip to Trenton where she met with a number of other Mayors and chaired the Sustainability Committee. We also talked about the Councils vote to widen the 101 Freeway from the Milpas St Bridge to Hot Springs Rd.
At the half hour we were joined by the Bryants, Bob and Patty talking about the Summit for Danny in conjunction with the Council for Drug Abuse. The Summit project goes around the world scaling huge mountains and raising money for a great cause.
Finally, we ended the show by talking about the Salsa Festival at Ortega Park and what was going on with City Plan which has been holding events all over town to gather information from people in the community about what they think their city should look like for the next 20 years.
Todays Blog is about a couple of my favorite hunks of Santa Barbara Real Estate. The first hunk is just outside our bedroom in the garden. Its a beautiful garden with lots of rose trees and a view, when its clear, out to the Santa Barbara Channel Islands. In this garden almost 30 years ago Laury (Honey Bunny) and I got married. Yes, on September 17, 1978 we tied the knot in front of our friends and family. Were incredibly fortunate to now own that hunk of Santa Barbara Real Estate and well be forever grateful for the love weve found in each other.
The second plot of Santa Barbara Real Estate is the Santa Barbara Biltmore. Over the years Ive played dozens of musical jobs there and weve attended a lot of events. It was with much fear and trembling that I saw Ty Warner start to re-model my beloved Marina Dining Room. I thought how anybody can make this area better is beyond me. Well, guess what, he did make it better. Its absolutely a gorgeous setting and we love it so much thats where were going to celebrate our Wedding Anniversary.
So for all you folk who would like to get a look at the Big Guy and Honey Bunny and congratulate us on 29 years of wedded bliss come on by the Biltmore at 1:30 on Sunday say hello.
This has been an eventful year! Laury is still active with the Santa Barbara Symphony & was instrumental (excuse the pun) in the selection of the new music director, Nir Kabaretti. Announced at a Gala Ball, she was the 1st to congratulate him! He is very young (38) & hasnt had an American orchestra so there is quite a bit of adjustment going on, all for the better. She also plays chamber music weekly with some fine, friendly local musicians, enjoying the 1st violin parts.
Gary is very busy teaching computer skills to the local realtors & doing lots of consulting. He continues to write a tech column for both Society of Composers & Lyricists and Casa Magazine. He also hosts a regular radio show (Mon. 9AM, 1290) called Santa Barbara Tech Talk. Keeping up with technology, he also pod casts from our web site (stats & select homes). Listen to him at www.santabarbaraproperties.com
Good news this year, Jim graduated from California Institute of the Arts as a CHEF! With honors! He now works for Disneyland at its California Adventure. The bad news he and Jennifer have split up. Very sad. Still see the kids and they are delightful- almost 4 and still very much fun.
Jeanette is overworked & understaffed but next year she will be a salaried employee and supervisor at her IT job with Clipper Wind.
On the home front,we have started our upstairs bath remodel. It should be finished early next year so if you want a great weekend, come up and visit us!
Looking for a happy, healthy & and prosperous New Year for all!
Love & Peace,
Gary and Laury
For Santa Barbara Real Estate for 06 in Montecito there have been 66 Single Family Residents Close escrow since the fist of the year. The Average Days on the Market which means from the time the property was listed until it went into escrow for those properties was 89 days. The Average Days to Close which means the time the property was in Escrow was 40 days. This means that from start to finish was a total of 129 days. The Median Sold price for those properties was $2,432,500 and the Average Sold price was $3,724,073.
For Santa Barbara Real Estate for 06 in Montecito there have been 7 Condos Close escrow since the fist of the year. The Average Days on the Market which means from the time the property was listed until it went into escrow for those properties was 114 days. The Average Days to Close which means the time the property was in Escrow was 37 days. This means that from start to finish was a total of 151 days. The Median Sold price for those properties was $1,730,000 and the Average Sold price was $1,569,285.
For the Santa Barbara Real Estate area of Carpinteria/Summerland for October 04 vs. October 05 in the Single Family Home market 5 fewer homes closed escrow in 05 as opposed to 04 with a total of 6 closing escrow this year and 11 last year. The median sold price was up however in 05 at $1,500,000 compared to $945,000 last year for an increase of 58.7%. During October 05 5 more homes came on the market with a total of 15 versus 10 last year. The median asking price for October 05 is $1,375,000 versus $1,575,000 for last year for a decrease of -12.7%.
For the Santa Barbara Real Estate area of Carpinteria Real Estate/Summerland Real Estate for October 04 vs. October 05 in the Condo market 4 fewer homes closed escrow in 05 as opposed to 04 with a total of 6 closing escrow this year and 10 last year. The median sold price however was up in 05 at $596,900 compared to $575,000 last year for an increase of 3.8%. During October 05 2 more condos came on the market with a total of 12 versus 10 last year. The median asking price for October 05 is $679,000 versus $545,000 for last year for an increase of 24.6%
Some of the best Santa Barbara Real Estate around is Oak Park on the West Side of Santa Barbara. Its a great setting and plays host to the wonderful ethnic festivals go on around here in the Spring and Summer time. This weekend is the French Festival put on by my friend from Junior High School Steve Hoegerman. So come on by and take a walk under the mighty oaks and sample all things French.
Hopefully well see you all viewing some of the best Santa Barbara Real Estate around, Oak park.
Santa Barbara County has decided to split up the Planning and Development Departments. The Planning Department oversees the creation of 6,000 new state mandated homes countywide between 2003 and 2008.
A lot of Environmental groups were in attendance at the meeting and opposed the split which they saw as a way of side stepping a lot of the review process which has held growth back. Several of the groups held afternoon rallies in front of the County Administration building.
Santa Barbara Real Estate prices continue to soar but one recent sale surprised even the agents. A home formerly owned by Essam Kahashoggi director of Earthshell Corp. in Santa Barbara was purchased by Geoff Rusack and Alison Wrigley Rusack. The estate is 38 acres right on the water and sold for $50,000,000 which is a Santa Barbara record.
The property was one of the original Hope Ranch estates and at one time encompassed about 50 acres. The original house was an 18,000 square foot mansion designed by famed architect George Washington Smith.
By CAMILLA COHEE NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
Several new appeals have been filed over Ty Warner's plans to rehabilitate the oceanfront Coral Casino.
The $35 million project was approved by both the Montecito Planning Commission and county Historic Landmarks Commission within the last month.
The appeals all center around concerns that the proposed renovation would damage the 1937 beach club's architectural integrity.
In May, club members Cynthia Ziegler, Charles Maunz and Eric Black filed an appeal of the planning commission's decision, which automatically sends the plans before the Board of Supervisors for review.
More recently, Ms. Ziegler and Mr. Maunz filed an appeal from the landmark commission's decision. Also appealing are local attorney James Kahan and Jacqueline Roston, both members of the club who also are worried about Mr. Warner's proposal to add a second-story restaurant to the club, designated a county historic landmark in 2002.
The appellants also have concerns about the use of the club by guests of the Four Seasons Biltmore Resort.
An appeal of the planning commission's decision was filed by supporters of Mr. Warner's plans who do not want the use of the proposed new sundeck limited, as the commission suggested.
County supervisors are expected to hear all the appeals on July 5.
The appellants could not be reached for comment on Wednesday. Ms. Ziegler has been the backbone of opposition to the project for several years. She formed a group known as the Coral Casino Preservation Committee, which has argued that while the renovation has many positive aspects, it alters architect Gardner Dailey's original design too much.
Mr. Warner's representative, Greg Rice, wrote a letter urging the opponents to drop their appeals. On Wednesday, he said, "These appeals are not due to violations in codes or guidelines -- numerous experts and agencies have confirmed compliance with all local and historic ordinances. It's also not a lack of community support. These appeals are creating costly delays simply because our plan is not to the personal liking of a few individuals."
Whatever the outcome, he said, "the delay created just by adding another hearing with the Board of Supervisors is pushing our construction time well into the summer of 2006."
In his appeal, Mr. Kahan states that the Coral Casino is one of the most significant non-Hispanic architectural treasures, if not the most significant, in the county and should be treated as such.
"If our architectural heritage is to have true meaning, exceptions should not be given to zoning and other land use laws to allow the compromise of the architectural integrity of buildings with historic importance," he wrote in the appeal, filed on May 16.
Well I started out the day by being on the radio with my friend of almost 40 years Baron Ron Herron. I was there with the Assistant Secretary of the Interior Lynn Trotter and the Owner of the Magic Castle, Milt Larsen.
After that it was time to go to the newly released "Madagascar" with Honey Bunny, Tommy Beers and the aforementioned Ron Herron. Despite the less that stellar reviews we all found it a great way to spend a Memorial Day afternoon.
After a little nap it'll be time to fire up the BBQ and see what there is to burn around here!
The Santa Barbara County Association of Governments has identified four options for dealing with congestion on Highway 101 between Ventura and Santa Barbara:
Proposal: Add commuter rail -- two trains at rush hour from Oxnard to Goleta.
Cost: $103 million
Proposal: Add commuter rail and one lane in each direction from the Ventura County line to Patterson Avenue, and reserve the new lanes for carpools, vanpools and buses. Add ramp-to-ramp lanes along southbound 101 between Carrillo and Garden streets and along northbound 101 between Fairview Avenue and Los Carneros Road.
Cost: $611-719 million
Proposal: Add commuter rail and one lane in each direction from the Ventura County line to Milpas Street, and reserve the new lanes for carpools, vanpools and buses. Drivers traveling alone in the new lanes could be charged a toll. North of Milpas to Los Carneros Road in Goleta, widen the freeway with periodic ramp-to-ramp lanes in both directions.
Cost: $506 million to $576 million
Proposal: Add one general-purpose lane in each direction from the Ventura County line to Goleta, for a total of six lanes south of Milpas Street and eight lanes between Milpas and Patterson Avenue. Add ramp-to-ramp lanes along southbound 101 between Carrillo and Garden streets and along northbound 101 between Fairview Avenue and Los Carneros Road.
Cost: $548 million to $656 million
Source: Santa Barbara County Association of Governments
By MELINDA BURNS NEWS-PRESS SENIOR WRITER
The largest home ever to be proposed for the Gaviota coast -- a two-story, 10,370-square-foot house that would be visible from Highway 101 -- was approved by the county Planning Commission on Wednesday, a decision opponents said would open the door to mansion-building in the rolling ranchlands west of Goleta.
The house, plus a four-car garage, pool cabana, guesthouse and barn, is planned for a 106-acre hillside on the north side of the freeway at Rancho Tajiguas, halfway between the county landfill and Refugio State Beach.
In a 3-2 vote, the commission said the size of the house did not matter, for it would be largely obscured by surrounding ridgelines.
"Do I think it's ostentatious? Yes," said Chairman Jack Boysen, who represents the Santa Maria Valley. "There's going to be a lot of people who look at that house the same way they look at Hummer drivers. But I can't be the one to make the judgment whether it's good or bad. It's their right."
Mike Lunsford, president of Gaviota Coast Conservancy, said Wednesday that the preservationist group would appeal the commission's vote to the county Board of Supervisors. Mr. Lunsford said the house was a "monster" that would be visible from three miles away. He noted that it was 6 feet higher than what county rules normally allow, and he said it would threaten the future of ranching on the coast, where most of the land is zoned for agriculture.
"This whole thing is a matter of scale," Mr. Lunsford said. "It's going to take us down the wrong road."
According to a conservancy study, the average size of homes on the Gaviota coast is 2,850 square feet, with new homes averaging 4,100 square feet. Anything more than 5,000 square feet, Mr. Lunsford said, would be out of character.
Wednesday's hearing was the latest in what is shaping up to be a project-by-project showdown over the future of the Gaviota coast. Following the recent failure of the conservancy's campaign to win a national park designation for the region, landowners have submitted proposals that could result in as many as 120 homes between Goleta and El Capitan State Beach.
West of El Capitan, Rancho Tajiguas has 24 legal lots. The owners, members of a Swiss family living in Europe, have already submitted plans for a second large home there.
The county, meanwhile, has never drawn up a general plan for the coast west of Goleta, an area determined by the National Park Service to be "globally significant" for its plant and animal diversity.
Before Wednesday's hearing, the attorneys for Rancho Tajiguas sent a letter to the county asking that Commissioner Marc McGinnes disqualify himself from voting on the house plans. As a former adviser to the conservancy, his vote would probably be biased, the letter said.
But Mr. McGinnes refused to disqualify himself Wednesday, saying he had never been part of the conservancy's policy deliberations. He said he resigned from his advisory position upon joining the commission in February.
In voting Wednesday to approve the first house at Rancho Tajiguas, Commissioner Parker Montgomery, who represents the Santa Ynez Valley and Isla Vista, said he did not intend to set a precedent and noted that the owners followed all the rules and deserved to be treated fairly.
By THOMAS SCHULTZ NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
Approval of 62 new homes on Ellwood Mesa marked a turning point in Goleta: After two decades of focused activism, environmentalists and officials worked with a developer to save a prime section of the picturesque wildland by shifting construction as far from the shoreline as possible.
When the Coastal Commission in mid-January came through with a final stamp of approval, it was cause for celebration.
But even then, those behind the effort saw another campaign looming.
In approving the Comstock Homes project, the commission, out of concern for nesting Western snowy plovers, a protected bird species, added a condition that prohibits dogs on much of Sands Beach.
Now Goleta officials are attempting to overturn that decision.
"It makes criminals out of half of the people who fought to save Ellwood," Councilwoman Cynthia Brock said. "That is just unacceptable."
A chief concern among those fighting for dog access is the fact that the area where pooches are still allowed -- the far west end of the beach -- is the most narrow stretch, particularly during high tides.
"Often, there's not much sandy beach," Ms. Brock said. "Plus there's a sea wall there. A lot of times there really isn't any passage. It's not much of a frolicking area."
Ellwood Mesa and the beach below are the only public places of that type in Goleta. Nearby Goleta Beach County Park is not within the city's jurisdiction.
What happens next is an open question.
Council members say they want a reversal as soon as possible. To that end, they have directed their staff to sniff out a quick resolution.
They note the dog rule was inserted into a discussion on the housing development by Commissioner Sara Wan, at a January meeting in Long Beach unattended by many concerned local residents, whose passage south was blocked by the deadly La Conchita mudslide.
"I'm getting a lot of calls. People are surprised," Councilwoman Jonny Wallis said at a recent council meeting. "They don't know why the Coastal Commission did what it did."
Though a small Goleta contingent attended the January commission hearing on the homes project, aware that horses would likely be banned from much of Sands Beach, city officials say they had no warning that dogs would be as well, and were therefore unable to adequately object.
With this in mind, they question whether the dog rule relies on faulty plover data, contending the birds nest away from the main section of Sands Beach in less-trafficked areas more toward Devereux Slough.
"There may be the occasional plover, but we felt there may have been some misunderstanding," Ms. Brock said.
Ms. Wan could not be reached for comment.
Commissioner Dan Secord, also a Santa Barbara City Councilman, defended the dog rule. "Plovers are real sensitive creatures. They don't tolerate intrusion well, and they are endangered. I don't think it was slipped in.' Adding a condition to protect endangered species like plovers would not be slipping it in. That would be called a good grab."
Moreover, Dr. Secord said, "I would stick by the condition because I don't want to change the process. I would hope the commission would not give in."
Entertaining requests for such rule changes, he said, slows other commission business. "It's almost paralysis. It's paralytic to the process."
If the rule is changed, amending it could take time regardless of the wishes of the City Council. Coastal Commission procedures call for a step-by-step procedure in connection with a formal application.
It's a process that could cost the city $50,000 or more in staff time and related expenses.
That application would germinate with city staff and perhaps contract biologists in the next few months, followed by preparation of a habitat management plan.
The matter would go to the council this fall, then to the commission in subsequent months -- meaning it might not reach a conclusion until sometime next year.
By CAMILLA COHEE NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
Surprise, Ty!
Residents along Miramar Beach are sending Ty Warner a massive thank you for having their beach cleaned of heavy debris following his recent purchase of the Miramar Hotel.
With a giddy Nina Terzian leading the effort, the group hired an aerial photographer to snap a shot of them gathered on the sand around a large banner that reads "Life's a beach! Thank you Ty."
Ms. Terzian plans to have the picture enlarged and framed to give as a gift, but she was thrilled to learn that the Beanie Babies billionaire would be in town today.
Ms. Terzian, who owns two homes along Miramar, is an old friend of Mr. Warner's. She was stumped on what kind of thank-you gift to buy for the man who has everything.
A creative, personal gesture seemed to be the solution.
"We're just so grateful," she said. "This beach was so bad, so stinky. Now it's pristine. It looks like the Caribbean down here."
Mr. Warner, who paid hotelier Ian Schrager $43million for the dilapidated oceanfront resort, had a cleanup crew at Miramar Beach within 30 minutes of closing escrow on April 29.
Over several days, workers filled eight 40-cubic-yard bins with trash and driftwood left by recent storms.
The photographer, Fritz Pinney, and her husband, pilot Tom Pinney, donated their time and effort for the gift.
"I just love flying over Santa Barbara," Ms. Pinney said after the trip. She said she has a collection of shots of many Santa Barbara buildings, including those owned by Mr. Warner such as the Montecito Country Club and the Coral Casino.
By BARNEY McMANIGAL NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
A proposal to establish the county's long-term planning goals drew fire Tuesday from officials and residents split about how to spend close to $6million set aside for competing regional and neighborhood needs.
The Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors took no action on a list of proposals presented in planners' three-year work plan, and it scheduled a vote next week on a set of contentious options, from neighborhood preservation to easing restrictions on farmers.
Critics of the Planning and Development Department -- including residents concerned about growth and agriculture advocates who want to keep farming viable -- have demanded it make changes. The comprehensive work plan is the department's proposal for changes. However, budget constraints have delayed other projects planners have on their wish list.
Fifth District Supervisor Joe Centeno led the charge to cut red tape for farmers after planners noted the county has more than 50 protected plant and animal species. Mr. Centeno complained that local farmers are now the "endangered species."
Mr. Centeno and 4th District Supervisor Joni Gray lobbied for converting antiquated zoning on agricultural lands to a system that allows farmers and ranchers to make property improvements, such as building additions.
At Mr. Centeno's request, supervisors unanimously approved a motion to consider removing farming issues from the planning department's umbrella and assigning them to the county's agricultural commissioner, William Gillette. These issues would include a grading ordinance that has sparked litigation from property owners.
Several work plan proposals would ease restrictions for farmers, including a measure that would allow them to build up to four farmworker homes after obtaining an over-the-counter permit. Another would permit them to open bed-and-breakfast hotels for up to 15 guests.
By CAMILLA COHEE NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
The Santa Barbara County Historic Landmarks Commission on Monday approved Ty Warner's $35 million proposal to renovate the Coral Casino beach club, including the contested second-story restaurant and rooftop sun deck.
However, plans for the renovation already are on appeal to the county Board of Supervisors. Opponents appealed the Montecito Planning Commission's approval earlier this month. A June 21 hearing date has been tentatively set.
While the renovation issue has been simmering for more than five years, the landmarks commission took on the case about 2 years ago. After 35 hours in hearings, the commission voted 6-2 in favor of the project. One member, Randy Melcombe, abstained, mainly because of concerns about the loss of 10 cabanas to make way for the new restaurant.
Voting yes were commissioners Audrey Mussell, James Lowsley, Sue Adams, Barbara Chen Lowenthal, David Stone and Eileen Wyckoff. Mary Bagne and John Woodward voted no.
Because the Coral Casino, built in 1937, is a county landmark, both the planning commission and landmarks commission must sign off on the plans.
The approval came with various conditions, such as requiring Mr. Warner to store cabinets from the cabanas, instead of throwing them away, once they are removed. The commission also asked that he look for ways to reuse hardware, such as door knobs, from the cabanas elsewhere in the remodel.
Several of the commissioners said they were swayed to allow for the rooftop sun deck after viewing a mock-up of the glass railing proposed for along the deck. The railing, a high-tech, nonreflective glass, is not visible from the Channel Drive side of the building and barely visible from the beach.
In making the point that the second-story restaurant is appropriate and should be allowed, Ms. Chen Lowenthal described the various tenets of the streamline, moderne architectural style used by Coral Casino architect Gardner Dailey, well-known in the Bay Area.
By CAMILLA COHEE NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
Opponents of Ty Warner's plan to renovate the Coral Casino have appealed a Montecito Planning Commission decision to approve the controversial project.
The appeal filed on Thursday means the project will now go before the Board of Supervisors in about a month.
Among the many concerns, appellants Cynthia Ziegler, Charles Maunz and Eric Black argue that the renovation -- which includes building a new second-story restaurant and rooftop sun deck -- will damage the 1937 beach club's architectural integrity and is in violation of the Montecito Community Plan's height restrictions.
The appeal also states that with the approval of the $35 million project, "the Coral Casino will no longer be operated as a private club, as the conditions contain no limit on hotel guest use, and add other categories of non-member use."
The appeal goes on to say that "the enhanced private view from the private restaurant does not create any benefit that would outweigh the unmitigated impacts to historic resources, especially since the impact to resources would not exist if the restaurant were located on the first floor."
In response to the appeal, Mr. Warner's representative Greg Rice said it has no merit.
"We are very disappointed, but not surprised," he said. "Just as we experienced with the Miramar, a few people are willing to risk a multimillion-dollar investment into a local landmark against the wishes of the community at large."
In a prepared statement, Mr. Rice stated, "It's hard to understand how a few people can feel so justified in pushing their own opinions ahead of approvals by the Montecito Association, Montecito Land Use Committee, Montecito Planning Commission and the conceptual approval by the Historic Landmarks Advisory Commission, the expert opinions of top historic and architectural professionals, 90 percent of the club membership and a great majority of the community who wants to see the Coral Casino rehabilitated."
Mr. Rice went on to say that aspects of the appeal are based on falsehoods, such as that after the renovation the club will become more open to hotel guests. Mr. Rice said the club has always been open to hotel guests, and was established as an amenity to the Biltmore when it first opened, and that use will not change.
By CAMILLA COHEE NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
Santa Barbara County's Historic Landmarks Commission on Monday signaled it may approve Ty Warner's plans to renovate the Coral Casino, a contentious issue that has simmered for the past five years.
The commission approved the $35 million plan in concept, although the fate of a controversial sun deck for the beach club remains unclear. The panel will meet again at 9:30 a.m. on Monday when a final vote is expected.
With two members absent, the commission voted 5-3 in favor of the plans, though the vote is not binding. As part of the motion, several of the commissioners want to view a mock-up of the glass railing proposed for the private, members-only sun deck, which would sit on top of a new second-story restaurant.
While it appears that the majority of commissioners accept the restaurant -- a key element of Mr. Warner's proposal -- many shared general concerns about the visual effect of adding the sun deck, described by Chair Sue Adams as "another pop-up against a magnificent silhouette."
The beachfront Coral Casino was built on Montecito's Channel Drive in 1937 by architect Gardner Daily and dubbed the "Gem of the Pacific."
The vast majority of the club members support Mr. Warner and his vision for renovating the weathered building, the subject of more than 100 meetings.
Cynthia Ziegler, a member of the club, is the backbone of the opposition, a small but tenacious group that wants to preserve the building. The opponents made a successful push in 2002 to have the club designated a county landmark.
Because of the designation, the landmarks commission must sign off on the plans, along with the Montecito Planning Commission, which approved them last week.
Landmarks Commissioner John Woodward, who voted against the plan on Monday, said he's interested in protecting the landmark and that Mr. Warner's plans don't achieve that to his satisfaction.
He is against both the second-story restaurant and the sun deck. His motion to block those two elements failed.
"You don't sacrifice part of a landmark to save another part," he said, referring to the proposal to remove certain "nonhistoric" additions that have been made to the building over the years as a trade-off for making new changes, such as adding the restaurant. Mary Bagne and Eileen Wyckoff also voted no.
Commissioner Barbara Chen Lowenthal made the motion that eventually was approved. Also casting "yes" votes were Ms. Adams, Audrey Mussell, Randy Melcombe and James Lowsley. Although Ms. Chen Lowenthal has problems with the sun deck, too, she was willing to wrap into her motion the conceptual approval of the deck.
By HILDY MEDINA NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
A refrigerator sits outside the front door of the Baena home -- a converted garage with no bathroom or kitchen.
AnaCecilia Baena, 30, said she looks forward to the day her family can eat its meals together in one of the new condominiums Habitat for Humanity is building on Via Lucero, and her son, Nahum, 5, can do his homework on a desk.
"Now that he's started school, he has to do his homework on the floor," Ms. Baena said. "It's really hard."
The Baenas, who are natives of Mexico, also have a daughter, Rebecca, 3.
A bunk bed, love seat, queen-sized bed and bookshelf are crammed into a 12-by-14-foot area. The kids' backpacks are hung on the wall, and their books and toys are stored neatly in various laundry baskets. An American flag is hanging prominently on the wall near the front door.
Ms. Baena, a homemaker, and her husband, Javier Baena, 38, a dump truck operator, had applied for numerous loans to buy a home but were repeatedly turned down.
"We asked other families who were in the same situation about getting a house together," recalled Ms. Baena. "We were paying rent and we thought, 'We might as well pay the mortgage.'"
Ms. Baena would often go to her pastor at the Church of the Open Bible for a shoulder to cry on when the family had again been rejected.
"He would say, 'Wait AnaCecilia, it's not time for you now, the Lord will open a door for you when you least expect it,'" Ms. Baena recalled. "I didn't believe it at the time, but he was right."
Mr. Baena, who has lived in the United States for 19 years, said he knew when he moved here he would be given an "opportunity to have a better life."
"The United States is a wonderful country," said Mr. Baena, thankful to have been selected by Habitat for Humanity for a new home. "It is my country."
It's still hard to believe that next year he and his young family may be moving into their own new three-bedroom home, said Bernardo Zarate, father of two.
"Becoming homeowners was an impossible dream for us," said Mr. Zarate, the family's sole breadwinner. "But for God, nothing is impossible."
The Zarates heard about the Habitat for Humanity project through their pastor at the Free Methodist Church. They couldn't believe their good fortune when they learned they were one of the three families chosen to live in the Via Lucero condominiums.
"I just prayed and asked God if he believed we deserved the home, then we should get it, but if there were needier families than us, then they deserve it," said Mr. Zarate, 29, a landscaper. "I'm so happy, it feels like a dream."
Mr. Zarate, his wife, Maria, 28, and daughters, Wendy, 5, and Paulina, 3, are living in a converted garage on the Westside. They moved out of a cramped studio to the larger space several months ago.
He told his wife the news while she was in Mexico visiting with her dying mother.
"She died two days after we found out we got the house," said Ms. Zarate, a homemaker. "I got to tell her the good news."
The Zarates say they are looking forward to a brighter future for their young family and are committed to helping the nonprofit do the same for other families in the years to come.
"If I can help (Habitat for Humanity) in any way I will, because they've changed our lives," Mr. Zarate said.
By CAMILLA COHEE NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
The Montecito Planning Commission on Thursday first denied then approved Ty Warner's plans to renovate the Coral Casino -- with a caveat that a third-story sun deck be used only during the day.
"We're fine with that. It's only used during the daytime anyway," said John McGowan, chairman of the club's members committee. "I agree with compromise."
With Commissioner Richard Thielscher absent, the panel voted 3-1 to approve Mr. Warner's $35 million proposal to renovate the 1937 club. Because the building is a county landmark, plans now move to the county Historic Landmarks Advisory Commission, which will consider them Monday.
Coral Casino members currently enjoy a private second-story sun deck, but with plans for a new 2,900 square-foot second-story restaurant, that sun deck would be bumped up one floor.
The private sun deck and its 42-inch-high glass railing, which would be on top of the new restaurant, would not be visible from Channel Drive and is barely visible from the beach, said Mr. Warner's lead architect, David Van Hoy.
Designed to hold 26 lounge chairs, the sun deck is critical for some club members who want an escape from squealing children, cannonballing divers and other poolside noise.
Although they struggled with the sun deck, the commission had little trouble overlooking other aspects of Mr. Warner's proposal that the county's architectural historian had pointed out as having serious effects on the building's historical integrity. Such aspects included removing 10 second-story cabanas to make way for a new restaurant and taking out a poolside bench.
Nonetheless, it was the addition of the sun deck that saw commissioners deadlocked during Thursday's six-hour hearing. A split vote equated to a denial of the project, according to the county counsel.
Opponents of the deck, including Commissioners Claire Gottskanker and Robert Meghreblian, said it's too high and throws off the balance of architect Gardner Dailey's design.
After the initial tie vote, the commissioners discussed sending some kind of message about their thoughts on the project to the Board of Supervisors, where most in the room believed the proposal would wind up anyway.
During that discussion, Commissioner Bob Bierig convinced Ms. Gottskanker to compromise her architecturally based stance against the sun deck by limiting use of the deck to daylight hours, plus four special nighttime occasions, such as Fourth of July.
By THOMAS SCHULTZ NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
California officials have rejected the city of Goleta's first effort to draft a plan intended to dictate housing policy in the city for the next 20 years, saying the document does not comply with state law.
The housing section of the city's first draft general plan, submitted to state regulators Jan. 31, only addresses "a few of the statutory requirements" and needs "significant revision to comply," according to a 14-page response from the Department of Housing and Community Development.
"They don't like it very much, do they?" Mayor Jean Blois said Wednesday. "It's a new city, a new plan. They are obviously going to go over it with a fine-toothed comb."
Jerry Bunin, spokesman for the Home Builders Association of the Central Coast, was blunt: "I'm not surprised. There were clearly some major problems. I haven't seen one that they said, 'Nice try, do it again,' which is what I think they said to Goleta."
While not a direct assault on efforts to limit growth in the city, the Sacramento review forces Goleta to back up proposed housing policies with more detailed proof that they will work. If that cannot be done, certain strategies could be doomed.
"It's a fairly lengthy review," said Cathy Creswell, Housing Department deputy director. "Clearly they have a ways to go. In some cases, they flat did not do the requirements."
The review is victory for housing advocates and developers, who have demanded a bigger say in the plan and raised a chorus of alarm in recent months that the proposed policies undermine the city's stated goals, high among them creating nearly 3,000 housing units.
In the first paragraph of its letter, the Department of Housing mentions several of these groups as having commented on the draft; it "strongly encourages the city to work with these and all interested stakeholders."
City officials say they never considered the draft a final version and expected detailed direction for its improvement.
"When it was sent in, we knew it needed more work," Councilwoman Margaret Connell said. "We were given all these deadlines. We had to send in basically an unfinished document. It's going to need more work. And we'll get it done."
Indeed, revisions were under way before the letter arrived.
A final version of the housing document -- the first was submitted to the state amid a City Hall shake-up -- is due by Aug. 1. A final version of the overall draft general plan is due by the end of the year.
By SCOTT HADLY NEWS-PRESS SENIOR WRITER
Santa Barbara is about to be outnumbered.
Sometime in September, according to the California Department of Finance, more people will be living in the once-sleepy farm town of Santa Maria than among the red-tiled roofs of Santa Barbara.
It may be just a number, but in the development of the county's economy and politics, the point at which the population graph lines of the two cities part will be historic.
"We're becoming the economic engine that's keeping Santa Barbara County growing," said Santa Maria Mayor Larry Lavagnino, who has lived in his city for 70 years.
"Santa Maria is a very healthy city," he added. "People want to live here and they're buying homes here. What you have to remember is that with the median price of a house in Santa Barbara at $1.2 million, how long can you keep a middle class there? Do you still have one?"
Mr. Lavagnino remembers having to drive to Santa Barbara to see the orthodontist as a child because Santa Maria had none. But the town once known as Central City, long dominated by agriculture, has changed since then.
"If you'd told me then that one day we'd be bigger than Santa Barbara, I would have never believed it," he said.
"It was bound to happen," said Santa Barbara Mayor Pro Tem Roger Horton (Mayor Marty Blum is out of town). "We simply don't have the space."
He's surprised Santa Maria will pull ahead so soon, but the two cities are sufficiently different that "I don't see us in direct competition with them," Mr. Horton said.
Vast tracts of new housing and commercial development have made Santa Maria and the North County in general the fast-growing section of the county. The city is growing at a rate of 4 percent; as of early January it reached 88,793, according to the state Finance Department.
Santa Barbara's population remained stagnant at about 90,518, according to the state. The county's population stands at 419,260, with more than half of those people living in the north.
Although Santa Maria has become a sort of bedroom community for people who work on the South Coast or in San Luis Obispo, it is also growing its commercial and industrial sector. Mr. Lavagnino predicts that companies seeing the costs of doing business and the inability to recruit workers in Santa Barbara might soon make the move north.
Santa Maria's large strip malls along Highway 101 have helped push its sales tax revenue past tourist-driven Santa Barbara's for the first time.
By SCOTT HADLY NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
The Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians asked the federal government late last month to annex into its reservation 13 parcels the tribe owns along both sides of Highway 246.
The properties add up to only 5.68 acres but are significant because they are at the entry to both the reservation and to the developed portion of the Santa Ynez Valley.
"We have no plans for the property now," said tribal Chairman Vincent Armenta.
The tribe now owns all the land on both sides of the highway for three blocks except a gas station on the northwest corner of Edison Street and Highway 246.
The application to annex the 13 parcels into the reservation shouldn't be a surprise, because the tribe has owned the property for some time and the land is adjacent to reservation land, Mr. Armenta said.
The tribe submitted its application to the Bureau of Indian Affairs on April 25 and notified the Board of Supervisors and several other local representatives on April 27. Annexation would remove the property from local jurisdiction, remove zoning restrictions on the land and take it off the local tax rolls.
"I wanted them (local officials) to know we completed the application," Mr. Armenta said. "I didn't want them hearing from anyone else."
The properties include the whole block along the north side of Highway 246 between Faraday Street and Edison, and on the south side two parcels along the east side of Sanja Cota. The remaining parcels extend from that intersection on the long sliver of land sandwiched between the reservation and the highway extending almost to the entrance to the casino.
The application comes as county officials and tribal members are negotiating over an agreement for another small plot along the highway they want to annex to build a museum and cultural center. That agreement is supposed to include rules about design standards for the cultural center and commercial complex. The county also wants to require the Chumash to stick to its original 2001 land use proposal to the Bureau of Indian Affairs, which indicates the tribe will not have gaming on the site. That annexation effort has been opposed by the group, Santa Ynez Valley Concerned Citizens. The group does not want the Bureau of Indian Affairs to allow the tribe to annex the land without taking a cumulative look at tribal development in the valley.
By FRANK NELSON NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
The on-again, off-again saga surrounding the Miramar Hotel is now on again, and this time it's final -- Beanie Babies billionaire Ty Warner has bought the historic Montecito landmark.
Ty Warner Hotels & Resorts announced the purchase on Friday in a statement that gave some reasons for the decision, including changes in county government, and hinted at others. The statement did not say how much New York-based hotelier Ian Schrager was paid for the 17-acre beachfront property, but it is thought to be around $45 million.
"We are excited about the opportunity to complete the Miramar renovation to bring new life and beauty back to this community treasure," said Greg Rice, executive vice president of development for the purchasing company.
"We know how long the community has been eagerly anticipating the reopening and we would hope to accelerate the process."
He said the way ahead now involves compiling a new set of building plans based on current codes, submitting them to the various authorities and working through the permit process.
Mr. Rice said changes in county government played "an important role" in Mr. Warner's final decision to complete the purchase.
"Changes in the county leadership and the recent action by the county to reject the frivolous appeal of the Miramar permit extensions -- as well as the recent clear progress by the county Planning and Development Department to bring sensibility and credibility to the review process -- provided Mr. Warner with the confidence he needed to complete the deal," he said.
By CAMILLA COHEE NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
Beanie Babies magnate Ty Warner has overcome one hurdle in his bid to buy the partially demolished Miramar Hotel, but it's coming down to the wire on yet another.
Enough construction has been completed at the beachside hotel in recent months that the county Planning and Development Department has determined that the property's development rights can remain active. They were set to expire in the beginning of May for lack of activity.
Although that paves the way for Mr. Warner's purchase of the 17-acre site from hotelier Ian Schrager, escrow was supposed to close on the estimated $45 million transaction Thursday. But by the end of the day, the deal still hadn't closed.
"We have to make a decision now," said Greg Rice, vice president of Ty Warner Hotels & Resorts. "It's a tough one."
The property has languished as an eyesore for more than six years, until Mr. Warner announced in February that he intended to buy and rebuild it. The purchase was to include all the approval plans and rights that Mr. Schrager had obtained to renovate the Miramar.
In a letter dated Wednesday, Assistant Director of Planning and Development Dianne Meester stated that enough "substantial physical construction" had been done on the site by Mr. Warner's team to warrant extending the final development plan put in place by Mr. Schrager.
More than $5 million has been spent toward repairing and renovating the long-neglected cottages.
However, even with an approved development plan, Mr. Rice said Mr. Warner's team was hesitant to go forward. The wariness, he said, stems from past experience in dealing with local approval agencies and a sense that some Miramar neighbors might already have issues with the project.
By CAMILLA COHEE NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
The Montecito Planning Commission spent all day Wednesday wrangling over the details of Ty Warner's $35 million plan to renovate the historic Coral Casino.
Although a last-ditch effort was made by Greg Rice -- Mr. Warner's lead representative -- to get a thumbs-up or thumbs-down from the commission based on what is known so far, Chairman Robert Meghreblian wasn't going for such spontaneity.
"I am somewhat reluctant to take a straw vote," Mr. Meghreblian said, adding that he and his colleagues still had questions and comments to make. "This has been a 12-hour session for us. I think we need time to think about these things."
The hearing will continue at 9 a.m. May 5, when a decision is expected.
Before a large crowd that dwindled as the day went on, commissioners listened to public comment for five hours. They spent the rest of the afternoon trying to unravel a conflict between those who say the plans will save the building and those who insist they will destroy it.
The only indication of the commissioners' leanings was through questions they asked.
Although the issues have been debated before, plenty of discussion came up about the significance of a proposed second-story restaurant; the removal of 10 cabanas and a pool-deck cement bench; the addition of a third-story sun deck; and new use of a fire exit door at the base of the tower, part of the building's facade along Channel Drive.
"There has been a lot of information put out to them; it would have been nice to get a little bit of a feel about their leanings so people could prepare for next week," said Mr. Warner's lead architect, David Van Hoy. "After all, we're sort of where we were when we walked in the door" when the project was introduced five years ago.
Concerned about the increased popularity of the club -- and possibly more traffic -- because of a nicer restaurant and improvements, the commission probed at length precisely who would be allowed to use the new restaurant and access the area through the new entrance at the tower base.
By JOSHUA MOLINA NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
In a major milestone for the medical community and county residents, the Santa Barbara City Council on Tuesday unanimously approved the rebuilding of Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital, the largest and most expensive project in the city's history.
"We will now begin construction on what will be one of the best teaching hospitals in the country," said Cottage Health System Chief Executive Officer Ron Werft.
The approval came more than two years after Cottage proposed rebuilding the hospital in the Oak Park neighborhood on the upper Westside.
Tuesday's go-ahead was expected because the city and Cottage have been negotiating practically every detail of the project, which will result in a 337-bed hospital with two parking garages totaling 1,200 spaces.
For the first time, however, Cottage officials publicly suggested that they might need public money to help pay for the hospital. The project is expected to cost $413 million, but officials fear the price tag could be much higher.
"We may need your financial assistance," said Cottage board member Dr. Nicholas Vincent, who suggested the cost of the hospital may be as high as $460 million to $480 million. "This isn't done."
The revelation surprised Mayor Marty Blum. But she said that rebuilding Cottage Hospital is absolutely essential, and if Cottage needs financial help, then the city and its residents should consider chipping in.
Cottage had promised to pay for the project using no taxpayer dollars, relying on a plan to sell private bonds, use hospital reserves, spend money from its foundation and raise funds in the community.
"This is a community project, actually," the mayor said after the meeting. "We're working together on it, and we'll have to figure out how to pay for it together. If it is through bonding or private funds, maybe there's a way for the city to help. I am not sure."
After Tuesday's meeting, Mr. Werft emphasized that as of today, Cottage doesn't plan to use any taxpayer dollars. But around the state, he said, construction bids for hospitals are coming back 15 percent to 20 percent higher than some institutions had expected and it is possible that something similar could happen here.
"To the extent that the city will help, we would certainly appreciate it," Mr. Werft said.
Cottage expects to start heavy construction in June.
The hospital will remain open throughout construction, expected to last through 2013. Cottage is working to meet a state deadline that requires all hospitals to be able to withstand a major earthquake by that time.
Cottage assembled a who's who of political insiders, consultants, architects and power brokers to steer the project through the city's channels. Early on, many neighborhood residents complained about the effects of the hospital construction.
The medical center's team wore them down, however, and some of them moved from the neighborhood when they realized the project was unstoppable.
The nonprofit Cottage Health System operates the only three hospitals on the South Coast.
It purchased St. Francis Medical Center in 2001 after that hospital, bleeding red ink, shut down. Cottage plans to build below-market housing for its workers at the upper Eastside site.
As part of the approval, Cottage agreed to many expensive upgrades -- about $10 million worth -- that are unrelated to medical services, including putting utility wires underground, making dozens of road and sidewalk improvements, and installing an underground creek culvert to stop flooding in the area.
By Joshua Molina Santa Barbara News Press Staff Writer
A $413 million proposal to rebuild Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital goes before the City Council this afternoon.
Cottage needs to finish construction by 2013, the state's mandated deadline for hospitals to make their buildings earthquake-safe. Cottage is seeking to build a 337-bed hospital that it claims would be the best between Los Angeles and San Jose. The city plans to give up one block of Castillo Street to accommodate Cottage's footprint for the building.
Officials with Cottage intend to pay for the hospital using reserves, money from its foundation, a private bond and by raising $100 million. Cottage already has raised $20 million.
The City Council meeting begins at 2 p.m. at City Hall.
By JOSHUA MOLINA NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
The city known as the American Riviera will burn most of its budget reserves and make multimillion-dollar cuts through 2009 to pay for soaring salaries, pensions and insurance costs.
The City Council is already warning people that there will be some cuts in services, and fee increases, to help balance the $96million budget, which next year is projected to have a $7.3million deficit.
And Santa Barbara is on pace to scrape the bottom of its budget reserves by spending all but $1.7million in the next four years.
Even the city administrator has acknowledged that the city will need "courage" to cope with the serious financial problems ahead.
The city's budget problems are the dominant political issue this year and have already sparked angry debate among some elected officials and union leaders.
The city known for its red tile roofs and red brick sidewalks is now reeling from red ink rising to record levels in this community of 90,000 residents.
"I have grave concerns about the next five years," Mayor Marty Blum said. "It's almost like how do you pay off a credit card when you've spent too much?"
Even so, it's a good time to work for the City of Santa Barbara: All 1,061 employees received raises this year. Police and custodians. Managers and maintenance workers. Planners and park rangers. Even City Council members, who will see their salaries triple.
The city released its budget for next year on April 19. The near-400-page document shows hundreds of charts and tens of thousands of numbers.
But within its pages lies a deeper story about the future of the city's finances.
Santa Barbara faces several years of budget deficits. To pull through the tough times, officials are relying on the economy to turn around, multimillion-dollar cutbacks over the next two years, and the near-depletion of the city's designated "budgeted reserves," essentially savings.
The driving force behind the city's rising costs is salaries and benefits, which make up about 75percent of the $96million general fund budget.
In a year when four members of the council are up for re-election and all seven of the city's union contracts were up for renegotiation, the city gave raises to everybody on the payroll.
By 2009, those raises will cost the city an extra $10.5million annually. That amount will almost certainly rise when union contracts expire and new ones are negotiated.
Under the newest contracts, police officers will receive 10percent raises over the next two years. They will also receive one-time $1,400 bonuses. Firefighters will receive 15percent raises over three years. Members of the city's Service Employees International Union 620 will receive 16percent raises over the next four years.
On top of that, managers and department heads will get raises equal to the people they manage.
The City Council's motives in approving raises during troubled financial times are complicated. In election years, the unions carry political weight because their endorsements are often followed by big campaign donations and members walking precincts during the election season.
By NORA K. WALLACE NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
The complex and controversial yearlong study of splitting Santa Barbara County has cost $623,700 so far -- and the tab is still running.
For the past year, the five-member Mission County Formation Review Commission has picked apart various aspects of county government, asking for detailed financial records and using up hundreds of hours of staff time.
"None of the big stuff has hit yet," said Jason Stilwell, special projects manager in the office of the county's Chief Executive Officer, referring to printing and advertising costs.
Two hundred copies of the final document will be printed at a cost of about $5,000, said Beth Owen, a county analyst who worked with the commission. The panel allocated about $40,000 for that, as well as printing 50,000 English and 10,000 Spanish-language summaries, placing full-page ads in local newspapers, airing Spanish-language television advertisements, publishing another summary in newspapers and paying for so-called "teaser ads" that have run in the News-Press and two North County papers.
The small ads are designed to entice people to read a summary that will be inserted in local papers on Monday.
"Unless you're getting married, taking a European vacation or attending your boss's birthday party, there's really no excuse for missing an important 4-page newspaper insert on Monday, April 25," one of the ads states.
Though the formation group finished its hefty report in April, the election on dividing the county along north-south lines won't occur until June 2006. If voters decide to create a Mission County, the new government would pay the costs of the study. If they vote against the split, Santa Barbara County would pay.
By CAMILLA COHEE NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
Before a packed, sometimes irritated audience, the Montecito Planning Commission on Wednesday began to wade through issues surrounding Ty Warner's plans to rehabilitate the Coral Casino beach club.
The meeting, which will pick up again at 10 a.m. Wednesday, hit on a number of the contentious areas: a proposed second-story restaurant and questionable allowance of a third-story sun deck; removal of a historic bench on the pool deck; and a new entrance to the club at the base of the tower, among others.
The commissioners asked some questions but mostly listened as they heard from Mr. Warner's team, which worked to make the case that benefits of the project far outweigh any cons. That includes the loss of some historically important parts of the building, such as the cabanas or pool deck bench, original to architect Gardner Dailey's 1937 design.
While praising the project, Sue Adams, head of the county Historic Landmarks Advisory Commission, reminded the planners that great care must be taken when considering any alterations to a landmarked building. The landmarks commission must sign off on the project for it to go forward. "It is not appropriate to ignore Class 1 impacts when considering landmarks," she said, referring to a finding by the county-hired architectural historian, Mitch Stone, that the removal of the cabanas and bench constituted a highly significant negative effect to the building's historical value.
Mr. Warner hired several architectural historians of his own, all certified by the county, who disagreed with that finding.
"When I looked at the Coral Casino, we did not single out the bench as one of the character-defining features. We did not feel its removal would have any impact at all," said Alex Cole, an architectural historian working with Mr. Warner's team since the project began five years ago. "All three historians (hired by Mr. Warner to review the project) did agree the loss of the cabanas was an historic impact, but not a Class 1 impact" because other improvements being made to the building offset it. Those include the removal of a hodgepodge of additions made over the years.
Several of those in attendance hissed at the project's main opposition, Cynthia Ziegler, and some got into a harsh exchange with Planning Commission Chairman Robert Meghreblian, who had wanted to stop the meeting promptly at 5 p.m., leaving no time for public comment.
By CAMILLA COHEE NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
After five years and more than a hundred meetings, the Coral Casino renovation project on Wednesday will come before the Montecito Planning Commission -- so far the only agency to hear the plans with any authority to decide its fate.
The much-anticipated meeting will pit owner Ty Warner's $35 million vision to renovate the weathered beach club, a county historic landmark, against a small but tenacious group of self-proclaimed "preservationists."
The county planning department is recommending that the Planning Commission approve the project and certify an environmental impact report.
To do so, the commission must see enough benefits within the plans to give Mr. Warner formal leeway on two key areas that the county's architectural historian said don't pass muster -- the removal of 10 second-story cabanas to make way for a new restaurant and the removal of a bench on the pool deck.
These two elements, considered historically important to architect Gardner Dailey's original 1937 design, have caused more controversy and delay than Mr. Warner's team perhaps could have imagined.
"In the same time we have seen two presidential elections and three Olympic Games, Ty Warner's plan to historically rehabilitate the Coral Casino has been subjected to a seemingly unending review process," said Greg Rice, Mr. Warner's representative on his hotel endeavors. "The goal of his plan is to rehabilitate an existing structure and remove nonhistoric structures. It does not add any new uses, it does not add any new members, it does not alter the original footprint of the club, and it enjoys the overwhelming support of members and the community."
Cynthia Ziegler, a part-time Santa Barbara resident and member of the club, disagrees. She is the backbone of the opposition.
Although there are aspects of Mr. Warner's plan that she appreciates, she said too much of it -- including the cabana and bench removals -- does not comply with regulations governing historic preservation and design. She also has problems with a proposed use of a door at the base of the tower and with a third-story sun deck she said is too high.
By Thomas Schultz NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
Invoking a rarely used rule, the California Coastal Commission told a Carpinteria man trying to extract concessions from the Miramar Hotel to pay for an appeal that could thwart future use of the seaside property.
Stephan Tompkins, 77, was leaning toward nonpayment Friday, which would clear the way for Beanie Babies creator Ty Warner to purchase the hotel, closed for renovations since 2000, from hospitality tycoon Ian Schrager before construction entitlements there expire May 3.
Mr. Tompkins has until the middle of next week to make his decision.
If he backs his April 6 claim against the Miramar with $300, the Schrager-Warner transaction grows significantly more risky. Payment by Mr. Tompkins would force a mid-May hearing on whether commissioners should even entertain his grievances, much less decide in his favor. But Mr. Warner hopes to close escrow sooner, reportedly by the end of this month.
Existing entitlements would remain in force past the May 3 deadline until the appeal is resolved. But Greg Rice, vice president of development at Ty Warner Hotels & Resorts, said merely keeping the appeal alive creates a substantial risk that renovations would face years of new approvals, an uncertainty that makes buying the resort less attractive. "We obviously don't want to buy and find out a bad decision," he said.
By CAMILLA COHEE NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
Debate about how far from Franklin Creek a newly approved Carpinteria housing development should be built has made its way to the California Coastal Commission, which is expected to decide today at its meeting in Santa Barbara whether to hear the case.
A 27-unit project at 1497 Linden Ave., which the City Council approved in February, was appealed by several neighbors, the Carpinteria Creeks Committee and two members of the Coastal Commission.
The disagreement centers on whether it is appropriate for the homes' back yards to be within the city's 50-foot setback requirement from a creek.
Representatives from M. Timm Development contend that even though four backyard property lines are just 17 feet from the creek channel, their "Mission Terrace" project should go forward.
They say the yards would be regulated by the homeowners association, designed without structures, and would include "critter friendly" fencing and native riparian vegetation, all requirements under the city's newly adopted Creeks Preservation Program.
Appellants point out that it would be difficult to monitor or regulate homeowners' use of the back yards over time, which could put the creek's health in jeopardy.
According to the Coastal Commission staff report, "(T)he everyday use of the setback area by homeowners cannot be regulated, nor can the placement of structures such as barbecues, lawn furniture, and play equipment, or the level of noise and activity be controlled.
By JOSHUA MOLINA NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
The public will get its first look tonight at Santa Barbara's plan to triple the size of its quaint airport terminal, a $55 million move that has some passengers concerned that the airport may lose its special, small-town appeal.
City officials say they are expanding to accommodate soaring passenger levels and to create more space for the airlines inside the cramped terminal. Built in 1942, the terminal is also prone to flooding during heavy rains, and plans call for lifting the new building and the street about 2 feet.
The project goes public with a 5:30 p.m. workshop tonight at the airport.
The city claims the current terminal, which, at about 19,000 square feet, is smaller than the downtown Ralphs supermarket, is outdated and inefficient.
Airport officials contend that the new terminal will maintain the Spanish Colonial Revival architecture that is synonymous with Santa Barbara.
"It will have the Santa Barbara ambience, and it will feel good," said Tracy Lincoln, airport operations manager. "I think it will be just as beautiful as Santa Barbara."
They promise the airport, even though it may be two-stories tall, won't look like a mini-LAX when it is done. They say they don't expect an increase in flights or new providers because of the expansion -- they are merely trying to meet the demand they have now.
By THOMAS SCHULTZ NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
Bacara Resort & Spa intends to build more than five dozen suites -- a preliminary proposal that already has sparked conflict.
Hotel executives describe it as an expected project for the next stage of the resort, but Goleta officials call it an expansion. How this basic conflict plays out could significantly affect how the plan for 62 two- and three-bedroom units is perceived by slow-growth Goleta City Council members who could ultimately decide its fate.
Under the proposal, the units would be managed by Bacara but sold to private owners, who could in turn rent them out. The plan is sure to generate stiff resistance among Goleta residents still angry that the 73-acre resort exists on what was once a popular wildland, and those still fuming over its unsuccessful attempt to prevent nighttime public parking for visitors to Haskell's Beach.
The hotel is likely to find support, however, from the Goleta Valley Chamber of Commerce, where business leaders note that higher profits translate to more tax dollars for the community.
"They (management) want to complete Bacara, to fulfill what the marketplace is asking for," said political consultant John Davies, speaking for the resort. "By doing that, they can up their occupancy.
"The biggest demand they have is two- and three-bedroom suites," Mr. Davies said, noting that more hotel business means an increase in city tax revenue. "It's an easy proposal. It's an easy discussion."
Since its opening, Bacara has enjoyed rave reviews from travel publications as an upscale destination. However, it is also embroiled in a huge civil lawsuit over its construction that could jeopardize the resort's future, according to attorneys for the owners.
Underneath its glossy surface, parts of the complex are rotting, cracking and crumbling away, the result of a litany of building defects, court documents allege. It's a morass of multiple claims ricocheting among the resort owners, insurance companies, contractors, engineers, architects and subcontractors.
By BARNEY McMANIGAL NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
Capping an 11-year push to create more parkland in densely populated Isla Vista, a plan to acquire five oceanfront parcels took a key step forward Tuesday.
The Board of Supervisors unanimously decided to purchase three of the adjoining parcels in the 6700 block of Del Playa Drive for $1.5 million. The move clears the way for the county to acquire the two remaining lots from the Yankwich family, which owns all five parcels. Nudged between two existing county-owned parcels, the five lots would create 2.15 acres of contiguous open space now known by locals as "Claire's Park."
The supervisors announced the decision following a closed-door meeting. It came after extensive lobbying by students and residents who asked 3rd District Supervisor Brooks Firestone to reverse his opposition to the plan.
In February, supervisors pulled out of an agreement negotiated by former Supervisor Gail Marshall, with Mr. Firestone calling it a bad deal for the county. The Los Olivos vintner successfully resurrected negotiations after constituents complained about the lack of open space in Isla Vista, where 17,000 people are crammed on one square mile.
Mr. Firestone said only passive recreation would be allowed on the park site, which likely would be renamed. He didn't know whether the county or some other entity, such as the Isla Vista Park and Recreation District, would manage it.
Mr. Firestone said the new plan met several county demands absent from the previous deal. These included providing a one-year window in which the officials could raise the $1 million needed to purchase the two remaining lots. The county will sell two other vacant parcels a few blocks away known as the Del Playa Courts, he said.
"Looking at the fine print, I didn't see how we could get out of it," said Mr. Firestone, who feared the county would have to use general fund money if the Del Playa Courts failed to bring in enough to cover the Yankwich parcels. He also expressed concern about the order in which the lots were purchased.
Although supervisors are prohibited from discussing property negotiations, Mr. Firestone indicated that recent erosion to oceanfront cliffs may have contributed to the earlier decision to reject the deal.
By JOSHUA MOLINA NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
Hoping to stop raw sewage from spilling into streets, creeks and beaches, Santa Barbara officials are shaping an ordinance that would require homeowners to pay to have their underground pipes inspected -- and fixed if they are cracked and leaking.
Members of the City Council and other officials believe that homeowners aren't taking proper care of their sewer pipes, resulting in frequent backups, spills and health hazards.
"I think it is an excellent idea that will go a long way toward helping 50percent of our sewer system to become checked," said Councilwoman Iya Falcone. "At this point there is no trigger system for private laterals."
The sewer pipes that run from a home or business to the city's sewer mains are called laterals.
The city estimates inspections would cost property owners about $200, but paying a plumber to replace a sewer pipe would cost between $2,000 and $5,000.
Santa Barbara has about about 350 miles of sewer laterals -- enough to stretch from here to San Francisco -- that are privately owned. Homeowners own the pipes that connect from their homes to the middle of the street where they attach to the city sewer mains. The city owns about 263 miles of sewer mains.
By NORA K. WALLACE NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
The Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians and the county are still negotiating over a small plot of land off Highway 246 where the tribe hopes to build a museum and cultural center.
The two entities came to a handshake agreement in February over zoning and development on the 6.9 acres across the street from the tribe's casino and resort hotel, but have yet to cement a deal.
An agreement between the tribe and the county, called historic by both groups, is expected to include design standards for the cultural center and commercial complex. The county also wants to require the Chumash to stick to their 2001 land-use proposal to the Bureau of Indian Affairs, which indicates the tribe would not have gaming on the site.
After a February Board of Supervisors hearing, the county drafted a proposal and several weeks ago sent it to tribal leaders, said Shane Stark, county counsel.
By THOMAS SCHULTZ NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
The Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors may dismiss an appeal brought by a Carpinteria man who says hospitality tycoon Ian Schrager and Beanie Babies creator Ty Warner should be held liable for bed taxes lost since the 2000 closure of the Miramar Hotel.
Stephan Tompkins, 77, has appealed a March 16 Montecito Planning Commission decision that gave Mr. Warner the one-year extension on permits and building rights he wanted before he agrees to buy the seaside property from Mr. Schrager. Without the extension, Miramar construction entitlements expire May 3.
If the appeal process takes longer, it could threaten the transaction. Mr. Warner -- who wants to close escrow beforehand, reportedly at the end of April -- has said the entitlements are an important reason for his interest in the purchase.
A source close to the deal told the News-Press Mr. Warner would pay $45 million for the hotel and an additional $70 million for renovations.
On Tuesday, supervisors will decide whether to hear the appeal at a later date or throw it out on grounds that it does not meet legal thresholds, officials said.
By THOMAS SCHULTZ NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
A $45 million deal to transfer ownership of the seaside Miramar Hotel from hospitality tycoon Ian Schrager to billionaire Beanie Baby creator Ty Warner could unravel because of objections raised by a 77-year-old Carpinteria man who spent five years in state prison for shooting a store manager during an argument over a history celebration.
Stephan Tompkins has appealed to the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors a March 16 Montecito Planning Commission decision that gave Mr. Warner a one-year extension on permits and building rights he needs to buy and renovate the Miramar.
Without that extension, construction entitlements at the property expire on May 3. Mr. Warner hopes to close escrow before then, reportedly at the end of April. But if the appeal process begun Monday takes longer -- and Mr. Tompkins said he would also appeal to the state Coastal Commission, if necessary -- it could threaten the transaction.
Reached Tuesday, Mr. Tompkins said the Planning Commission should have held Mr. Schrager and Mr. Warner accountable for transient occupancy, or bed, taxes lost since the Miramar closed in September 2000.
"If nobody is going to do anything about it, I am," Mr. Tompkins said. "I felt the Planning Commission should have said, OK, fine, but we want you to put up $20 million to protect against the loss of bed taxes.' These guys are throwing around all that big money but have not made any reservation for the community.
"Right now there are more than 20 CEOs in prison, billionaires," Mr. Tompkins said. "There's CEOs in court. There are CEOs that are being indicted. I won't even start talking about Martha Stewart. There is no guarantee that Ty Warner is going to go through with this."
A source close to the deal told the News-Press that Mr. Warner has pledged to pay $45 million up front -- and could spend another $70 million on renovations -- for the 17-acre Miramar spread near San Ysidro Road and Highway 101.
By THOMAS SCHULTZ NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
Home builders and advocates for new housing are alarmed over the latest draft of Goleta's first general plan, saying the blueprint for growth undermines its stated goals, high among them the creation of nearly 3,000 new housing units.
They say the plan calls for growth but lacks the proper tools to achieve that.
Jennifer McGovern, coordinator of the Goleta Housing Leadership Council, said that while some policies in the plan are well meaning, they are sabotaged by others. "When you get to the technical part, the policies don't work."
The criticism comes as business and civic leaders demand a bigger say in the plan, its content to date largely directed by the City Council. Leading this charge is the Goleta Valley Chamber of Commerce. Fearing residents are unaware of the draft plan's thrust, President and CEO Kristen Amyx hopes an ad campaign will help get the chamber's views across to the public.
"To me it's surprising that after two-and-a-half years of cityhood, they (council members) are still not listening to us," she said. "It would be good if professionals who will be affected by these policies and are studying these policies sit across the table."
Adding to the opposition is a strong push by would-be developers of the Bishop Ranch to rezone 265 acres of fallow agricultural land along Highway 101 for some 600 to 1,500 homes. In the current general plan draft, City Hall balks at that, so the builders, backed by an increasingly visible brigade of supporters, have recast their proposal.
By SCOTT HADLY NEWS-PRESS SENIOR WRITER
A federal judge earlier this week dismissed a rambling lawsuit filed by Francis Denby "Denny" Gherini of Oxnard against dozens of federal officials, judges, his two sisters and former Rep. Bob Lagomarsino over the sale of Mr. Gherini's family's former ranch on Santa Cruz Island.
U.S. District Judge A. Howard Matz called the suit "sprawling, confusing and sometimes inconsistent" in its claims that 42 individuals -- including Mr. Gherini's own family members -- violated racketeering laws to ensure that the federal government would gain title to the family's 10 percent share of the island as part of the effort to establish the Channel Islands National Park.
Mr. Gherini filed the federal action in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles in October, alleging the government tried to "fraudulently misappropriate, embezzle, and convert to their own purposes, the oil, gas and mineral rights primarily lying in submerged area (sic), a part of Santa Cruz Island, and in particular, the Gherini Ranch and its offshore areas."
But Judge Matz concluded that Mr. Gherini, a 62-year-old real estate broker, was using the federal courts to re-litigate a state probate case over how his parents' estate was distributed. Mr. Gherini and his two sisters, Andrea Gherini Gallant and Catherine Gherini Beauclair, are the children of Francis Ambrose and Inez Gherini, who were the last private landowners on Santa Cruz Island, with title to about 6,200 acres of ranchland
By JOSHUA MOLINA NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
Cottage Health System hopes to clear its biggest hurdle this week when it goes before Santa Barbara city officials with plans for its new $407 million hospital.
The project -- Cottage officials say it will be the biggest and best hospital between Los Angeles and San Jose -- goes before the City Council and Planning Commission today at 6 p.m. Then it's back before the commission again on Thursday at 9 a.m. when a vote is expected.
Rebuilding the hospital on Santa Barbara's upper Westside will dramatically transform the medical landscape and rattle surrounding residential neighborhoods. Construction is expected to last through 2013.
For the city's decision-makers, the matter realistically isn't about whether to approve the project; Cottage is the only hospital provider between Santa Ynez Valley Santa Barbara. It's more about striking a balance among the hospital's needs, the neighbors and health care for the community.
The hospital has major momentum behind it, but city officials and Cottage are expected to wrangle over construction hours, environmental design and traffic.
Although the new hospital will sport state-of-the-art design and top-notch medical services, it will also increase traffic congestion around the hospital. City officials are asking Cottage to pay $250,000 for study to improve traffic flow around the hospital.
"Obviously we want to do as much as we possibly can, but we also can't pay for everything."
said Cottage spokeswoman Janet O'Neill. "We are trying to be as reasonable as we can be in trying to conserve our costs. We are trying to do the right thing for the community."
Some of Santa Barbara's most prominent and influential community members are backing Cottage's plan and overseeing the fund raising for the project. Cottage intends to raise $100 million and has already collected about $16 million.
Hospital brass are in a hurry to get approval of the project. The state is forcing all hospitals to rebuild to meet earthquake safety codes by 2013. Cottage, which is nonprofit, plans to pay for the project with community donations, the sale of private bonds, hospital reserves and money from its foundation. The issue is one that hospitals throughout California are struggling with.
Residents who live near the hospital say they are caught in the middle. They don't want to appear as though they oppose a hospital, but they are concerned about traffic, noise and congestion near their homes.
"Everyone throughout the process has asked me why I haven't left," said Joddi Leipner, who lives near the proposed 635-space parking garage. "It's because I can't."
Ms. Leipner, a planner with the county, has been one of the more active neighbors since Cottage announced its plans. Fearing construction, some others have since moved out of the Oak Park area to avoid the hospital construction.
Ms. Leipner lives with her husband and 4-year-old daughter near the hospital. Her biggest concerns involve parking and construction hours.
Cottage is proposing construction Monday through Saturday. At one point, city officials requested construction be limited to week days, but Cottage objected, claiming that a shorter week would push the project back by three years and force it to miss is 2013 deadline.
"I really wish they wouldn't construct on Saturdays," she said. "It's really the Saturdays that are hard to take. When you are working hard all week and you have two days to enjoy the solitude of your home, it is going to be hard."
The plan to make over Cottage Hospital is the city's biggest and most expensive project in history. As part of the new construction, Cottage plans to take over a block on Castillo Street.
Among the project's highlights:
*Two parking garages with approximately 1,191 spaces.
*337 single-occupancy beds
*A helipad atop the hospital
*A three-story child care center
*Five patient courtyards
Longtime Planning Commissioner Bill Mahan said he will focus on ways Cottage can improve traffic flow in the area and speed up the construction time for the hospital.
"I think construction noise is going to be a concern to the neighborhood," Mr. Mahan said.
"The length of time that it takes to build this facility is certainly a concern of mine."
City Councilwoman Helene Schneider called it a pivotal week for the future of Cottage Hospital.
"It's a huge project, a state mandate with a very tight deadline on a facility with great importance to the community," Ms. Schneider said.
"My question is how do you balance the neighborhood concerns with the greater good of the city."
By CAMILLA COHEE NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
Ty Warner's plan to purchase and revive the Miramar Hotel moved forward on Wednesday when the Montecito Planning Commission agreed to extend the property's soon-to-expire permits and building rights.
The commission's unanimous decision presumably clears the path for Mr. Warner to finalize the purchase of the seaside inn from owner Ian Schrager. One source close to the deal said the Beanie Babies mogul has pledged to pay $45 million upfront -- and he could spend another $70 million on renovations -- for the 17-acre spread near San Ysidro Road and Highway 101.
Escrow on the deal is expected to close at the end of April.
"The sun just came out over the Miramar," said Suzanne Elledge, a planning consultant who has been with the project since 1998, when plans were first submitted under Mr. Schrager.
Not willing to risk starting over with an often-cumbersome county permitting process, Mr. Warner's commitment to buy the property was contingent upon the current permits and entitlements remaining alive beyond the May 3 expiration date.
Commissioner Bob Bierig said he was concerned that if the panel did not grant the extension and Mr. Warner backed out, the property could remain an eyesore for years.
His reasoning was that without active permits and entitlements, Mr. Schrager would be hard-pressed to sell the property in the future.
"We're better off to proceed forward and assume we have a good chance to see this project succeed" under Mr. Warner, Mr. Bierig said.
A handful of Warner supporters turned out for the meeting.
"It's time to put your faith in Ty Warner," Montecito resident Lori Mikles said. "He has proven himself to the community. We hope he has the county's cooperation."
Mr. Warner's other local properties include the Four Seasons Biltmore Resort, the Coral Casino Beach Club, San Ysidro Ranch, Montecito Country Club and the Sandpiper Golf Course.
Ms. Elledge said that since Mr. Warner announced his intentions to buy the property two weeks ago, workers have been busy at the site, although recent rains have impeded the process somewhat.
She told the commission that it was too early to know whether Mr. Warner intended to deviate drastically from the original plans submitted by Mr. Schrager, but she said "no sweeping changes" were expected.
"There could be some tweaks to the plans," she added. Any major changes, however, would have to go back before the commission for approval.
The plans the county approved under Mr. Schrager in 2000 include a newly designed and rebuilt lobby and banquet hall, a restaurant, a spa, and 14 new cottages along South Jameson Lane, all with board-and-batten exteriors to evoke the Miramar's farmhouse origins. The number of rooms would remain at 213, with the new Jameson cottages added to make up for the oceanfront rooms that would be removed to create an open space for a central promenade leading straight from the roadside lobby to the beach.
So far, all that has been hinted about possible changes under Mr. Warner is that he may want to alter the plans related to room interiors.
Mr. Warner's representative, Greg Rice, said his team was pleased with the commission's decision. He said it was too soon to estimate how long the renovation would take.
By NORA K. WALLACE NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
Third District Supervisor Brooks Firestone wants to make sure voters know that creating a county from the ground up might be more expensive than anyone figures.
As the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors talked Tuesday about the implications of a north-south divorce, Mr. Firestone had a report showing it would cost about $550,000 just to create a logo for Mission County and have that image printed on stationery, envelopes, uniforms and as seals on county cars.
"That's not the end of the world for a new county, but it's not something that's contemplated yet," Mr. Firestone said of the document he had county staff prepare. "But it's something new and real. Multiply that by all the functions, and you have a very significant startup cost."
The board was commenting on the the Mission County Formation Review Commission's draft report, which details the fiscal, political and geographical elements of a potential split. The commission plans to issue its final report March 28, and voters will decide whether to create Mission County in June 2006.
The commission report lacks some features, Mr. Firestone said. He suggested that his colleagues urge the commission to include a few paragraphs in its report indicating that transition costs could "run into the millions, in addition to the confusion factor. That's very significant."
"I feel very strongly if the voters of the north or south were to depend entirely on this report, and for some reason the county gets split, they might find some significant disappointments," Mr. Firestone said.
In addition to starting a new county, scaling back on the South Coast government if a split is approved could have tremendous implications that aren't fully explored in the report, he said.
"In the south, cutting a county in half would be an incredibly difficult operation," he said. "We heard there's a potential liability of $25 million (for unused vacation time) if 2,000 people are laid off. And who fills in? And we'd have too many offices. Everything would be in a state of change for a significant period of time."
Some startup costs are already detailed in the report, such as estimates of about $20 million for new computer systems, said John Torell, commission secretary. But not everything is there.
"We didn't quantify those amounts because we thought it would be too speculative," Mr. Torell said. "We had to be careful not to make it look like a campaign piece. When you talk about nickels and dimes, it starts to look like that."
Mr. Firestone didn't necessarily buy that argument, saying an omission of that information might also be construed as taking sides.
"It's very important voters know there are going to be millions and millions of dollars spent on this startup," Mr. Firestone said.
County Auditor Bob Geis said the formation commission advised him to leave out the costs of having to create two complete government systems but that he resisted. The information is not prominent, but it is included.
Fourth District Supervisor Joni Gray, who was among the first to sign the county split petition, cautioned against speculating about money. As for her colleague's examples about a logo, Ms. Gray said a new county may decide not to have one.
"As a member of the Board of Supervisors, I couldn't support a motion that we insist, that we urge the commission to speculate on startup costs because it is speculation, and you just delete the power of your report when you speculate," Ms. Gray said.
Based on the financial information, 1st District Supervisor Salud Carbajal even broached the idea of the board taking a stance against the split.
The board could decide to write an opposition ballot argument, and it could also hold public hearings on the costs of a split, County Counsel Shane Stark said. It cannot, he advised, spend public money on a campaign against a ballot measure.
After some discussion, the board voted to request that the commission make some minor language changes in the report, including a provision that will allow the South Coast to receive credit for financing new buildings in the north between now and the split vote. It is also asking the commission to amend the report to specify the process for liquidating some liabilities such as litigation expenses and costs of employee leave.
The board also requested that the commission include a statement requiring Santa Barbara County and Mission County to work together on legislation dealing with court payment costs if a split occurs.
By CAMILLA COHEE NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
The Montecito Planning Commission on Wednesday is scheduled to hear a request by Ty Warner regarding his plans to purchase and rebuild the long-neglected Miramar Hotel.
Commissioners are expected to decide whether to grant Mr. Warner an extension on permits and building rights set to expire in May. Mr. Warner, whose properties include the Four Seasons Biltmore, the Coral Casino Beach Club, San Ysidro Ranch, Montecito Country Club and the Sandpiper Golf Course, has committed to purchasing the Miramar only if building rights and permits are extended.
The county planning department, along with the Montecito Association, is recommending that the commissioners allow Mr. Warner to move forward with his plans.
"We're asking the Planning Commission to grant the time extension based on the recent events -- the sale of the property, the amount of construction that they've already done there," county supervising planner Steve Goggia said.
Some Montecitans are ready to rally behind the Beanie Babies creator at Wednesday's meeting.
"We're tired of seeing the Miramar in shambles," said Montecito mother Lori Mikles, who plans to attend Wednesday's meeting with other residents. The group has made signs in show support that read "Thank you Ty" and "Ty Warner is great!"
Mrs. Mikles said she and a friend were inspired to mobilize support because too often only the opposition turns out at public hearings.
"We should be thanking Mr. Warner for all he has done in improving all these sites," she said. "Everything he touches is just beautiful. We shouldn't be giving him a hard time."
Sources familiar with the deal told the News-Press that Mr. Warner would pay about $45million for the 17-acre property.
Mr. Warner, with an estimated net worth of $6billion, according to Forbes magazine, has not said whether he would make major adjustments to the plans already in place under owner Ian Schrager.
Known for taking a personal interest in renovation details in his other properties, Mr. Warner could spend another $60million to $70million on the project, one source close to Mr. Warner said.
By Nora K. WALLACE NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
With an election more than a year away, most local residents have not jumped at the opportunity to learn about the prospect of a county split.
About 16 people have commented on the several-hundred page draft of an exhaustive document detailing fiscal, geographic and political elements of the measure to split Santa Barbara County along a north-south divide.
The concept is not new. It has been percolating for several years, and for the past eight months a panel of five men and women has devoted hundreds of hours compiling the Mission County Formation Review Commission document.
The review commission issued its draft report a week ago. The panel is prepared to hear from the public on suggested changes and concerns at its Santa Maria meeting on Monday. The commission will incorporate those comments, if appropriate, in a final report expected to be approved March 28.
In addition to the few e-mails, the commission's Web site, www.missioncountyformation.org, has received about 435 "hits" or views on the page with the draft report, said Greg Levin, a commission staff member.
The comments received so far are mostly from people expressing a pro or con opinion about the split, not offering "a lot of substantive commentary on the actual report," Mr. Levin said.
"Most of the comments are relatively benign," he said. "Most have resulted from some confusion over the role of the commission. They think the commission can decide whether a new county is formed."
In fact, the commission was created merely to complete the report outlining the financial viability of the proposed county. The commission cannot advocate for or against a county divorce. The commission also cannot stop the election, which will take place in June 2006.
By HILDY MEDINA NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
Beginning today, a short stretch of Sycamore Canyon Road will be closed for at least three weeks while crews continue to clean up a mudslide that occurred during the recent rains.
Although the closure is limited to a spot on the two-lane road near Ranchito Vista Road, it is expected to lead to lengthy detours for some motorists.
The road will be open to residents during that period, officials said. Once the stretch reopens to all motorists, expect delays while crews continue to work on the road, also known as state Highway 144. At that point, drivers will be routed through the canyon one direction at a time during working hours.
The road will be open in both directions at night and on weekends.
"We did some repair in that same location in 2000," Caltrans spokeswoman Marta Bortner said. "It's kind of a repeat of that project."
Granite Construction, a private company that Caltrans hired, will spend the next month moving dirt and securing the hillside there.
The Sycamore Canyon area is no stranger to landslides. In 1984, three homes were damaged when the hillside along Conejo Road slipped several feet. In 1998, mud engulfed a home on Ranchito Vista Road, just above Sycamore Canyon Road. A year later, the still-active Ranchito Vista landslide took a second home.
Since 2005 began, the road has been closed for weeks at a time from Alameda Padre Serra to Stanwood Drive because of mudslides. Roads have taken a beating from the damage brought on by winter storms this year. Highway 154, the main artery from the Santa Ynez Valley into Santa Barbara, was closed for a month after a portion of the highway near Painted Cave Road washed away.
By Chuck Schultz NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
One of Santa Maria's biggest farming firms has agreed to pay $1.15 million to settle a federal lawsuit stemming from alleged wetlands violations, four months after it won a $5.6 million judgment against the county in a dispute over the same land.
In the settlement reached late last week, Adam Brothers Farming Inc. admitted no wrongdoing but agreed to pay a $200,000 penalty to the Environmental Protection Agency. The company will also pay $915,000 to the Land Conservancy of San Luis Obispo County to buy and preserve two wetlands parcels near the county line, EPA officials said Monday.
Both cases involve 262 acres on Highway 1 in Orcutt and centered on disputes over whether part of that land was a protected wetlands. In the county case, Adam Brothers successfully argued that county planners had maliciously conspired to wrongly designate 95 acres as wetlands in 1997.
In the federal case, the issue was whether Adam Brothers had illegally graded and cultivated that area more than a year later.
The outcomes of the two cases contrasted sharply, attorneys said, because the legal issues involved were different.
Because of the EPA lawsuit, Adam Brothers has been unable to farm the site for nearly six years and is losing $500,000 to $700,000 annually in potential profits, according to one of the firm's attorneys, Richard Brenneman of Santa Maria.
"For my client, the good news is that they now get to farm their land," he said Monday. "It became a business decision."
Although the company still disputes the wetlands designation, "we would be lingering for years" fighting the issue in the courts, he added, "and how many more millions of dollars would that cost? It's just a huge economic drain."
A federal judge is expected to sign off on the settlement -- believed to be one the larger settlements of an EPA wetlands case ever in the agency's western region -- after a required 30-day period for public comment.
I received a note from a young lady who is training for the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer to take place on Sept 17 and 18 in Los Angeles. Jennifer Jones a Santa Barbara resident will participate in the Avon Walk Los Angeles which is one of eight events in a series of weekend fundraising walks taking place from April to October 2005 to help raise awareness and funds for access to care and finding a cure for breast cancer.
The Avon Walks are non-competitive and structured for walkers of various fitness levels with a choice of completing a marathon walk (26.2 miles) or a marathon and a half (39.1 miles) over the Saturday and Sunday. In 2003 and 2004, Avon Walk participants have already raised more than $60 million.
If you'd like to donate you can contact her at macnjen@cox.net
By BARNEY McMANIGAL NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
As planners move to ease red-tape for builders across Santa Barbara County, officials on Tuesday rejected a plan to reform the way projects can be appealed.
After a heated discussion, the Board of Supervisors unanimously voted to retool the plan, which by requiring building permit applicants to inform neighbors about projects was expected to reduce the number of appeals.
Such streamlining is one of several improvements unveiled by the often-criticized Planning and Development Department.
The Process Improvement Team has spent an estimated $719,000 since launching the overhaul in 2003.
Noting the cost, 3rd District Supervisor Brooks Firestone blasted the team for its inefficiency.
He said supervisors should consider starting over.
"This is not the way we should run the county," he said.
Mr. Firestone made a motion to have Auditor-Controller Bob Geis review the accounting for the program. The motion passed 5-0.
Meanwhile, several supervisors said the plan as drafted increased the burden on applicants, including single-family homeowners who want to add a second unit.
By MARIA ZATE NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
Billionaire Montecito resident Ty Warner said Friday that he plans to add to his stable the long-neglected Miramar Hotel property, which has languished as an eyesore for more than six years.
A contract "has been fully executed," according to Greg Rice, vice president of development for Mr. Warner's company Ty Warner Hotels & Resorts in Montecito.
No purchase price was disclosed for the historic 17-acre hotel site, owned by hotelier Ian Schrager and Miramar Holdings LLC. Mr. Warner said in a written statement that "a premium price" has been paid for the property in order to acquire all the approval plans and rights that will allow him to "expedite the Miramar renovations."
Sources familiar with the deal told the News-Press that the purchase price is roughly $45 million. Mr. Schrager paid $31.7 million for the property in September 1998, and sources said that he also had to spend an additional $10 million to $15 million on improvements made since the purchase, plus financing costs.
Mr. Warner -- the Beanie Babies magnate with an estimated net worth of $6 billion, according to Forbes magazine -- already owns several high-profile properties on the South Coast, which he renovated and upgraded. The properties include the Four Seasons Biltmore, the Coral Casino Beach Club, San Ysidro Ranch, Montecito Country Club and the Sandpiper Golf Course.
By JOSHUA MOLINA NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
A slowdown in building permits has resulted in a $300,000 shortfall in expected revenue halfway through the fiscal year. Santa Barbara's officials are stumped over why developers aren't pulling building permits at the rate expected.
Officials claim at least 140 permits -- for approved projects ranging from time shares to house remodels -- are ready to go. Typically, the department has only about 40 permits at any one time waiting to be pulled.
"We're $300,000 short and we're surprised," said Paul Casey, the city's Community Development Director. "It's unique and unusual."
City officials have sent letters to about 140 developers reminding them to pull their building permits.
If the trend continues, the city's current shortfall could double by the end of the fiscal year, leaving the City Council to dig into its reserves to balance the budget.
Santa Barbara has a $192 million budget and an $87 million general fund. The city had expected to make about $3 million from building permits this year.
Officials are not panicking yet.
Developers and city officials say the most likely culprit is the rain.
"You don't want to open up the ground and be digging a giant hole and getting 22 inches of rain," said Jeff Bermant, president of Bermant Development Company, who expects to pull a permit soon for Paseo Chapala, the company's downtown commercial and residential project.
"I don't think there is anything in the economy that is slowing things down. Business is brisk for housing. It's not the market," he said.
The developer said he won't be ready to pull his building permit until late March, but explained that if the city wants developers to pull permits faster it ought to speed up the review process.
"For us, part of the dragging has been going through the process," Mr. Bermant said. "You go back time after time after time."
He said his project has been before the city's Historic Landmarks Commission 16 times.
Developer William Levy also claims to be just "a couple of weeks" from pulling the first of three building permits for the downtown Ritz-Carlton Club Santa Barbara timeshare project, which will dramatically transform three blocks on lower State Street.
"We're cooking along," Mr. Levy said. "Ritz is ready."
Mr. Levy said a "last-minute" traffic plan for his $185 million Ritz-Carlton project contributed to the delays. The 62-unit time-share village includes restaurants, shops, wider sidewalks and parking, and was approved in 2001.
Mr. Levy has another project that he says he's near pulling a permit for -- 46 condos, mostly market-rate, at the corner of Chapala and Gutierrez streets, a project he calls "Chapala One"
He suggested the slowdown in issuing permits is probably an aberration because of the weather. "From a capital and financial standpoint the economy is actually very good," Mr. Levy said. "I can't imagine that any of these projects is being held up because of financing."
Like Mr. Bermant, Mr. Levy said the larger problem is the speed of the city's review process. While he said the extensive review process helps make a project better, it does slow the developer down.
Santa Barbara's high cost of living also plays a role, he said.
"They have the problem that we all have, and that is finding adequate staff people to come in and do the work that needs to be done," Mr. Levy said.
Santa Barbara City Councilman Das Williams, a member of the city's Finance Committee, said he hopes to address developers' concerns by looking at raising developer fees so more planners can be hired, which should speed up the review process. It's an idea that Mr. Bermant said he supports.
But for now, Mr. Williams says he is not concerned about the slowdown.
"Right now, it doesn't concern me," he said. "These fees will eventually come in. I think it's the rain, and I think on some of the biggest projects, it's financing and other complications of getting things done."
By THOMAS SCHULTZ NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
The pending departure of another high-level staff member has led officials to rethink their approach to Goleta's first general plan, and left an understaffed City Hall in search of more employees.
"We are able to make the best of these situations," Assistant City Manager Luci Romero Serlet said.
General Plan Manager Pat Dugan, hired in July 2003 under former City Manager Fred Stouder, recently announced his resignation effective March 4. His departure just weeks after the startling December resignation of Mr. Stouder, who apparently was forced out by the City Council, comes with several more months and countless revisions to go before a final general plan is ready for consideration.
Mr. Dugan is the only person at City Hall with significant expertise in the complicated geographic information system software being used to help create the general plan, which will guide growth in the city for decades to come.
Goleta in recent weeks hired an interim city manager, Len Wood, until a permanent replacement for Mr. Stouder is found. Now the city, already facing tough housing and development choices, seeks temporary planning consultants and eventually another permanent high-level planner to make up for the loss of Mr. Dugan.
By MORGAN GREEN NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
In a victory for the Hope Ranch homeowners' association, a judge upheld a $277,000 fine levied on a resident for building on his property without permission and ignoring years of warnings to correct it.
The decision by Santa Barbara Superior Court Judge James Brown settles a key dispute in a sizzling six-year feud between the Hope Ranch Park Homes Association and the owner of the wealthy rural neighborhood's largest estate, the Mariposa Land Development LLC and its operator William Harger.
Mariposa's penalty is the first that the Hope Ranch group has ever imposed, said Jim Trebbin, the association manager.
The penalty is possibly the largest of its kind in the state, said the group's attorney, Jim Herman, who described Mr. Harger as "the neighbor from hell" who "disrespected his community ever since he moved in."
By Barney McManigal NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
Planners told the Board of Supervisors on Tuesday that the Planning and Development Department is at least six months late in streamlining the county's confusing zoning ordinance, an admission that elicited impassioned complaints about long-standing problems with the embattled division.
A first draft is expected in late March.
"This is just incredibly frustrating that it has taken two years," 4th District Supervisor Joni Gray said. "It just can't be rocket science."
Officials blamed delays on the four-article ordinance, which they say confounds even highly talented staffers.
Launched in 2003, the zoning ordinance reformatting project is part of a broader push to overhaul county planning policies.
Conflicts about planning issues have come up at several meetings this year -- even on minor issues -- revealing steady support for changes to a department that has been stung repeatedly in court, grand jury reports, public meetings and in fiery speeches by land-rights advocates.
The three North County supervisors have floated a variety of improvements, from giving County Administrator Mike Brown more authority over the department -- a program launched earlier this month -- to reconfiguring the entire division.
By Nora K Wallace NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
If voters approve a county split, the South Coast will see an annual surplus of about $21 million -- money that will no longer go to subsidize a host of North County services.
Though the Mission County Formation Review Commission has for months said the proposed new county would suffer an ongoing $31 million annual deficit, Monday was the first time the South Coast's rosy financial picture was outlined.
The extra money in already tight budget coffers could mean anything from a tax decrease to more counter staffing in busy departments to increased sheriff patrols, depending on what a new South Coast government decides to do with its finances.
By Nora K. Wallace NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
Political turmoil on the South Coast would be an initial, if temporary, result should voters decide in June 2006 to carve out a new county in the area north of the Gaviota tunnel.
County officials have not yet begun to fully plan for the possibility that half its population -- and three of its supervisors -- would suddenly reside in the state's first new county in more than a century.
Ultimately, every resident of the north and south would be affected by the resultant power plays over everything from land-use polices to development plans to grant money.
If voters throughout the county agree to create Mission County, the new entity would be a step ahead of the remaining South Coast in some ways. The five-member Mission County Formation Review Commission, at work since May, has already crafted five new supervisorial districts spanning the current North County.
By Thomas Schultz NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
Amid a growing chorus of frustration from Goleta homeowners, the City Council late Monday renewed rules that significantly restrict home expansions.
In a 4-1 vote, the council extended its interim general plan policies, which control a range of land-use decisions. Council members signaled a willingness to re-examine the standards but suggested that would happen later rather than sooner as the city crafts a general plan for growth.
"I hope that we will have a special session on such issues," Councilman Jack Hawxhurst said. "I am almost willing to make certain changes."
Still, "it probably is better to stay with a certain degree of stability at this time," he said. "All of these things really need to get wrung out in the next months. I don't think we can do that tonight."
The interim building height, home size, traffic, affordable housing and environmental protection rules were set to expire March 1 after a year of use. They followed a moratorium on commercial construction enacted after the city incorporated in early 2002.
By Barney McManigal News Press Staff Writer
As the county moves forward with a plan to build up to 150 affordable homes on land it owns in the Santa Barbara foothills, officials are questioning the direction the $54 million project.
"I think we need to define what we're going to do before we do it," 4th District Supervisor Joni Gray said Wednesday.
Earlier this week, the Board of Supervisors asked the county's Housing and Community Development Department to refashion the plan, which called for fixed-price homes built exclusively for county employees making up to $130,000 per year.
Located on the county's 20-acre parcel north of Cathedral Oaks Boulevard, the three-bedroom homes would sell for about $250,000 to families making less than $51,750. For families earning less than $129,400, homes would cost $409,201. Home sizes would range from 1,300 to 1,700 square feet. Buyers would lease the land from the county.
Joshua Molina NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
Some residents in the lush Las Positas Valley are riled over a stream of housing proposals that they believe could wreck the only rural spots left in the Santa Barbara community.
The outrage has festered in neighborhood meetings in recent months, and now some powerful neighborhood groups are calling on city officials to come up with a development plan for the valley rather than consider projects one at a time. The City Council is set to decide that on March 1.
Thoms Schultz NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
The first look at a plan to steer Goleta through two decades of decision-making is ready.
So are critics poised to take a swipe at it.
City Hall policy-makers and backers of the Goleta Draft General Plan say the long-range blueprint for growth and development offers a solid blend of rules on noise, safety, land use and traffic as required by state law. Officials are gearing up for five public forums this week focused on the document, although they admit it's a work in progress.
"It's going to be interesting to see how people respond," Goleta City Councilwoman Cynthia Brock said. "I know that there's more work to be done. There may be some inconsistencies. There may be some areas where we need to go into greater detail. This process will help us identify some of those."
Critics are wary, and they want to rally residents against the plan. Years-long debate about how much housing to create, and where to put it, promises to surface strongly -- as does concern the city has not sought enough public input to date, a claim that officials deny.
"There's a lot wrong there," said Jennifer McGovern, coordinator of the Goleta Housing Leadership Council, which advocates for new construction. "It is really a disservice to the community," she added, wondering if the problems she sees were intentional.
The plan places a high priority on environmental conservation and concentrates new housing along the Hollister Avenue corridor. It's nothing new in Goleta's slow-growth politics that the plan envisions an economy that does not depend on expansion.
Well I finally bought myself a new computer. The last one I built was in December 2000 so I figured I was due. Up until this time I'd always built every computer I owned except for the notebooks.
I started doing the math and I just couldn't compete with the deal Dell puts together. I got a Pentium 4 3.8GHz with 1 Gig of RAM a 48X CD Burner and a 16X Double Sided DVD Burner. Then I got 2 400 Gig Hard Drives and to finish it off a Radeon X800 PCI Express Video Card with 256 Meg of RAM.
I figured out what it would cost me to build and Dell came in $500 cheaper than I could buy the parts and put it together. So far so good. I'll to see whether Dell Tech Support is going to be a plus or minus. But as of now I'm lovin' it!!
By Maria Zate, Santa Barbara Newspress
Spokesmen for the North County farming and ranching community lobbied a sympathetic Board of Supervisors on Tuesday for broad changes in the way the county conducts its environmental review of development projects.
Willy Chamberlin, a Santa Ynez Valley rancher; Lanny Stableford, a Gaviota coast rancher; and Andy Caldwell, spokesman for the nonprofit Coalition of Labor, Agriculture and Business, said the county should allow developers to manage their own environmental impact reports. Presently, developers choose a consulting firm, and county Planning and Development employees supervise the preparation of the reports. Later on, the reports are released to the public and hearings are held.
Environmental review of proposed development is the linchpin of California's protections for wetlands, wildlife, beaches and creeks. But in Santa Barbara County, the farmers said, the reports too often were unfriendly to ranchers, lopsided in their conclusions and unfairly expensive. They asked Planning and Development officials to expand their list of qualified consulting firms. They also objected to the fact that some former county planners work for these companies.
More than 250 people turned out Wednesday for "The 2005 North Santa Barbara County Real Estate & Economic Outlook" presented by Chicago Title & Escrow at the Radisson Hotel.
Cindy Ioimo and Jim Gray of Chicago Title were masters of the ceremony. Most of the folks in the room (some from Santa Barbara) were involved in one way or another with development, planning, construction, accounting, investments, real estate sales and real estate transactions.
Local veteran developer Tony Wells opened the program with his presentation of the market from a developer's point of view.
Wells wanted to know the answer to the important question: How many people leave Santa Maria during the week to drive north and south for work? Using Caltrans data and some admittedly shaky prediction techniques, Wells and his staff concluded that, Monday through Friday, twice as many Santa Maria residents drive north than drive south during the early morning rush hours.
Santa Barbara economist and consultant Mark Schniepp was the keynote speaker. He offered an overview of housing prices and market factors and added demographics and "quality of life" issues that affect migration. Mark's group, The California Economic Forecast, prepared a 60-page economic outlook.
How do you rehearse a concert when your conductor and soloist are in one city, the majority of your musicians are in another, and the road between the two has been closed by a mountain of mud?
That's the dilemma Santa Barbara Symphony officials faced this week as they scrambled to avoid canceling this weekend's programs. The concerts, at 8 tonight and 3 p.m. Sunday in the Arlington Theatre, will go on as scheduled, but making them happen has been a challenge of Wagnerian proportions.
Only about a dozen of the orchestra's 65 musicians live in the Santa Barbara area; the others are drawn from the huge pool of freelance players in Los Angeles.
During a normal concert week, the musicians drive up for rehearsals on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday nights.
But this was hardly a normal week. Guest conductor Christoph Campestrini flew in from another engagement in Oregon on Sunday night; piano soloist Jon Nakamatsu drove from his home in San Jose on Wednesday. But with Highway 101 closed south of Carpinteria, the players had no way to join them.
"We were trying to be as creative as possible," said John Robinson, the orchestra's executive director. "We were looking at bringing people up here by boat on Friday afternoon, and housing them at the homes of board members and local musicians for the weekend. We looked at the idea of chartering a bus (to take the musicians up Interstate 5, then across to Santa Maria and down into Santa Barbara)."
These were far from ideal solutions; many of the musicians are parents who need to be home between rehearsals to care for their children. Ultimately, arrangements were made to hold the long-delayed first rehearsal at 7:30 p.m. Friday in the Oxnard Performing Arts Center.
"Once we knew that the road was likely to be open on Saturday, the idea of getting a smaller number of musicians from Santa Barbara to Oxnard to rehearse made so much more sense than bringing up 50 musicians from L.A.," Mr. Robinson said.
The Oxnard-based New West Symphony agreed to provide the timpani for the evening so the bulky set of percussion instruments wouldn't have to be shipped south. "Different groups are banding together to help one another," Mr. Robinson said
Symphony officials chartered a small plane to take Mr. Campestrini, Mr. Nakamatsu and several local players to Oxnard. Those plans were canceled late Friday morning when the freeway opened, allowing the local musicians to vanpool.
Plans called for two additional rehearsals today at the Arlington, one in the morning and another in the afternoon. That means the players will endure something of a musical marathon, with three rehearsals and a concert over a 26-hour period.
Mr. Robinson had nothing but praise for Mr. Campestrini, who is a candidate to assume the music director position after Gisle Ben-Dor steps down at the end of next season.
"He has been positive and flexible and cool under pressure," Mr. Robinson said. The one thing he has been insisting on is that we have the maximum number of rehearsals that we can do."
That turned out to be one fewer than normal. In addition, the orchestra was forced to cancel a young people's concert for Friday morning. Mr. Robinson said he hopes to reschedule it for May.
"We expect (today's) concert to be inspirational," he added. "When the final chords of Dvorak's Eighth Symphony ring out, we're going to have an amazing feeling of accomplishment."
The concert will also feature Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 21, with Mr. Nakamatsu as soloist. For ticket information, call 963-4408.
The chamber music ensemble Camerata Pacifica faced similar challenges to present its Friday afternoon and evening concerts in Victoria Hall. Although two of its players were in town, the others had flown into Los Angeles from various locations for the performances.
On Tuesday, "They drove up to Bakersfield and looped around," said Melissa Seley, the ensemble's marketing and development coordinator. "Then they were stopped in Gaviota when a truck overturned. They spent the night in Lompoc and got here Wednesday."
Camerata officials, like their counterparts at the symphony, are intensely hoping the freeway stays open. Friday night's Victoria Hall concert is scheduled to be repeated tonight in Thousand Oaks and Sunday afternoon in Ventura.
The California Coastal Commission approved a 62-unit housing subdivision for the Ellwood Mesa perimeter Wednesday -- a major milestone in a 20-year effort to shape development on the coastal wildland.
In a unanimous vote during a meeting in Long Beach, the commission gave the go-ahead to Comstock Homes and Development Partners.
"It couldn't have gone better," developer Bob Comstock said afterward.
He said the project will likely break ground in mid-April.
For years, several environmental groups have fought housing on the mesa and more recently worked with Mr. Comstock to refine his proposal. Plans call for 37 two-story and 25 one-story homes, ranging in size from 2,871 square feet to 4,141 square feet.
In what could amount to a death knell for commuter train service from Ventura to Santa Barbara during major construction on Highway 101, Caltrans is putting the brakes on a plan to study rail transit.
The state agency has filed an appeal over Santa Barbara's requirement to have Caltrans consider the pros and cons of rail service during the highway construction.
The appeal came as a surprise, largely because Caltrans appeared eager last month to move swiftly on a study. Now the state agency contends that studying rail may slow down its plans to improve traffic congestion on Highway 101. The protest has caused a behind-the-scenes flare-up, and now the parties are scrambling to meet in private to resolve their differences without a dramatic meeting in front of the City Council.
A judge upheld $5.6 million in jury verdicts against Santa Barbara County on Tuesday and ruled the county must also pay $1.1 million to a Santa Maria farming company for attorney fees and costs in a lawsuit involving farmland wrongly designated as protected wetlands.
The county's attorney unsuccessfully argued the recent verdicts -- including $130,000 in punitive damages against three current and former county employees and a county-paid consultant -- were excessive and legally unjustified.
A court ruling to clarify whether current tenants, newcomers or both should benefit from Goleta's mobile home rent control law is expected this week.
Nervously awaiting the U.S. District Court decision are residents, such as Alex Orozco, who rent space for their mobile homes.
Ms. Orozco, 30, a single mother with two children, ages 14 and 15, said she bought her coach a year ago for $160,000. She pays $310 a month for it to occupy a spot at Rancho Estates Mobile Home Park located along Hollister Avenue.
Eager to move her family south toward Chino, where she plans to start a higher-paying job at the end of this month, Ms. Orozco, a billing manager for Global Brand Marketing, fears she won't be able to sell her coach if the park owners raise the rent on the space.
The park management recently signaled that rent on her space would nearly triple following the sale of her unit in place -- if, that is, the court in Los Angeles strikes down Goleta's rule preventing such an increase, she said.
Well its the New Year. Were currently having a party, our first since moving to Santa Barbara. We used to have these at least a couple times a year but with mom being so sick it was tough. Theyre playing chamber music downstairs and Im watching the Rose Bowl upstairs.
Its great to have friend in and enjoy their fellowship. Stay tuned for more!
Thanks to all of you who dropped by our Web Log this year. Its been an eventful year and were glad we had a chance to share our viewpoints on some of it. Were off to Laurys kids home in Anaheim for the day so we hope that all of you have a great time with the people you love most.
Gary and Laury
The state Supreme Court announced Wednesday it will hear a case brought by developers of The Residences at Sandpiper against the city of Goleta, setting the stage for a Sacramento showdown in the $32 million lawsuit.
The decision to hear the case following an appellate court ruling in Goleta's favor came without explanation. The high court will likely settle the protracted legal battle focused on the meaning of a California statute describing rights and rules for newly incorporated cities. As many as 20 third parties, perhaps more, are said to have filed briefs urging the review.
A trial is expected sometime next year.
Typically, the seven justices entertain fewer than 5 percent of the cases brought to their attention -- meaning that the request for consideration from developer Chuck Lande and the Oly Chadmar Partnership came with no guarantees.
"We are very, very happy," said their attorney, Richard Monk. "We feel very gratified, and we think that, given the fact that the court is very busy, that it would not be granting review in the case unless it saw some problems."
Goleta City Attorney Julie Biggs downplayed that interpretation, noting that the suit deals with legislation not yet addressed in case law.
"The Supreme Court generally, in a case like that, is inclined to put its stamp on it," she said. "It's a very straightforward case and a very straightforward statute."
The builders want the Supreme Court to reverse the unanimous ruling of three justices at the 2nd Appellate District Court in Ventura. The appellate justices decided in early October that Goleta was within its rights to block the project that features 87 market-rate homes and 22 designed to be more affordable.
In the grand scheme of Santa Barbara, businessman Steve Cushman believes his idea to install small, red ceramic tiles at dozens of city landmarks is no big deal.
But in the eyes of the city's downtown design gurus, the 12-inch round medallions sport one deal-breaking feature -- advertising.
"C'mon, I am just trying to do a small project," said Mr. Cushman, executive director of the Santa Barbara Region Chamber of Commerce. "This is not like I am erecting billboards. These are little 12-inch tiles set into the sidewalk. They are very small, very discreet. I can't believe it. Only in Santa Barbara would we make such a big deal about this."
But it is a big deal to the guardians of downtown design. The Historic Landmarks Commission doesn't want to open the gate to something it calls unprecedented: corporate advertising on public sidewalks.
The commission also believes it's not right to mislead the public into thinking that a business may have had something to do with the creation or the preservation of a historic building.
After rejection by the landmarks commission, the fate of Mr. Cushman's Red Tile Walk Project is now in the hands of the City Council, whose seven members will tackle the proposal on Feb. 1.
While members like the concept of marking historic landmarks, such as the Casa de la Guerra, Santa Barbara County Courthouse and the Lobero Theatre, plopping the names of advertisers on the ceramic tiles doesn't fit with Santa Barbara's downtown culture and tradition, they contend.
"It sets a dangerous precedent and opens the door for sponsors' names on any number of different things," said Steve Hausz, an architect and member of the landmarks commission. "Once you have approved something like this it is hard to say no to anything else. The whole point is to direct people to landmarks in town and not be a venue for advertising."
The lettering for the sponsors' names is about three eighths of an inch high.
Mr. Cushman dreamed up the red-tile walk idea while on a trip to Boston several years ago. There, tourists are directed to historic landmarks by following a red line on the sidewalk. Since Santa Barbara is no stranger to historic architecture, Mr. Cushman felt that something similar could be done here.
If voters approve a county split, the South Coast will be saddled with all the county's $43 million in existing capital debt, leaving the proposed Mission County relatively debt free.
The Mission County Formation Review Commission made that decision Monday, reasoning that the value of buildings and property in the south is higher, and that the square footage of buildings located in Mission County will be far less than those located in the south.
The action came after about a half-dozen previous meetings where the five-member panel wrestled with how to make sure the proposed new county receives a "fair, just and equitable" division of assets and debt.
Third District Supervisor Gail Marshall, whose district straddles both the north and south, groaned when she heard the decision.
"That's just unconscionable," she said.
"It isn't fair, just or equitable. For those individuals who feel the county should be split north/south, then they should be responsible for the capital debt in that portion of the county. That's only fair."
The county is already paying for the split study, she said, "and now we're paying more than our fair share of debt? It doesn't go down well with me."
Dave Hardy has owned and operated the Beachside Bar Cafe for 20 years.
It has been a long run, giving him a front-row seat to the winter storm surges that gnaw at the surrounding property -- Goleta Beach Park, which Santa Barbara County owns.
"The community doesn't understand how close it is to being washed away," he said Friday.
But it's not just pounding surf that has Mr. Hardy troubled.
A dispute about how to address chronic erosion at the park has split stakeholders into two distinct camps -- those who favor artificial barriers to the destructive force of wave energy and those who prefer a different approach.
The latter camp in particular likes a concept known as "managed retreat," in which structures, underground utilities, grass and perhaps parking spots are moved or removed so the shoreline can recede as nature dictates.
Though not new, the dispute pits a tradition of recreation against the ebb and flow of coastal processes. And it holds particular significance with each passing winter day.
Goleta Beach is one of 23 parks managed by the county, and officials say it is the most heavily visited of them all. The park is already partially armored against erosion with revetments along its eastern flank, rocks near the restaurant and rocks along its western end.
In October 2003, crews widened the beach by importing sand in an experimental, $2million attempt to reduce erosion. The "beach nourishment" program involved moving nearly 80,000 cubic yards of sand dredged from the Santa Barbara waterfront.
Several Coastal Chumash members on Thursday demanded that a local developer allow them to visit the proposed site of 20 homes in the Santa Barbara foothills, saying the area may contain the buried remains of up to 200 of their ancestors.
At the county Planning Commission hearing on the Preserve at San Marcos project, the Chumash called for a full evaluation of the site and accused developer Jeff Bermant of ignoring their concerns and intimidating individual members.
The opposition is the latest volley in a barrage of criticism leveled at the four-year-old project, which must clear the planning panel before going to the Board of Supervisors for final approval. At the end of Thursday's special hearing, the fourth, commissioners voted to delay their decision until January, although it was the role of native grasses and not bones that led to that.
At least two of the proposed homes fall within an area cited as a possible village and cemetery site in a 2001 archaeological report commissioned by Mr. Bermant. Although Mr. Bermant's later environmental study acknowledges part of the site, it overlooks the much larger area described in the report.
The Chumash members want to study the entire area before Mr. Bermant builds any new homes.
Environmentalists and local Chumash members are trying to block a plan to build 20 homes in the Santa Barbara foothills because the site may contain the ancient burial remains of up to 400 Indians.
As the plan for the Preserve at San Marcos heads to the Planning Commission at 9 a.m. today, the groups are complaining that the project disregards a 2001 report citing evidence of a thousand-year-old Indian village on the site where several homes are now proposed.
"This is a major village site," said Roberta Cordero, a leader in the local Chumash community. "They need to do further studies."
In a letter Wednesday, Linda Morgan, an archaeological resource specialist for the Barbareno Chumash Council, asked developer Jeff Bermant for permission to survey the site -- a request he has denied.
As the county prepares to contest a recent $5.5million judgment in a Santa Maria land-use dispute, it faces another multimillion-dollar lawsuit over its handling of three oceanfront properties in Isla Vista.
A Santa Barbara Superior Court judge has ruled that the Board of Supervisors violated the rights of an Isla Vista property owner when it denied his requests to build three homes on the 6800 block of Del Playa Drive in 1998.
The court found that the denials -- and 1999 acquisition of the properties by the Isla Vista Recreation and Park District for $450,000 -- constituted a "taking" by the county. The case enters the damages phase next year.
County attorneys expect to appeal the October decision, arguing that owner John Chase accepted the agreement and was fairly compensated. They assert the county did not "take" the land.
Groups representing North County ranchers are undaunted in pursuing an all-voluntary oak protection program, though a Superior Court judge has ruled that the county's 2003 oak tree rules received proper review and may continue to be enforced.
Judge Zel Canter of Santa Maria said the plaintiffs -- the Santa Barbara County Cattlemen's Association, the Coalition of Labor, Agriculture and Business, or COLAB, and the Center for Environmental Equality -- had no case because the county had amply considered their viewpoints before deciding to restrict oak tree clear-cutting.
"Their failure to carry the day represents to all appearances a deliberate choice by the members of the Board of Supervisors, and not the result of any deficiency in the environmental documents informing that decision," Judge Canter wrote in a Nov. 16 ruling.
Since the changes went into effect, county planners said, only a few dozen oaks have been cut down on North County farms and ranches, and their removal didn't trigger the requirements for management plans or permits. At the time the ordinance was drafted, a boom in wine suggested many rolling hillsides would soon sport vines instead of oaks, but when it was finally approved, a glut in grapes slowed most land conversion.
Dashing the hopes of a young couple expecting a baby in January, the Santa Barbara City Council on Tuesday told a Samarkand family the planned expansion of their home could ruin the character of the neighborhood.
The council sided with the critics of Kris and Samantha Zacharias' plan to add a bedroom and bathroom to the front of their house on Stanley Drive, so Mrs. Zacharias' mother could move in and help with child care.
"This neighborhood is famous for preservation," said Councilman Brian Barnwell. "We run into neighborhoods in transition. This neighborhood is not in transition. I am a defender of neighborhoods and I believe in preserving the neighborhoods."
The Zachariases' proposed addition, which stretched about 4 feet into the required 20-foot setback from the street, had infuriated many residents of the Samarkand neighborhood, known for its wide setbacks and open feel of the street. They appealed an earlier city approval, in a 6-0 vote.
Residents of the Samarkand area are expected to pack Santa Barbara City Hall at 6 p.m. today to debate whether a young couple should be allowed to expand their 1930s home.
Kris and Samantha Zacharias want to add 370 square feet to their one-story house in the 400 block of Stanley Drive.
The Zachariases are expecting their first child in January and wanted another room so that Mrs. Zacharias' mother could move into the house and provide child care for the newborn.
"We're not building a mansion," said Mr. Zacharias, 32. "We're not trying to build a larger home to sell it. We're just trying to make our house more livable."
Neighbors have appealed the city's approval of the addition because it stretches partially into the required 20-foot setback.
They contend that all the homes on the block comply with the setback rules and all but two on the entire street do, too.
Another big donation, this one for $100,000, has been made to advance the effort to preserve the Ellwood Mesa in its natural state.
The gift from the Woods-Claeyssens Foundation was made in the name of the late Pierre Claeyssens, a local architect and philanthropist know for his generous gifts to veterans, the Music Academy of the West, the poor and victims of circumstance. But over his lifetime, the native of Belgium quietly contributed to efforts to protect the Douglas Family Preserve, El Capitan Ranch and Ellwood.
The gift was made to the Trust for Public Land, which, with the group Friends of the Ellwood Coast, has been working for two years to raise $20.4 million to buy the pristine 137-acre coastal bluff in Goleta.
In addition to its almost mile of coastline, one of the key features of the pristine Ellwood Mesa is its habitat for monarch butterflies.
In announcing the latest contribution, the trust said it has raised $19.54 million -- still $860,000 short of the goal. The trust reports it has until Dec. 15 to raise the balance.
Sending a clear message that delays will cost money and threaten health care services, Cottage Health System officials on Thursday pushed the city to let them move swiftly on building a $407 million new regional hospital.
Construction on the estimated nine-year project could begin in the spring, but first Cottage must get past city environmental review and some neighborhood concerns about construction, traffic and environmental effects.
With costs soaring and anticipated increases in steel prices, Cottage is looking to get approval soon.
"You'd save our community precious resources by moving this project along in a timely manner," said Chief Executive Officer Ron Werft, during an environmental hearing before the Planning Commission.
"We believe this project is different than any other project that has come before you."
The $407 million plan to build the biggest and best hospital between Los Angeles and San Jose goes before top city planners today in a meeting that will frame the future of Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital and its surrounding neighborhood.
The 4 p.m. meeting at Santa Barbara City Hall likely will pit neighborhood and environmental advocates against health care workers and the powerful Cottage administrative team.
Already, Cottage officials are saying that some of the suggestions in a three-volume environmental report -- limits on construction hours and green building requirements -- are out of line and impossible to carry out. Cottage is also unhappy about street improvements it would have to make because of increases in traffic.
Cottage wants the city Planning Commission to override some of the suggestions, which the commission has the authority to do.
The commission will not make any decisions today on the largest and most expensive single project in Santa Barbara's history. The matter must come back to the panel at a later date for certification of the environmental report.
By the end of next month, the group studying the proposed split of Santa Barbara County may understand what it takes to run a leaner local government.
If voters opt to create a county north of the Gaviota tunnel in June 2006, the new Mission County would earn an estimated $52 million from property, sales and bed taxes. If its leaders wanted to provide services at the level currently offered in the county, it would cost $81 million annually -- giving the proposed county a yearly shortfall of $29 million.
The Mission County Formation Review Commission, the five-member panel studying the split, must determine if a new county is fiscally viable, and it must figure out a "fair, just and equitable" way to distribute the county's overall debt. Those two issues kept the commission in heated debate for about five hours Monday.
To best learn how to run a county with a slimmed-down budget, commission Secretary John Torell and two county analysts, Beth Owen and Greg Levin, will travel to Merced County this week to delve into the workings of a county of comparable size to the proposed Mission County. They'll meet with Merced's county administrator, budget director, probation chief, sheriff and human resources manager.
The California Coastal Commission has delivered a blow to a major housing proposal in Santa Barbara's "funk zone."
Developer Bill Wright had hoped that his plan to build 131 condos on the corners of Yanonali and Garden streets -- just blocks from the beach -- would be exempt from new rules requiring housing developments in the area to include commercial space.
But Mr. Wright will have to set aside commercial space on one of the pieces of land -- where he had intended to build 18 units at below-market rates for middle-income workers. The project includes a total of 53 affordable units.
Well it's the first Thanksgiving without mom, but so far we seem to be holding up. I spent the morning playing with the new Musician's Union Local 308 computer and now the troops are starting to gather. Laury's son and daughter-in-law from Orange County have arrived bringing their awesome children Jake and Merissa. Soon Laury's daughter, her friend and landlord Murry will arrive and we'll let the feasting begin. I hope all is well at your house.
Happy Blogging!
In the largest land-use judgment ever against Santa Barbara County, a Santa Maria jury on Monday awarded about $5.5 million to a farming company that was blocked from planting vegetables because the county designated 95 acres along Highway 1 as protected wetlands.
After a nearly three-week civil trial before a visiting Superior Court judge, jurors unanimously agreed that the wetlands designation and other decisions made several years ago by county planners preparing the Orcutt Community Plan had recklessly violated the rights of Adam Brothers Farming Inc. The jury assessed actual damages of $5.47 million collectively against the county Planning and Development Department, one of its paid consultants and three current or former employees who helped write the long-range planning document adopted by county supervisors in 1997.
Santa Barbara's "funk zone" is known for its quirky mix of artisans, workshops and businesses. But the area near the beach isn't the only place in town where eclecticism is on display.
Artists have banded together to put a little funk into East Haley Street, converting old restaurants and auto shops into ateliers for painters, photographers and even metal workers.
Seizing on bargain rents and empty spaces east of Laguna Street in what many consider a seedy part of town, they are making a place where creativity and industry collide.
"This is one of the only places in town left that still has the ability to be changed," said Tanner Goldbeck, 34, who paints, illustrates and does metal sculpture down an alley off East Haley Street.
As artists move in alongside auto mechanics and lumber shops, plumbing supply stores and Mexican restaurants, the result, some say, is unlike anything in town.
Despite strong opposition from some residents, county officials on Monday will consider requiring developers to earmark a larger portion of their projects for affordable housing -- or pay a fee for not doing so.
The Board of Supervisors is expected to vote on revisions to its Inclusionary Housing and In-Lieu Fee program, which would require residential developers to set aside as much as 30 percent of new homes for families making $130,000 or less. Developers now reserve 5 to 20 percent of projects for lower-income households.
The proposal would also increase the in-lieu fees for builders who don't include the affordable homes. The fees vary by area, but in Montecito they would jump from $400,000 to $1.9 million for a 10-unit development.
Although housing officials note the proposed changes involve no rezoning, a group of residents in the unincorporated Goleta Valley opposes the measure, saying it could lead to further development. Indeed, the Coalition for Sensible Planning's steadfast opposition -- which they say is based on mistrust for the county -- has complicated the future of what has become a highly contested proposal.
The plan to develop Buellton's Flying Flags RV Park into homes has hit a major roadblock at the Planning Commission, which recommended the city deny a proposal to build 200 homes on the site.
At a Thursday night meeting, the commission voted 2-0, with one abstention, to reject the project in its current form.
Buellton's general plan calls for commercial development, not housing, along Avenue of the Flags and Highway 246, where the 26-acre RV park is located. The plan is in the process of being updated.
The project would also require that the city annex 11 acres adjacent to the park to meet open-space requirements.
Buellton Planning Director Ray Severn said that not only is the project inconsistent with the general plan, but the annexation issue must be dealt with by the City Council.
Developer Bill Levy has asked for a one-year extension to build his $170 million Ritz-Carlton condominium development near the waterfront, fueling speculation about the future of the high-profile project.
The extension request, the second for Mr. Levy's project, concerns some city officials and critics who wonder what's causing the delay and whether the project will ever see the light of day.
The Planning Commission will take up the matter next month.
Mr. Levy said the request for more time doesn't mean the project is in jeopardy.
An architect known for his environmentally sensitive designs wants to build condominiums on semi-rural property he owns just outside Carpinteria.
Scott Ellinwood, chairman of the Carpinteria Architectural Review Board and a designer of "green" buildings for 30 years, presented plans for a 34-unit project during a joint meeting of the Carpinteria City Council and Planning Commission on Monday evening.
Mr. Ellinwood raised his family in a restored 1904 farmhouse at 1300 and 1326 Cravens Lane, where it intersects Via Real. His proposal includes retaining the farmhouse and much of the open space --s a pond, meadow and stands of trees on the site that covers almost 4 acres -- while adding eight new three-story buildings with a mix of one- and three-bedroom units
When the state told local officials to earmark more land for affordable housing, community members revolted. Many residents said higher-density developments would diminish their quality of life and increase traffic, pollution and crime -- concerns others disparaged as NIMBY, or "Not In My Back Yard."
The opponents called on officials to reject a law that requires them to plan new housing based on statewide growth and income projections. In unincorporated Santa Barbara County, the figure comes to 6,064 new units for years 2003 through 2008.
The scenario in Santa Barbara County is similar to the predicament of many jurisdictions across the state and nation, where evaporating open space has made it more difficult to build new homes, especially for people with lower incomes.
Saddled with enormous pension obligations and the loan repayments on buildings like the district attorney's office and the Betteravia Government Center, Santa Barbara County is about $194 million in debt.
That's not unusual for a county this size, and it wouldn't normally get much notice. But with a movement afoot to split the county in half, a panel of five men and women are wrestling with a critical issue: If the county splits in two, what happens to that debt?
Answering that weighty question falls to the Mission County Formation Review Commission, the group responsible for the solution.
As it determines whether the proposed Mission County can be fiscally viable, the commission must also determine a "fair, just and equitable" distribution of debt between north and south.
A collision that left one man dead in the Goleta Valley and an overturned big rig in Summerland combined to close northbound lanes of Highway 101 for hours Friday morning.
The two accidents brought the morning rush hour to a standstill, giving commuters a dose of the traffic woes they can expect during the upcoming Highway 101 revamp.
An unidentified 37-year-old Santa Fe, N. M., man was killed near Turnpike Avenue when the 1985 Cadillac El Dorado in which he was a passenger rolled over several times in a 6:30 a.m. crash that involved two cars. Officials said the 37-year-old driver of the Cadillac, Radana Slaba of Santa Barbara, was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence and vehicular manslaughter.
Officials say Ms. Slaba, who suffered cuts and was taken to Cottage Hospital, was traveling in the fast lane at a high rate of speed, then suddenly veered sharply to the right, striking a 2001 Ford Taurus driven by Marie Puchi, 61, of Ventura.
In a split vote, the Santa Barbara City Council denied an appeal of a Mesa homeowner who wanted to remove a Mexican fan palm tree from the public parkway in front of his house.
Kevin Cunningham argued Tuesday that the tree was leaning and posed a safety threat to his house, but the city's tree experts and arborist concluded the tree was young and in no danger of falling. "This is a healthy tree," city arborist David Gress said. "The tree is well rooted."
Council members Helene Schneider, Dan Secord and Das Williams voted to save the tree, while Mayor Marty Blum and Councilwoman Iya Falcone voted to cut it down, both saying it looked unsafe.
Ed St. George thinks of himself as a nice guy who provides badly needed rental housing for people on the South Coast.
He's received design awards for his rental projects. At one point, he even attempted to power one of his downtown rentals using only solar energy.
But Mr. St. George now finds himself caught in a web of controversy involving the city and neighborhood activists over the run-down, neglected property he owns on the corner of Salinas and Clifton streets on Santa Barbara's Eastside.
The furor focuses on the parcel he owns at 1340 Clifton St. The deteriorating 6,000-square-foot corner property has become an embarrassing eyesore for people who live, walk and drive on the Eastside
Bacara Resort & Spa is embroiled in a huge civil lawsuit that has already tarnished the luxury hideaway's five stars and could jeopardize the resort's future, according to attorneys for the owners.
Underneath its impeccable glossy surface, the complex is rotting, cracking and crumbling away, the result of a litany of building defects, court documents allege.
Over the course of two years, the case has bogged down in a morass of multiple claims ricocheting among the resort owners, insurance companies, contractors, engineers, architects, subcontractors and sub-subcontractors.
This civil case has already generated well over one million pages of evidentiary documents and a stack of 30 door-stop files in the records office at the Santa Barbara Courthouse, and any trial is still more than six months away.
Over their objections, the University of California's Sedgwick Reserve, Midland School and a smattering of ranches would be included within the boundaries of the proposed Mission County rather than remain in Santa Barbara County.
That was the decision Monday of the Mission County Formation Review Commission, the five-member panel charged with determining a variety of legal, financial and logistical matters involving the potential county.
The commission considered requests from 14 property owners with parcels contiguous to, or bisected by, the boundary of Mission County -- which is essentially the entire North County. Those were the only requests received from the approximately 135 parcel owners along the boundaries.
Some landowners asked that their property be attached to Mission County if voters ultimately approve creating it in a March 2006 ballot. Others sought allegiance with what would remain of Santa Barbara County.
The South Coast is the only area in the state to report a drop in the median home price for September compared to a year ago, leading some real estate experts to say that the market is cooling.
The area posted a median price of $949,000, compared with $950,000 12 months earlier, according to the monthly report from the California Association of Realtors. While the median price flattened, sales picked up considerably in September from the month before, rising from 97 homes to 117.
And September marked the first time this year that year-over price gains have not shown a double-digit hike on the South Coast.
The owner of two Isla Vista rentals gave up his fight with the county over their safety and said he's cutting back the buildings that now stand empty at the edge of an eroding cliff.
James Gelb withdrew his appeal of the county's August order to vacate his two duplexes on Del Playa Drive. Although he did not concede that the buildings were unsafe, he said Monday that he plans to cut them back by 30 feet, demolishing rooms nearest the cliffs to convert the structures into single houses.
After years watching morning traffic increase and commercial buildings sprout where homes once stood along Lillie Avenue, residents of Summerland have begun voicing their dreams for an eclectic downtown.
Last week at a workshop in the town church, about 30 residents compiled a wish list of priorities for the strip, presently lined with antique stores, restaurants, cafes, day spas, shops and the occasional home.
It's also lined with bumper-to-bumper traffic most weekday mornings as northbound Highway 101 commuters look for relief.
Lillie Avenue was once predominantly residential, but became the default main street when the original business district along Wallace Avenue was wiped out in 1951 to make way for the freeway.
With several new commercial projects already approved or under construction, and several more potential developments on the horizon, residents say now is the time to make their desires known.
The finished wish list was presented at a county Board of Architectural Review meeting. The board, along with the county Planning Commission, makes decisions on the projects that get built in the town of 1,500 people.
Well it's the big guys birthday. Yup, 54 years on this earth. It's hard to believe but true. I'll be celebrating at the Four Season Biltmore today at noon along with my darling bride Laury as well as Jim Fox and the beautiful Mrs. Fox, Meg. Ya'll come.
The Goleta City Council has approved a combination hotel and condo project for a prominent property along Hollister Avenue -- a major step toward rehabilitating the blighted stretch in a city founded on a slow-growth platform.
In a 4-0 vote, council members late Monday gave their final OK to the Old Town Inn and Village at 5665 Hollister near Highway 217 -- by far the largest of a handful of projects they have approved since Goleta incorporated in early 2002.
"We've got a long way to go to get the project permitted and ultimately built, and sold and put into operation," Santa Barbara architect-developer Detlev Peikert said Tuesday. "But we feel optimistic."
He said a ceremonial groundbreaking could happen in a month. Construction on the 98-room, three-story Hampton Inn and 37-condo complex could start in April and finish in spring 2006.
If Santa Barbara County voters approve a north vs. south divorce in two years, divvying up the finances and debt will be no easy task.
Figuring out an equitable way to do that is one of the most difficult tasks facing the Mission County Formation Review Commission.
Now in its sixth month of study, the commission must figure out how the North County and the remaining South Coast will fare if voters approve a split in June 2006.
During its Monday meeting, the commission pondered those financial divisions, and also considered the intricate details of setting an appropriate government spending limit for the new county.
Commissioner Jack Boysen has lobbied for the South Coast to make payments to the new county because of the number of government buildings already located in the south, and partially paid for by all county residents.
Commission Chairman Ted Tedesco said the split shouldn't be viewed as a marriage but as a business relationship, with assets split according to who paid into the purchase.
Santa Barbara is looking to lend a hand to the Faulding Hotel on Haley Street.
Citing concerns about the safety of the four-story building that houses low-income people and the working poor, the city is looking to invest redevelopment money into the hotel.
"The Faulding is in big trouble," said City Councilman Brian Barnwell, a real estate appraiser, referring to the building. "The electrical is dreadful. We need to step in and do something right away."
The 81-room hotel at 15 E. Haley St. was built in 1923. Originally, the building was owned by the Faulding Family, headed by Dwight and Etta Faulding. Over the years, the hotel has undergone several transformations. At one time it was called the Old Town Inn before it was purchased in the mid-1980s by the Santa Barbara Community Housing Corporation.
Following an outbreak of graffiti on the vacant Carrows Restaurant and other empty commercial buildings in Carpinteria, the city will now require property owners to clean up the mess in 10 days instead of 30.
Since the early 1990s, Carpinteria has required property owners to clean up graffiti within 30 days of being notified by the city. By shortening the time frame, city officials aim to discourage taggers by limiting their exposure, a known deterrent, said Paul Kermoyan, the city's director of community development.
He said other cities, such as Oxnard and San Diego, have a 10-day limit. The city of Santa Barbara is considering an abatement ordinance that would require property owners to remove graffiti within three days.
Santa Barbara city officials are reviewing the $19,000 remodeling of an office in the Public Works Department -- along with the purchase of a $5,000 50-inch flat-screen television -- after the county's civil grand jury and the mayor received a complaint from a private citizen.
The dustup centers around the office of the city's water distribution superintendent and a recent installation of cutting-edge technology that allows the city to control its water-distribution system from one central location.
The plasma screen was part of a $98,000 project to track water supply, flow, distribution and other technical matters. The remodeling of the office -- called "elaborate" by the complaining citizen -- came from a separate city service fund, which included a new ceiling, new lights, a $1,300 conference table and two $200 chairs.
Casting strong doubt on future housing at the Bishop Ranch, the Goleta City Council has decided to keep the large vacant tract zoned for agriculture.
In a 4-0 vote on Monday, the council, acting as the Planning Agency, sounded what could be a death knell for the proposed development on the urban South Coast's largest chunk of land where homes can still be built.
The council vote means agriculture will be the preferred use for the property when the city's emerging general plan -- a state-mandated blueprint for noise, traffic and land-use rules -- undergoes a required environmental impact review, most likely next year. It suggests any new Goleta housing will likely be concentrated elsewhere.
UCSB professor Finn E. Kydland was named the winner of the 2004 Nobel Prize in economics on Monday, less than a week after another campus professor won the honor in physics.
The award to Mr. Kydland, who joined the UCSB Economics Department on July 1, marked the fifth time a UCSB academic has been tapped for a Nobel in six years.
He was named along with Edward C. Prescott, a co-researcher and professor at Arizona State University who was a visiting professor at UCSB last year. They will share the $1.3 million prize.
A plan to combat violations of the county's affordable-housing rules may get a boost Tuesday if officials approve spending $37,000 to monitor the compliance of residents living in the subsidized units.
The money would allow the Housing and Community Development Department to implement an enforcement policy it enacted earlier this year but discontinued because of funding shortages.
A rancher and a community activist have wildly different visions of a new Mission County: One welcomes job-producing oil development projects, while the other shudders at the thought of a bankrupt government and farmland replaced by housing.
In the first debate Friday over the county split, the two North County women sparred during a gathering of the Santa Barbara Industrial Association, bringing to the fore the growing divisiveness over the proposed split.
Santa Ynez Valley rancher Nancy Crawford-Hall favors an immediate secession of the north, while Joyce Howerton, spokeswoman for the Coalition Against the County Split, wants the county to remain united.
A contested housing project on the edge of More Mesa cleared a county planning panel Wednesday after the builder agreed to reduce the size of the four proposed homes.
Seeking to minimize the effects of the large structures on the sprawling, 300-acre expanse, the Planning Commission unanimously approved a plan that would drop two of the 21-foot-tall homes to one story.
The 3.5-acre property holds a degraded wetland and one single-story home. Under the revised plan, Mr. Maxwell must designate the wetland for third-party conservation and pledge not to build additional homes beyond the four already approved.
Even as enrollment plummets at Santa Barbara's regular elementary schools, numbers are up at the district's three public charter schools, where test scores range from exemplary to poor.
While the 13-school district appears to have lost about 290 students since last fall -- the largest drop in a quarter century -- the charter schools have posted a net gain of about 50 kids.
The trend is happening despite the bad press that has buffeted charter schools, from federal data indicating that performance is lagging at many of them, to the state-mandated closure of 60 California Charter Academy campuses.
Goleta can block the construction of The Residences at Sandpiper, according to a ruling in a $32 million lawsuit against the city.
Although the developers can appeal the decision, this could be the death knell for what would have been 87 market-rate and 22 affordable homes on 14.5 acres along Hollister Avenue.
The unanimous decision in Goleta's favor, issued late Thursday by a three-member panel of justices at the 2nd Appellate District Court in Ventura, reverses an earlier Santa Barbara Superior Court decision that would have forced officials to allow the project.
The biggest hit to come out of Apple Computers in years is the audio player called the iPod. These devices have become so popular that some automobile manufacturers are making them part of their options packages. BMW for example gives you the option of incorporating iPods directly into your car's sound system. And a new product from audio company Alpine will soon let even more of you hit the open road with your iPod connected to your car stereo.
For more on iPods on the Road Click Here
A plan to overhaul the county's affordable housing policies divided officials on Tuesday, leaving in jeopardy the future of the proposal that has polarized many residents.
The Board of Supervisors postponed a vote on changes that would require developers to earmark a larger portion of new homes for families making less than $130,000 per year -- or pay a fee for not doing so.
If voters approve splitting Santa Barbara County, the new Mission County faces a projected $44 million shortfall -- and will likely have trouble paying for law enforcement and social services.
The amount is more than three times higher than the initial projections by those seeking to create a new county north of the Gaviota Tunnel.
"Based on the current level of services, Mission County is not financially feasible," County Auditor-Controller Bob Geis said Monday. "Based on the current amount of money in the South Coast, we're significantly paying for operations in the North County. We're paying for capital in the North County. We're paying for contributions to federal and state programs."
After decades of landlords pleading ignorance abut their rowdy tenants, the Santa Barbara County Sheriffs Department started sending out letters last year as part of a get-tough effort to quell the Isla Vista party scene which has propelled UCSB to national notoriety.
Despite claims to the contrary there is little evidence of a wide spread crackdown even when tenants violate rules common to many Isla Vista leases. The overall response by landlords to the sheriffs notifications is hard to gauge because so few have contacted the Isla Vista Foot Patrol for more information about goings-on at their rentals. Its been like sending letters to outer space. Said Isla Vista Foot Patrol Lt. Tom McKinny.
With the end of summer approaching, Santa Barbara County officials greeted more than 150 students moving into residences on oceanside Del Playa Drive with unusual housewarming gifts - eviction notices.
The county posted the notices Aug. 27 at nine properties along the cliffs of the 6600 and 6700 blocks of DP, indicating that erosion of the bluffs underneath the houses had made them unsafe for habitation. Tenants were given until Sept. 27 to vacate the buildings, unless their landlords are able to either prove the buildings are safe or reinforce their support structures to the county's satisfaction. After further consideration, the county announced Sept. 15 it would extend the deadline for three of the nine affected residences - 6619, 6701 and 6703 DP - to Oct. 22.
County building official Mike Zimmer based the decision to evict the students on an annual assessment of bluff erosion in Isla Vista that was completed in late June. Zimmer said this year's findings were troubling enough to deem the properties unsafe.
For over 20 years most of my conversations have started with Hows Your Mother? But as of Sunday September 12th 2004 all my friends will have to find a new question because my mother, Lillie C. Woods passed away. The questions really started in April 1984 after my mothers husband and my father Jim Woods passed. He went suddenly and it was a great shock to all of us. Just as they were getting ready to retire and do more traveling and just enjoying life moms life partner was gone. They had gotten married after her graduation from Santa Barbara High School in 1938 and enjoyed a wonderful fulfilling life first in the Navy until 1960 and then afterwards in the home they built together on Cathedral Oaks Rd.
After dads passing in 1984 I didnt really expect mom to last very long. Dad was her entire life and I dont think she felt she had much to live for but some how she found the way. Mom went out and joined and served on the Board of Directors of The Womans Club, Hadas Madrinas, Recording for the Blind, The Republican Womens Club and did endless mailings and social events for the Santa Barbara Symphony. I was so incredibly proud of her for picking herself up and moving forward and I know my father would have been equally proud.
The most amazing thing I think she ever did was go with her best friend in the world Jackie Filbrey over to Europe twice. Both times she had trouble that would have ruined most peoples vacation. Once, a purse was stolen and she ended up at the United States Embassy trying to get a new passport and the other time she ended up in the Hospital. Neither time did I hear a peep out of her. Only after she got back did she mention the events idly in passing. When I said why didnt you call me, all she said was oh well, I didnt want to worry you.
Moms health was always fragile. Even from the time she was in High School she was excused from Gym Class with heart problems. Mom always spent a lot of time with doctors but after my dad passed away the problems seemed to increase. It seemed like she was always going in for more tests of one type or another. She was passed around from Doctor to Doctor until she found the awesome Dr. Seth Anderson. Dr. Anderson diagnosed her problem and began treating it.
Even with the outstanding care Dr. Anderson gave her she would end up in the hospital every now and again. Once we were unable to get her on the phone and came charging up here from Los Angeles only to find her delirious on the couch. I scooped her up and took her to Cottage Emergency. Over the years its almost not an exaggeration to say we were on a first name basis with the staff of Cottage Emergency. After these stays Dr. Anderson would mix up another of this medical cocktails and she would be up and running again. The Doc called her the Energizer Bunny.
For almost half of my life until my wife Laury came on the scene in 1978, mom was my best friend. We traveled miles and miles with each other as dad was transferred from duty station to duty station. Then after the Navy years she was always there for me. No matter what crazy scheme I would come up with, and there were a lot of them, she would just say how can I help. As the end of her life approached it was these memories of us being together that would constantly come flooding back to her. She would start remember when and wed be off on a troop ship going to Hawaii, or one of a thousand other places wed been. Right at the end shed sometimes become confused as to where was and I would always remind her No Matter Where You Are Youre Loved. So thats how Id like to answer the question Hows Your Mother? No Matter Where She Is, Shes Loved.
Gary Woods
In lieu of flowers the family requests that you either donate to Santa Barbara Hospice or the Santa Barbara Symphony in the name of Lillie C. Woods.
The historic merit of 10 private cabanas at the Coral Casino is the latest snag in Ty Warner's $35 million revamp of the weathered Montecito swim club.
The removal of the second-story cabanas -- deemed historically significant in a recently released environmental impact report -- is necessary to carry out the heart of Mr. Warner's plans to raise the main restaurant to the second floor, which in turn restores ocean views from the pool deck below.
Yesterday we took the Saturday version of the Arthitectural Walking tour of downtown Santa Barbara. It started on the steps of City Hall on the De La Guerra Plaza side and lasted for almost three hours, but every minute was worth it.
We were able to share the day with Jeff and Denise Koepke and got some great pictures to prove it. For pictures of the Saturday Santa Barbara Architectural Walk please Click Here
It's a beautiful Saturday and we're going to take the Architectural Walking tour that starts from the steps of City Hall on the De La Guerra Plaza side. We're meeting our friends Jeff and Denise Koepke. Also my old friend from Junior High School, Phil Davies may find his way downtown.
The tour is $5 for adults with children under 12 free. This is a great service sponsored by the Architectural Foundation. For more on the Architectural Walking Tour please click here
Santa Barbara City Councilman Brian Barnwell disclosed his campaign contributions on Wednesday -- 30 days late -- and paid a $100 fine.
Mr. Barnwell, a 57-year-old real estate appraiser who was elected to the council in November, said he forgot to file his campaign statements for the third time in the past year.
State law requires that he be fined for missing the Aug. 2 deadline. The councilman offered no excuse other than he is focused on larger city matters.
He said he hopes to put the matter behind him.
"I just missed it," he said.
Youths in Santa Ynez Valley may soon find themselves slapped with citations from Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Department deputies, but there won't be any fines or community service requirements to fulfill.
In fact, youths will be handed redeemable vouchers for treats that appeal to their grumbling stomachs -- bean and cheese burritos, Slurpee drinks, ice cream and fresh fruit.
That's because instead of singling out mischief makers, the citations will recognize and reward those who demonstrate good citizenship through civic-minded acts such as helping younger kids cross the street, picking up litter and walking their skateboards and bikes through pedestrian areas.
It's all part of the Good Citizenship Citation program developed by the Rotary Club of Los Olivos in conjunction with community liaison Deputy Charles Uhrig of the County Sheriff's Department and participating local businesses, including R Country Store, Ingeborg's Chocolates, New Frontiers Natural Marketplace and Taco Roco.
Well after our rousing success as parade announcers yesterday Baron and Me will move our traveling road show to Alameda Park. Baron provides the music and entertainment for the Kiwanis Annual Pancake Breakfast at the park and it's a great event. It starts at 7AM and continues until noon.
At 10AM I'll wander over to State St and watch the Children's Parade followed by a trek down to El Mercado at De La Guerra Plaza to make sure they still have the best Fish Tacos in town.
See you there.
It's Fiesta Weekend in Santa Barbara and I'm going to be announcing the parade. I'll be down there with my friend "Baron" Ron Heron and we'll be at 1119 State St right across from the Art Museum. The parade will start about 12PM down at the beach so it'll take a while to wend it's way up to us. If you've got a free afternoon please come on by.
Here are some pictures I took of Fiesta 2002.
When it comes to housing in Santa Barbara, size does matter.
In an effort to help very-low-income people find a place to live, the city is pushing an ordinance that would allow for 150-square-foot studio apartments.
The ordinance is intended to replace Santa Barbara's depleted stock of residential-type hotel rooms. The current minimum size is 220 square feet, but the new ordinance would allow the city's Housing Authority and other nonprofit housing developers to build smaller units.
The city has lost more than 450 rooms for the poor at residential hotels in the past few years, watching them turn into high-end tourist hotels.
For more on Ordinance Would Allow Tiny Apartments Click Here
The Tall Ship the Pilgrim came to town for Fiesta 2004. For those who don't know the Pilgrim was the ship that Richard Henry Dana came to town on in his book Two Years Before the Mast. The Pilgrim was part of the Hyde and Tallow trade which flourished alone the California Coast in the 1840s. It's a rare treat to see such a great ship in Santa Barbara's harbor.
For pictures of The Pilgrim Click Here
The Greek Festival in Oak Park on the West Side is a great annual event. These pictures are of the 31st Festival in 2004. Laid out under the spreading Oaks are several great places to eat and drink your heart out. There are also some wonderful performers who display their wares on the Parthenon Stage.
For pictures of the Greek Festival Click Here
After years of false starts, construction on Santa Barbara's controversial Ritz-Carlton Club timeshare project is three to four weeks away, according to the developer and the city.
Community Development Director Paul Casey said he's about two weeks from giving final approval, and developer Bill Levy is poised to get a building permit for the $170 million project in the next month, he said.
"It's the largest project ever built in Santa Barbara monetarily," said Mr. Levy during an interview inside his spacious second-story office in El Paseo. "It's also the largest because it is spread out. And it will be the largest until Cottage Hospital comes around. It is going to change the area dramatically."
For more on this story please read Levy Ready To Break Ground on Timeshare Project
City planners on Thursday praised Cottage Health System's plan to build condominiums for its workers on the site of the old St. Francis Medical Center on the upper Eastside.
The six Planning Commissioners expressed general support for the project but promised neighbors that their worries about traffic, noise and parking would be covered in a environmental report about the $30 million to $40 million project.
Thursday's three-hour meeting outlined which potential environmental impacts should be studied. Twenty members of the public spoke and they were about evenly divided on the merits of Cottage's plan.
For more on this please read Planners Praise Cottage's Plans for Housing
The city council approved the expansion of a home on the Mesa to more than twice its' current size. In a three hour meeting about 15 people spoke in favor of the plan and about 12 spoke against it.
For more on this issue please read City sides with expansion in Mesa Fight
The Goleta City Council unanimously approved a 62- unit housing subdivision for the Ellwood Mesa perimeter late Monday a milestone in a nearly two-decade movement to shape and develop a central section of the coastal wildland.
Approval sets the stage for the state Coastal Commission consideration of the Comstock Homes and Development Partners subdivision, possibly by October. In connection, local officials plan to send the panel a package of plans aimed at creating a more than 600-acre recreational Ellwod-Devereaux Open Space.
In the latest example of the lack of action that often follows local civil grand jury findings, the city of Santa Barbara is brushing off most of a report that calls on the city to stop giving over-the-counter construction permits in neighborhoods where lots dont conform to zoning rules.
The Santa Barbara City Council today will formally respond to the grand jurys recommendations, through a letter signed by Mayor Marty Blum. The matter wont even make the citys regular agenda its packaged with several other items considered minor by the city administrator.
The citys rebuff to the grand jury comes on the heels of a similar response from the county Board of Supervisors and has grand jury foreman David Clous up in arms.
Its French Festival weekend in Santa Barbara. This is a great event put on by my childhood friend Steve Hoegerman. Ive known Steve since La Colina Junior High School days in 63 and his father was our family Doctor for years.
The festival is a two day affair at Oak Park and features free admission, delicious food and fine wine, over 40 acts on 3 states and a free trip to France. The festival runs from 11AM to 7PM and Ill be there about noon today. See you there.
Click Here for more on the Santa Barbara French Festival.
Santa Barbara wants to become a friendly destination for cruise ships of up to 2,500 passengers and is working on a top-secret security plan to handle the increase in voyages to local waters.
Norwegian Cruise Lines Pride of Aloha made two stops here in June, and city officials say the visits pumped $15,000 into the Waterfront Department and considerable revenue into local businesses. Despite environmental concerns, Santa Barbara has lined up two more cruise ships to visit in the fall.
A Los Olivos-based charter school is opening a campus in Santa Barbara, becoming the first charter high school in the area.
Olive Grove Home Study Charter School will open its second location on Aug. 16 in vacant offices at Santa Barbara City College, where students will work in small groups or one on one with credentialed teachers for regular diplomas.
The Santa Barbara elementary district, which operates traditional public schools in the city, has three charter schools, but the secondary district, which serves Santa Barbara and Goleta, has none.
Cottage Hospital is looking at a major $400 million re-building project for its Westside facility and at putting in 115 condos replacing the St. Francis Medical Center on the Eastside.
The two ambitious projects will transform two separate neighborhoods. Cottage plans to rebuild its upper Westside hospital by 2013 and simultaneously build the condos on the Eastside.
Both proposals have ignited neighborhood furor over their size and perceived environmental effect.
In and attempt to address neighborhood concerns, Cottage has held public meetings to explain the rebuilding project and made revisions, while remind the public that an earthquake-safe, state-of-the-art hospital benefits everyone.
Fearing an exodus of teachers headed for less expensive homes, a Santa Barbara schools committee is moving forward on a plan to use district-owned land to build affordable housing for faculty.
The 11 member advisory committee, formed seven months ago to investigate how to generate money from unused school property, recently submitted its proposal. School board members are likely to begin discussing it soon.
The site the committee has in mind is 23 acres in the unincorporated Goleta valley, west of San Marcos High School and just east of El Camino Junior High School. Under one scenario, school faculty would be able to purchase market-rate homes at half price with no down payment.
If the idea succeeds, the school district would be one of the first in the state to provide subsidized housing for teachers.
For more please read Housing for Teachers
This drawing was through the Santa Barbara Contemporary Arts forum http://www.sbcaf.org/ You can all them at 805.966.5373 or Fax 805.962.1421
The median home price on the South Coast has hit a record $1 million, but it is possible to buy a house worth that much for the price of a dinner-date at Citronelle.
Taking a cue from cultural groups around the country, the nonprofit Santa Barbara Contemporary Arts Forum is raffling off a home near downtown Santa Barbara to raise money for its various programs. Tickets are $150.
At a time when people are leaving the area to realize the dream of home ownership, this is one way to grab it right here for a little bit of money.
Eighteen thousand tickets are being offered and the drawing is set for 3p.m. Sept 4 Alameda Park.
For more please read Win a House in Santa Barbara
Its the 4th of July in Santa Barbara which means in our house its Symphony Day on the steps of the Court House. Laury is in the Viola Section of the Orchestra and also the Symphonys librarian so well be getting there pretty darn early. The rehearsal starts at 12PM and the concert is at 5PM. Some where between those two times well wander across the street to the Acapulco in the La Arcada Bldg so if you could save us a seat wed appreciate it.
Hopefully well see you at the Court House, but if not, have a great 4th of July.
Goleta Valley residents fighting an ambitious plan for new and affordable housing urged friends and neighbors on Tuesday to join their cause.
The move against a Santa Barbara County proposal adds sizzle to a long-simmering feud between home owners fearful of overcrowding, more traffic and the future of their own home values, and planners charged with preparing the region for construction.
More than 100 people packed a room at the Goleta Public Library, where leaders of the Hollister Avenue Neighborhood Association and the affiliated Coalition for Sensible Planning argued that a proposal to rezone properties across the unincorporated area of, "Noleta" to introduce condos, multistory apartments or increase the number of units per acre - is moving forward largely behind. closed doors without sufficient public input
For more on A Proposal For Goleta Valley Housing please read.
The long tale of woe of a local Doctor looking for a house. He's looked at over two hundred and is still suffering from sticker shock. For more on this please read Looking For a Home in Santa Barbara
It's always been tough for the middle class to afford housing in Santa Barbara.
But with the median home price officially listed at over $1 million, even the highest-paid professionals are being squeezed out of the South Coast housing market, with doctors, professors and engineers increasingly choosing jobs elsewhere.
For more on this please read Home costs squeezing out the middle class
The median price of a single-family home on the South Coast of Santa Barbara County has reached the $1 million mark the highest in California.
The expectation of higher interest rates this summer has created a frenzy in the past several months, as buyers rushed to enter a heated market for fear of missing out.
Desperation-fueled buying pumped the South Coast median to $1.1 million as of May, the California Association of Realtors reported Friday. Year-to-date figures, the best indicator of home values, put the South Coast median at $1 million.
For more on this story please click on Median Home Price Passes $1 Million
Its Summer Solstice Parade day in Santa Barbara. This is a great event and really a lot of fun. Its not quite as cool as when bare breasted young ladies paraded down State St, but what are you going to do. You cant even drink beer on State St during Fiesta anymore. Go figure?
Anyway, if you havent attended Summer Solstice you definitely ought to give it a look. Heres a page where you can find out everything going on during the Festival Sumer Solstice Celebration Santa Barbara
Two of Santa Barbara's most powerful entities are colliding over their visions for a revamped Cottage Hospital.
City officials are prodding Cottage to incorporate major, environmentally friendly building standards as part of the rebuilding of the $350 million hospital on Santa Barbara's upper Westside. They view the project as a milestone in the city's history that could prove to be a turning point in environmentally friendly building.
Hospital executives say they are trying to respond to the city's requests.
For more on this story please read City officials urge Cottage Hospital
renovation to be environmentally friendly
Environmentalists are rallying against a plan for 20 homes in the Santa Barbara foothills, even though 86 percent of the land would be left undeveloped.
The 377 acres just east of Highway 154 and north of Foothill Road has been the focus of several controversial development proposals over the past two decades. The latest application was submitted to the county nearly three years ago by local developer Jeff Bermant and Santa Barbara Foothills LLC. The Preserve at San Marcos project has been under environmental review most of the time since.
A hearing Tuesday before the County Planning staff of a draft environmental study is likely to draw opponents with wide-ranging concerns, from traffic and sewage disposal to increased risks of wildfire and potential habitat damage for rare species such as the burrowing owl and grasshopper swallow.
Decision makers will have to weigh those concerns against benefits, such as permanent preservation of more than 200 acres for public use and the inclusion of five low-priced condominiums at a time when Santa Barbara County is under increasing pressure from the state to create more affordable housing.
For more on this story please read Foothill Development Stirs Controversy Again
A giant American flag is stirring emotions among many who pass by on Anacapa Street, but not everyone is moved.
In an e-mail to the City Council, longtime Santa Barbara resident Michael Colin is demanding removal of the 30-by-60 foot flag identical in size to the one draped on the Pentagon after Sept. 11 which hangs on the back of the Lobero theatre because its size violated the citys sign ordinance.
I just find it overwhelming he said.
But with the United States at way and after Fridays beheading of another American at the hands of terrorists, others say the flag is just the show of patriotism we could use right now.
The county is hoping to bring a couple of tow trucks to jump-start cars, change flat tires, refill leaky radiators and tow vehicles off Highway 101 free of charge to relieve congestion on the South Coast.
The Santa Barbara County Association of Governments, a regional transportation agency voted this week to seek state funding for the freeway service patrol, saying it could be in operation on 101 between Ventura and as early as next year. The annual cost for two tow trucks would be $250,000.
State water which costs the South Coast $25 million per year, drought or no drought has made its first appearance at Lake Cachuma. From the nearby observation point, it looks like a small faucet emptying into a gigantic bathtub that is nearly 40 feet below the high-water mark. The last time the lake was this low was in 1988, during the second year of a severe drought.
South Coast residents draw down the reservoir at a rate of 2 or 3 feet per month in very dry weather. The 7 inches of state water flowing monthly into the lake right now is more than canceled out by 10 inches of monthly evaporation.
Ten years after a $640 million branch of the California Aqueduct was built from Kern County to Cachuma, state water remains a touchy subject in Santa Barbara County. This year, the aqueduct is delivering only 65 percent of the water that county voters signed up for back in 1991, when they approved the expensive project. Last year, deliveries were at 90 percent.
Its Irish Festival weekend in Santa Barbara. Only this year its taking place at Earl Warren Showgrounds. Along with the traditional Irish fare and beverages, the entertainment ranges from Irish ballads to traditional Irish dancing. Local and national bands will provide music and song on three stages, and the renowned Claddagh School of Irish Dance will perform traditional jigs, reels and hornpipes.
The festival displays Irish imports from merchants from throughout California at booths displaying both traditional and contemporary Irish items.
There will also be a re-creation of an early ancient Celtic encampment, which is a touch of living history youll find both fascinating and educational. Festival hours are 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. and admission is free.
Simmering frustration over limited access to Haskell's Beach has boiled over, prompting the Goleta City Council to consider measures as drastic as grabbing a portion of Bacara Resort & Spa's land through eminent domain.
Signaling that they might move beyond efforts to negotiate a resolution to the eight-month dispute between beach-goers and the resort, council members are also considering enlisting the help of the state Coastal Commission or seeking a right of way through the resort's property.
The council discussed the alternatives at a public hearing Monday where residents criticized Bacara management, with some alleging that intimidating security guards are being used to drive non-guest beach-goers from the picturesque stretch near Sandpiper Golf Course.
For more ont he Haskell's Beach Access Dispute click here
In a move that would shift the way Santa Barbara provides affordable housing and work force housing, the city is pondering a plan to spend $2 million in reserves to buy land and save it for future projects.
Councilman Das Williams, who campaigned on a platform of providing affordable housing, proposed the idea. But it is being met with some resistance by the city administrator, finance staff and fellow council members Roger Horton and Dan Secord, who sit on the city's finance committee.
They contend the timing is wrong because the city is raising fees, cutting costs and spending reserves to balance a $35 million budget deficit next year.
For more on this subject please click on City Looks at Buying Land for Housing
A rise in mortgage interest rates shows little sign of slowing demand for homes in Santa Barbara County, where South Coast prices came close to the million-dollar mark and median home prices across the country last month posted double-digit gains from a year ago.
On the South Coast, the median was $985,000 in April, up 20 percent from the $819,000 of a year ago. The Santa Ynez Valley posted a 23 percent gain to hit $742,000 last month compared to $602,250 last April. In the Lompoc Valley, the media in April was $335,000, up 25 percent from $267,675 while Santa Maria reported $340,000, a 24 percent rise from last years $275,000
The city council of Santa Barbara has agreed to give an extra $6.7 million to help build the citys largest affordable housing project ever. It will consist of 170 units for seniors and families.
The citys Redevelopment Agency had already agreed to give developers, Mercy Housing and St. Vincents Daughters of Charity $10.6 million toward the $50 million project. But the rising cost of steel and other building materials is forcing the city to cough up more cash to keep the project alive.
Deciding whether to fork over more money put the council in an awkward position, and the panel realistically had little choice but to consent to the additional cash. Affordable housing is one of the citys top priorities; obtaining 170 units of that affordable housing is seen as a rare opportunity.
But, giving the money will require the city to use Redevelopment Agency reserve funds and to sell bonds. It also could constrain the city on future housing projects funded with redevelopment money.
One of the more interesting attractions in Santa Barbara, actually Montecito, is Lotusland. This 37 acre estate was purchased in 1941 by Polish Opera Singer Ganna Walska and has been amazing people ever since. The estate has been open to the public for the last 10 years and can be seen from mid-February to mid-November on Docent led tours. For more on Lotusland please read Lotusland, Montecito.
Home prices in southern Santa Barbara County rose higher last month stopping just shy of the $1 million mark. Demand for more affordable homes on the South Coast has caused condominium prices to rise faster than single-family home prices for the first quarter of this year.
Condos reached a median of $545,000 in the recent quarter, up 25 percent from the same period a year ago. Single-family homes climbed to $965,000 up 20 percent from the $805,000 posted in the year ago quarter.
The fear of higher interest rates could accelerate the rise in prices over the next few months as the county enters its busiest season for home buying.
After more than a year of city review a 42-unit housing project of condominiums, apartments, live/work space and businesses is taking shape along Carpinteria Avenue.
Officials hope the proposed Craftsman-style homes coupled with storefronts along the main avenue will revitalize that end of town, where Cocos Restaurant recently went under and most agree a bit of polishing wouldnt hurt.
Plans include 5,116 square feet of commercial space, 32 three-story market-rate condominiums, six low-income apartments and four live/work space units for residents who will run businesses from home.
The Goleta City Council has approved a combination hotel and condo project for a prominent stretch of Hollister Avenue. The preliminary approval, which came late Tuesday after months of hearings and hand-wringing, marks a major turning point for the city. The Old Town Inn and Village is by far the largest of only a handful of projects that city leaders have approved since Goleta incorporated in early 2002.
In its 3-1 vote, the council acting as the city Planning Agency approved the 96-room three-story Hampton Inn and 38-condo complex to rise from a blighted former mobile home park at 5665 Hollister Ave a property near Highway 217 and the Goleta Valley Community Center.
The City Council Tuesday allowed Cottage Health System to move forward with its proposed 115 unit condominium project at the old St. Francis Medical Center property. The Council rejected the request that the property be down zoned from allowing 3 story buildings with an unlimited number of units to two stories with two units per building.
The vote was 6-1 with Das Williams being the lone dissenter.
Cottage Hospital plans to build the condos for its employees in an effort to improve recruitment and retention of its health care workers. Eighty-one of the units would be sold to employees at below market prices. Cottage officials said that if the zoning is changed, they couldnt build as many homes that would be affordable to it s residents.
While the Cottage plan is still in the early stages and must undergo several more steps before gaining approval, city staffers are embracing the project because it provides housing for its workers in a community where there is a jobs-housing imbalance.
What can you do with a 20 X 20 section of downtown Santa Barbara? Well if Neil Ablitt and his wife get their way there will be a 4 story home on it. The lot located at 13 W Haley St would have parking on the ground floor. The second floor would be for cooking. The bedroom would be on the third floor and they would entertain on the fourth floor. There would also be roof access where they envision sipping a cold beer on a hot summer day. The tip of the roofs tower would look 53 feet to the ground.
The project has been turned down by the planning commission in a narrow vote so this week theyll take it before the City Council to try and get approval. As with most things Santa Barbara there are those who dont want the project to happen so stay tuned.
A proposal has been brought forward to put 131 Condominiums in the Santa Barbara Waterfront area. Approximately 40% of those condos have been proposed to be affordable housing with the others being at Market Rate.
The project is in the preliminary stages and raises some interesting points about the citys vision of the area from the Freeway to the Beach. At one point the developer, Bill Wright, had proposed a hotel for the largest site, but that idea was abandoned.
For more about this proposed project please read 131 Condominiums Proposed in the Santa Barbara Waterfront area.
The Metropolitan Transit District is risking the loss of millions of federal dollars with a pan to buy diesel buses instead of the fleet of electric buses it once promised, even the cleaner burning ones MTD envisions.
The change of plans is the latest challenge facing MTD, coming off a year of controversy involving a federal inquiry into its bidding process, an overhaul of its management, and the loss of recognition for its highly touted electric bus program.
A proposed new building on the North Side of Santa Barbara has sparked controversy. The DesignArc firm would like to relocate their offices to W Calle Laureles and construct a mixed-used building that would have subterranean parking, commercial space on the ground floor and 5 market rate condominiums on the top floor. For more please read a proposed new building on the North Side of Santa Barbara.
According to the preliminary court ruling that came down yesterday Goleta must allow developers of the The Residences at Sandpiper to go ahead with their project. In his decision Santa Barbara Superior Court Judge William McLafferty questioned why city officials worked for months with the builders of the development to shepherd the housing proposal toward approval, only to deny it in a December 2002 Council vote.
Having committed itself to one positionthe city could not then deliberately change its position, the judge wrote. The court is puzzled by the citys failure to make any reasonable explanation as to why it worked with the petitioner for many months, and then unaccountably made a 180-degree change in position with respect to the project.
Friday more than a year after developers launched a $32 million lawsuit against the city of Goleta the parties will have their day in court. The legal showdown, before Santa Barbara Superior Court Judge William McLafferty, is expected to focus on the meaning of an obscure state code describing rights and rules affect newly incorporated cities, which lies at the center of the dispute.
At issue is whether the new Goleta City Council acted improperly on Dec. 16, 2002 when it rejected the Sandpiper development with a 4-1 vote, despite its approval by the county Board of Supervisors a year earlier.
Goletas denial sent a message to developers: Densely clustered housing on narrow streets would no longer be welcome in the city of more than 28,000 residents, unless developers provide outdoor parking in amounts similar to that of the traditional suburban tracts that dominate Goleta.
Farmland in Santa Barbara County is a deep and wide subject. Because of the State mandates the County has been looking at ways to expand the housing inventory and one of the possibilities being looked at most often is Farmland. If you'd like some more information on this subject please give a look at Farmland in Santa Barbara County
One of the biggest problems in this area is affordable housing. Couple that with the mandate from the state to look at ways to increase density and you've got a lot of controversy. One of the options is to rezone some property from agricultural to residential. For an in depth look at some of the options please give a look at Where We Live.
C.A.R. encourages all members to become involved in the political process by exercising their right to vote March 2. The deadline to register to vote in the March 2 California primary election is Feb. 17. While full online voter registration is not yet available, you can initiate the process online and a registration card with your information will be printed and mailed to you. Once you receive your form in the mail, which takes approximately seven to 10 days, you must sign, date, and return it by mail to the county elections official indicated on the return-address side of the voter registration card. For more information, call (800) 345-8683 or visit the link below.
A plan to convert one of the Santa Barbara Channel oil platforms into a fish farm is stirring up controversy among environmentalists. The project has funding from Chevron, Hubbs-Sea World Research Institute of San Diego. The permit request is to operate a fish farm and hatchery experiment for three years at Venocos Platform Grace, which is 11 miles off Ventura in Federal Waters.
The approximately one-mile-square Grace Mariculture Project would include four submerged pens around the platform for yellowtails, striped bass and blue fin tuna. Also there would facilities for a hatchery and rearing operations on 10,000 square feet of the platform itself for halibut and abalone. It would be the first facility of its kind on the US West Coast for finfish.
In a move that will displace several renters and small businesses, the Santa Barbara Planning Commission on Thursday approved a downtown development aimed at transforming Chapala Street across from Paseo Nuevo
Approved in the plan are 8 condominiums that would sell for less than $324,000 and are designed for people who cannot afford to buy a home at the market rate in Santa Barbara.
The 21 other condominiums would sell for market rate and range from $600,000 to $1.2 million. Right now, there are six small studios at the site, 721 to 739 Chapala St that are about 450 square feet and rent on a month-to-month basis for about $650 a month
The site is as yet to be determined, but there seems to be significant interest among city officials for a central transportation hub combining the Metropolitan Transit District, Greyhound busses, train and commuter rail. This marks the first time that decision-makers seriously agreed to start planning for commuter rail.
The proposal gained momentum during a wide-ranging City Council work session on Tuesday. The MTD wants development money from the city to remodel its old, now inefficient Transit Center near the corner of Chapala and Carrillo streets, across the street from Ralphs.
The possibility of commuter rail is several years away, but the city appears poised to partner with MTD for high-speed rail. What form that partnership might take is unclear.
The City Council of Santa Barbara made some changes to the design of the proposed $19.1 million Granada Garage Tuesday and added at $420,000 to its cost. The resulting structure will be a stately building intended to look nothing like a parking garage.
The council agreed to raise the ceiling by a foot on two underground levels, a move that will cost about $300,000. City staff had recommended the change largely to make it more attractive for people to park on the bottom two floors.
In a surprising policy shift the Goleta City Council has moved to end its ban on commercial construction, ending a policy that has upset developers with projects stalled since the birth of the city two years ago.
The panel put in place new temporary rules to control future land use decisions. Standards on building height, home size, traffic, affordable housing and environmental protection that would last a year as officials work toward completing a similar but significantly more elaborate general plan.
A city proposal requiring developers to build housing for middle-income workers is one of the issues facing the new City Council. Dubbed the inclusionary housing ordinance, it would force developers who want to build at least 10 market-rate homes to set aside at least 20 percent for families that earn between $60,000 and $120,000
Under the plan, in cases where there is not enough land to fit in the extra units, city planners are recommending that the developers pay fees of approximately $300,000 for each unit to a fund for middle-income housing.
The council faces a number of other housing-related issues this year. Officials are also tackling ways to update the 13-year-old neighborhood preservation ordinance to block a trend known as mansionization. And the council plans to take another look at altering Santa Barbaras coastal funk zone to prevent condomania.
The city of Goletas moratorium on commercial construction will expire next month. The decision is due by February 13th, but the outcome of a January 26th special session on a possible ordinance may prove the telling indication on what way the council will go.
On that day, the council will debate the wisdom of refusing to accept or process project proposals deemed incompatible with the citys future big-picture blueprint for traffic, noise and land-use rules a general plan has yet to be written.
The current moratorium affects eight commercial building applications, while construction of multifamily, affordable housing; single-family homes; projects to revitalize Old Town; and renovations with no expansion of square footage are exempted. In addition, commercial developers can add up to 5,000 square to a structure.
Due to budget cutbacks from Sacramento the $45 million project aimed at easing traffic congestion between Milpas Street and Hot Springs Road will likely be delayed under the governors budget plan, which sharply cuts transportation funding throughout the state.
All over Santa Barbara County there are hundreds of homes on septic tanks and many of them are more than 50 years old. It is speculated that some of these may be contributing to pollution of local creeks and the ocean.
On Tuesday the interim director of the county Environmental Health Services will ask the county Board of Supervisors for permission to begin drawing up a $300,000 community-by-community plan to clean up septic tank problems.
The solutions could include sewer hookups, mandatory inspections, septic tank upgrades and in the case of Los Olivos constructing a sewer plant.
A recent survey by a consulting engineering firm of 24 clusters representing 4,300 septic tanks in Santa Barbara County shows that malfunctioning septic systems in Los Olivos and Janin Acres, a subdivision of 100 homes between Solvang and have contributed to unsafe levels of nitrates in local groundwater. Nitrates can be harmful to infants, so well water must be blended for safe drinking.
Yesterday I received a comment on a story I wrote for my Blog concerning the Coral Casino. The story was in reference to a proposed remodeling for the facility. Up until that time I had no idea there was a Coral Casino Beanie Baby.
The comment was from Phyllis Miceli and she buys and sells Beanie Babies, billing herself as Queenie Beanie. Here are the comments I received from Phyllis regarding the Coral Casino Beanie Baby. If you have any more questions please contact her directly at Phyllisjimfield@aol.com.
Ty Warner gave each member of the Coral Casino Club a bear called "Coral Casino." Many of the members didn't want the changes at the Coral Casino Club to be made, so to "win them over," he gave each member a bear personally signed by him at a Christmas Party in 2000. Many members don't even know that the bear is worth money in the beanie collecting community. Many members are so wealthy, that they don't even care. But for those few who do care, I pay $1,000 to $1,500 for each bear, depending on the number of the bear. My beanie customers want them, and they are quite collectible since he only handed out 588 of them.
If you know of any members, you might want to see if you can get them (sell them) for the members. I've been in business for quite a while selling beanies, so I'm a very reputable person to go through.
PLMK if I may be of further assistance.
Thank you,
Phyllis Miceli
Queenie Beanie
Phyllisjimfield@aol.com
10 Million Pounds of concrete got dumped in downtown Santa Barbara last night. The Carrillo Hotel started rising out of the hole in the ground that its been for several years.
By 9AM this morning supervisors expect to finish one of the largest continuous pours in recent memory. Approximately 2,700 cubic yards of concrete will serve as the base for the new hotel.
Eventually, the finished foundation will hold a four-star hotel designed in Andalusian Spanish style, housing 96 rooms, meeting spaces, a restaurant and bar, plus a rooftop swimming pool.
As with most things Santa Barbara we have a controversy. The latest involves the restoration of the Francheschi House into a place for educational tours both self-guided and led by docents, horticulture classes and private events such as weddings and business conferences. The plan has a maximum of 30 people to be allowed at the special events.
The primary issue is that the residents see the restoration as inserting a business into a small residential neighborhood. The Santa Barbara City Council is set to decide the fate of the park at a 6PM meeting tonight.
The home and park, located on 17 acres of hillside on the Riviera named after horticulturist Francesco Francheschi was originally constructed in 1905. Extensive additions were made in the 1920s after Alden Freeman purchased the property. In 1931 the, philanthropist donated the home and its land to the city.
The nonprofit Pearl Chase Society is waiting for the council to adopt the plan so that it can launch an aggressive fund-raising campaign to restore the house. Pearl Chase Society President Barbara Chen Lowenthal said the group has a goal f raising about $2.1 million and a $200,000 endowment.
The Music Academy of the West is on the verge of getting their $45 Million renovation approved. After fives years of planning and development, the academys Renaissance Plan was signed off Tuesday by the Montecito Association board of directors. The project will add 52,000 square feet of buildings on the 9-acre site.
The plans go before the Montecito Planning Commission at 9AM today. The goal of the project is to bring the academys outdated practice studios and recital rooms up to contemporary acoustical stands, and to restore the early 20th century estates original Mediterranean revival architecture.
The residents of the Santa Ynez Valley have their last chance today to explain why they dont think the state should let the Chumash Casinos third-floor restaurant serve beer and wine. A two-day hearing before a civil law judge at the Rancho Santa Barbara Marriott in Buellton will ultimately confirm or deny the state department of Alcoholic Beverage Controls tentative approval of the license.
The purpose of the contest held Friday was to maintain the teams network service while attempting to break into their opponents systems.
The organizer of the event, professor Giovanni Vigna, set up the contest as part of his graduate class on Network Security and Intrusion Detection. He says that the hands-on exercise is one of the most effective tools in teaching network security. The idea isnt to create skilled hackers, but highly trained guardians of computer networks able to combat nefarious attacks on a systems security.
UCSB has established a strong reputation for teaching computer network security, said Engineering Dean Matt Terill. The schools group went up against students from West Point, the Naval Post Graduate School at Monterey, University of Texas at Austin and Georgia Tech among others. The UCSB team Whitehat (a term for good-guy hackers) maintained a lead throughout the day.
Today's Casa Article addresses your incredible gratitude to me for writing all these articles. Specifically it addresses your need to buy me something for the Holiday Season. I've given you some pretty broad hints so get out there and buy, buy, buy!!!
Please read, I'm Makin' A List For You
Concerns have arisen concerning the Ritz-Carlton Entrada de Santa Barbara project at the foot of State St. Developer Bill Levy and the luxury hotel operator want to rebuild the vacant, four-story, seismically unstable Californian Hotel last instead of first as was expected when the project was approved in 2001.
The big concern in placing the hotel renovation on the backburner raises the spectrum of the Carrillo Hotel that gave downtown Santa Barbara nothing but a big hole in the ground for many years. The city wants to make sure that the financing for the project is in place before they authorize the changes.
The La Entrada development calls for 62 units of one, two and three bedrooms and about 18,000 square feet of commercial and retail space. The developers also have agreed to several public improvements such as 95 parking spaces, underground utilities, street upgrades and payment of $1 million to the citys Redevelopment Agency.
After 52 years of residing by the sea at Santa Claus California, Santa decided to move a little south. The owners of Santa Claus decided that the 22-foot-tall statue that beckoned motorists on Highway 101 to drop in was no longer appropriate for their planned conversion to a seaside-whaling village. So after much consternation a home was found in Oxnard in a field next to the freeway.
About 300 people, including some from the South Coast, attended the noon party along a freeway frontage road, where the plaster and chicken wire structure has resided since Jan. 29. The statue got a new finish; a new coat of paint, and soon his surroundings will blossom with life including a redwood forest.
As one resident said, its kind of nice to see a smiling face and him waving at you when you go down the freeway.
After almost two years as a City, Goleta still has many hurdles before it completes its general plan which is state-mandated and sets up the big picture blueprint for traffic, safety, noise and land-use rules. The plan is basically all the details that embody self-rule.
So far the City Council has been reluctant to approve development proposals without the general plan therefore making approval of the plan the five-member panels most pressing job.
Council members have signaled that their moratorium on commercial construction, initiated in early 2002, may be extended in some form for a fifth time before the end of the year.
Revitalization of the Old Town section of Goleta, a concept that predates the city appears stalled as a Santa Barbara architect-developer awaits the fate of his Hollister Avenue hotel-condo proposal.
Resident Tom Miller says that the building ban and other signals from the city threaten to alienate nervous developer-investors and damage Goletas reputation in the business community.
Thats what Jim Diani one of the leaders of the move to separate Santa Barbara County into two said. Some of the differences include Median Home Prices. In the south its 3 times greater than in the north. Then theres sales tax revenues 80% of which is generated in the south as opposed to the north with the annual salary in the south at $38,810 to $32,628 in the north.
Politically the south voted 52 to 48 percent against the recall of Governor Gray Davis, while the north voted 70 to 30 percent for the recall. About the only thing similar is the population with 201,685 resident in the south and 197,662 in the north. In 15 years the population is projected to be 232,000 in the north as opposed to 208,000 in the south.
Carpinteria City Councilman Gregory Gandrud is looking for a new job. Gandrud served as Arnold Schwarzeneggers co-chair for his campaign in Santa Barbara County. The Councilman has applied for five gubernatorial appointments related to transportation and the environment.
One of the posts the Councilman would like is on the Coastal Commission. Even if he gets the post Mr. Gandrud said he isnt planning on leaving his City Council seat. He was invited to the Governors inaugural event earlier this month and said he had dinner twice with a good friend, Todd Burnett, whom the governor recently name as deputy appointment secretary for resources.
The Cottage Health System plan to knock down St. Francis Medical Center and build up to 141 homes has outraged some of the local neighbors. The neighbors concerns center around the issues of compatibility with the surrounding neighborhood, traffic congestion and affordable housing.
Initially Cottage Health systems said that the homes would be for middle-income employees of the system who couldnt afford to buy a house in Santa Barbara. But now the hospital officials are talking about building houses that today would sell for upward of $800,000.
A concept review in front of the Planning Commission is scheduled for Dec. 18. The stated goal of Cottage Health Systems is to maximize the number of Cottage work force units to help us with our recruitment and retention of health care workers Mr. Biscaro a spokesperson for Cottage said.
Three local firms are providing transportation compensation for their employees. The Chumash Casino and Resort, Raytheon and Cottage Hospital all provide some sort of compensation.
The Chumash Casino is the most generous employer and provides free bus service to Santa Maria, Lompoc and the South Coast. The bus rides are mandatory for about 850 casino employees who otherwise would be taking up parking spaces for guests. Thats 77 percent of the casinos work force of 1,100 who are not driving to work.
At Raytheon employees who use van pools or buses receive between $25 and $50 per month in subsidies depending on the distance they travel. Raytheon will also pay for up to two empty seats in a vanpool until they can be filled.
At Cottage Hospital, everyone who does not drive alone to work receives a benefit, said Ron Lafrican, the benefits manager. Only 15 percent of the hospitals staff of 2,500 live outside of Santa Barbara. Also, every month the hospital sells 150 MTD bus passes at half-price.
Cottage employees using the Clear Air Express get a 50 percent subsidy, or $58 per month. For vanpoolers, the hospital pays the cost of the lease for the first three months and 50 percent from then on. Three vanpools to Ventura and Lompoc now serve Cottage employees.
A group calling itself the Citizens for County Organization has submitted more than 36,000-signature on a petition requesting that a commission study forming Mission County north of the Santa Ynez Mountains.
Mr. Diani, a spokesperson for the group promote their plan as a way to have more effective and efficient local government, keep control over costs and budgeting, protect private property rights and encourage business expansion and development.
Wednesdays development marks the first time since 1978 that a county split has moved this far in the process. At that time, the idea of creating Los Padres County with virtually the same boundary as Mission County went to a vote but was soundly defeated.
In order to get a countywide election, there must be 20,779 valid signatures which is probable given the almost 10,000 excess name gathered. Eighty peopled have asked for their names to be removed from the petitions for various reasons, said Joe Holland, county clerk-recorder
On Tuesday night the city council of Santa Barbara boldly told the Coastal Commission that they werent interested in the Commissions suggestions for the Funk Zone. On a 4-3 vote the council withdrew an application that was years in the making that would have banned hotels from being built in the area between Highway 101 and the waterfront and would have encouraged more ocean-oriented businesses.
The council objected to rules on residential development that the Coastal Commission demanded as part of granting the citys zoning change for the area. The Funk Zone is know for its eclectic mix of surfboard shapers, cabinetmakers and other skilled craft workers. City planners have long balked at what they see as the state panel micromanaging local government.
A plan to collar dogs at the popular Douglas Family Preserve cleared a significant hurdle Thursday night when the City Planning Commission approved an environmental impact report for the 70-acre park overlooking the ocean on Santa Barbaras Mesa.
One proposal would fence dogs in, while another would restrict the number of days they could run off-leash there. The vote is the latest development in the debate over whether to change the rules at the only city park in Santa Barbara where dogs are allowed to run free. The city is trying to strike a balance between dog owners and those without dogs.
The California Coastal Commission rejected a plan years in the making that aimed at establishing rules for how thousands of acres of semi-rural land between Carpinteria and Summerland will be used over the next two decades.
The 12 member commission, meeting in Los Angeles, voted 10-2 against the Toro Canyon Plan, which was approved by Santa Barbara County supervisors in February 2002.
Mr. Nava, one of the commissioners believed that the environmentally sensitive habitat areas and environmental protections needed to be strengthened in order for it to meet the Coastal Act requirements.
On Tuesday Nov 4th the voters did not approve a parcel tax for the Hope School District. The tax would have cost each landowner $58 a year. Measure Q as the initiative was know had approval from 60.7 percent of the voters but failed to get the 66.7 percent required for passage.
The proposition would have levied a yearly tax on each of about 5,000 parcels in the district, raising an estimated $300,000 a year to offset most of the states budgets cuts on Hopes three elementary schools.
The owners of the Dos Pueblos Golf Links property, which is just past the Bacara Resort, are negotiating the potential sale of 200 acres of the Gaviota coast for a public park. The golf course proposal was unanimously rejected by the state Coastal Commission in March, on the grounds that it would harm sensitive wildlife species including monarch butterflies, white-tailed kites, California red-legged frogs and tidewater gobies.
The owner, Makar Properties Inc. of Newport Bach, then sued the commission seeking $35 million in damages. Last week a court-ordered mediation got under way.
The Chumash Casino got one step closer to getting its Liquor License yesterday. The state department of Alcoholic Beverage Control has recommended conditional approval of their permit.
The ABC announced Tuesday that a hearing for protests will be held Dec. 10 and 11 before an administrative law judge at the Marriott Hotel in Buellton. The judge will hear the protests and then approve or deny the ABCs recommendation, possibly adding or changing conditions attached to it.
The Metropolitan Transit District took a lot of heat at Thursdays meeting of the Santa Barbara County Association of Governments. The criticism centered on the MTDs decision to purchase 11 diesel buses and 12 electric busses instead of the 25 electric buses it earlier had promised.
The Federal Transporation Agency is still reviewing the matter, but in the meantime, the MTD board voted to scrap the proposals and start all over because the MTD had expected the buses to cost about $450,000 each, but the only bidder was $580,000 per bus.
The Santa Barbara County Association of Governments voted 12-1 to prepare a $1.8 million plan for widening 101 Highway. The result would be a new lane in each direction. Among the possibilities is re-striping the existing four lanes.
The Association also voted to approve $1.5 million to expand the Coastal Express bus service between Ventura and Goleta.
For an in depth look at the possibilities for widening the freeway please click on Planned Highway Construction
One of the great treasures of Santa Barbara is the Coral Casino. Its located right across the street from Four Season Biltmore. Its a private club, but the guests at the Biltmore are allowed to use some of the facilities.
The grand lady is in need of a facelift. After all its a wooden structure and sitting right on the ocean for 65 years isnt the best thing in the world for wood. A couple of years ago an air conditioner fell through the roof, and most recently the tower started to lean precariously.
Anyway as with most things in Santa Barbara it requires a lot of talk before anything gets done. If youd like to get the gist of the arguments please click here for The Coral Casino Renovation.
One of our favorite topics of conversation in Santa Barbara is traffic. For most of my life Ive listened to discussions about how to route traffic. For years it was the discussion about what to do with the traffic lights on the freeway. We were one of the last places on Highway 101 from San Diego to San Francisco that you had to stop for a light.
Well finally in the 90s we were able to put that one to rest by putting underpasses under the freeway. Now the discussion is about widening 101 from Milpas St to Carpinteria. I expect this discussion to be going on long after Im gone, but heres the latest take on Widening Highway 101
Its Festa Italiana weekend in Santa Barbara. This year the festival has moved from Oak Park to the Earl Warren Showgrounds. The festival is still free both entrance and parking, and I know its going to be a lot of fun. Were going to try and get over there today or tomorrow so hopefully well yall there.
Right in the middle of town there are two square blocks set aside for a park. Its called Alameda Park and I used to play there as a child. I still play there as an adult only now they have a very cool fort just for the little kids. So many events during the year take place at Alameda Park like concerts at the Gazebo, the Fiesta Pancake Breakfast and the festivities that surround Summer Solstice. Its a great place to wander through or catch a nap in the middle of a hectic day. Please give a look at Alameda Park.
One of the great joys of living in Santa Barbara is walking. Its one of the great walking towns of the world. Whether its a stroll along the beach, cruising up Coast Village Rd. or hiking to the top of La Cumbre Peak this is a great place to walk.
One of my favorite walks is to start about Victoria St and walk all the way down State St to Stearns Wharf. Then if I have time Ill walk all the way out on the end of the Wharf. Usually I walk back up State St, but if its too much you can always catch the electric shuttle bus that goes up and down State St and along Cabrillo Blvd for a quarter.
Please take a walk down State St with me.
Its Avocado Festival weekend in Carpinteria. The event is located in downtown Carpinteria on Linden Avenue with free parking at Carpinteria High School and a shuttle service available. This event has become the South Coasts largest free festival with three entertainment stages featuring over 40 acts and also 70 arts and crafts vendors plus more than 30 fun food booths and commercial vendors.
Located up in Mission Canyon is one of the great treasures of Santa Barbara. The Botanic Gardens is an amazing collection of micro-climates displaying everything from plants found in the desert to huge redwood trees. I always find something interesting and new everytime I go there. Please give a look at the Santa Barbara Botanic Gardens.
I went wireless over the weekend. I got tired of reading all the articles about wireless computing so I did a little research and implemented the solution that looked like it worked for me. I went with the Linksys Wireless-G Access Point, which just plugged into my 8-port Linksys Switch and ran through my Linksys Cable/DSL Router. The install went very smoothly and I was up and running in no time.
The Wireless-G Access Point will work right out of the box but the installation leads you through suggested changes to make your connection much more secure. For instance basic things like changing the password to access the device were important and renaming the AP (Access Point) for the wireless network were implemented.
Also I went with 128 bit WEP Encryption, disabled the SSID Broadcast which keeps my neighbors from knowing I have a wireless network and then finally I enabled MAC Address Filtering which means that the only Wireless Card which can access my network is the one attached to my notebook. All in all I feel pretty secure sitting up here on the hill. Ill let you know how it all works out.
On Thursday of this week there was a presentation that took a look at the consequences of growth on the South Coast. Scenarios all the way from doing nothing, to allowing the builders to do what they pleased, to the imposition of complete no growth policies were examined.
The prospects on any of the scenarios isn't too appetizing, but here's the story that appeared in the newspaper yesterday concerning 6 Ways to Look at Growth on the South Coast.
One of the great governmental edifices in the country is the Santa Barbara County House. It sits on one square block in the middle of town and hosts an amazing array of events throughout the year.
From Fiesta to the 4th of July to being the scene of many beautiful weddings the Court House is a great place to visit when you're in town. Here's the virtual tour I took of the Santa Barbara County Court House
Right across the street from East Beach is one of the best parks in Santa Barbara. It's got a carousel, a play area for the kids, wetlands for the birds and wide expanses of grass to frolic on.
Last Friday afternoon we had the Santa Barbara Association of Realtors Endless Summer Party in Chase Palm Park. This is a great annual event and gives a chance for Realtors to socialize together.
Here's some more of my virtual Santa Barbara pictures of Chase Palm Park.
After I finished my walk on the Breakwater in Santa Barbara it was time to trek all the way out to the end of Stearns Wharf. It always amazes me to hear all the different languages and accents as I pass the people on the wharf.
You start by walking past the great Dolphin Statues by Bud Bottoms then continue with a long gaze down both West and East Beaches. After that you pass by the Harbor Restaurant and take a look across at the Marine Conservancy.
From there it's time to to push on to Moby Dick's a great place for breakfast or lunch then finally all the way out on the end at the fishing pier. Please give a look at Santa Barbara's Stearns Wharf.
Its a foggy Sunday in Santa Barbara and were off to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary at the Four Seasons Biltmore. Yes, we got married 25 years ago on September 17th 1978 right here in the house where were living now. It was a great day and undoubtedly the best thing Ive ever done in my life.
So many wonderful things have happened to us in those 25 years that I wish all of our friends could be here to celebrate with us. Well be out there on the Marina Patio at 10AM so come on by.
Its been said that if you havent been to the waterfront you havent been to Santa Barbara. The waterfront area, which is Stearns Wharf at the end of State St, west to the Marina and bounded by the Breakwater, is one of Santa Barbaras greatest treasures. I love to walk around it from the beachside to the sidewalk to all the way out to the end of the Breakwater.
Our favorite restaurant, Brophy Brothers is on the Breakwater and another favorite Moby Dicks is on Stearns Wharf. I got a new lens that allows me to take 360-degree virtual tours and the first thing I did was head for the waterfront. Here are the pictures of the Santa Barbara Waterfront.
Its a foggy gray day in Santa Barbara, but theres still lots to do. Starting off theres the fourth annual free Organic Festival from 10AM to 6PM at Oak Park 300 W Alamar Ave. Then theres the sixth annual Dressage Association, which is also free and starts at 7AM at Earl Warren Show Grounds.
The American Guild of Organists is having a potluck dinner launching the new season of concerts and that starts at 2PM at 4508 Carriage Hill Dr. Then finally theres the Wilderness Youth Project Bluegrass Concert and Barbecue Benefit from 4-8PM. All the money raised for this event will go to the WYP scholarship fund. The event is at El Capitan Canyon Resort. Tickets are $45 for adults and $25 for children under 12.
One of the wonderful institutions in Santa Barbara is J.B. Van Vander Ark. I first met him in 1962 when I enrolled for the La Colina Junior High School Band. He was always an imposing figure at 6 5 and commanded a tremendous amount of respect from the students in the class.
After retirement he started thinking about bringing back some of his old students and members from the community to forms what has been named The Prime Time Band. The only requirement as far as I know is that you have to be at least 50 years old. There are a couple of bands, one for the beginners and one for the more accomplished musicians. So even if you haven't played an instrument before you can come out and participate.
The band will present a free concert featuring such tunes as A Salute to Glenn Miller at 3PM September 21 at Chase Palm Park on Cabrillo Blvd. For more information on the show or how to become a member call (805) 965-4755.
The Metropolitan Transit Authority voted Tuesday to scrap its current plan to purchase electric buses. The decision signals a major shift in direction for the Transit Authority which has wanted to implement electric buses to replaces its old diesel buses.
The MTD is facing a federal review for the bidding process, which coupled with a higher than expected cost of $580,000 triggered the decision. The MTD now plans to buy only 12 electric buses and will a neutral third party to oversee the writing of the bid specifications.
One of the best places in Santa Barbara to spend a day off is the Botanical Gardens in Mission Canyon. There are an amazing array of mini-climates which give the visitor an astounding view of the myriad number of plants.
A stroll in the Santa Barbara Botanic Garden undeniably changes the visitor: opening the eyes, slowing the pace, reveling in sounds, smells and sights-- a rare glimpse of California as it once existed. Sixty-five acres and over 5 miles of paths meander through an unrivaled collection of California flora and offer panoramic views of the Pacific Ocean and Channel Islands. Eight different habitats represent various regions throughout California, including redwood forests, oak and canyon woodlands, meadows and deserts.
Please give a look at the pictures I took of the Santa Barbara Botanical Gardens
Santa Barbara County has the most expensive gas in the state. Prices climbed to an average of $2.22 per gallon for regular unleaded a record for the area and the highest in the state. There are signs that the price surge has peaked even before the Labor Day weekend, which traditionally puts more drivers on the highways and higher prices at the pumps.
The average price per gallon of regular unleaded in California was $2.14 on Tuesday, the highest of all states in the nation according to the Automobile Club of America. But the prices appear to have leveled off at many stations. For the most part it seems that priced have stayed flat or increased only a few cents from four days ago.
Its Italian Festival weekend in Santa Barbara. The festival started at 11AM this morning at Oak Park 300 W. Alamar St and will continue until 7PM this evening. It will also run tomorrow during the same hours. The ethnic festivals are a great tradition in Santa Barbara and well be going there tomorrow. Heres a link so you can make plans for the festivals happening the rest of the year. Santa Barbara Ethnic Festivals
The Metropolitan Transit District wants to curtail plans to bring 25 electric buses to Santa Barbara. The General Manager Gary Gleason and his staff are recommending that the MTD board reject the sole bid on the proposal. At $580,000 per bus, the cost is too high and needs to be renegotiated, according to MTD officials. Further, the offer was only good for 90 days and has since expired.
MTD was awarded $9.2 million from the federal government in 2001 to buy the electric buses. The transit agency has already spent about $1.1 million to buy electronic fare boxes for some of the existing buses.
Instead of 25 electric buses, Mr. Gleasons latest plan calls for buying only 12, spending about $5.3 million, and returning $2.8 million to the association of governments. MTD is hoping the panel will consider giving some of that $2.8 million back to MTD to buy 11 clean-diesel buses.
The opening of the $157 million casino, which rivals some on the Las Vegas strip, consolidates a decade-long transition for the tribe that has brought its members from bleak poverty to six-figure incomes and college scholarships for every Chumash child.
The tribe has come a long way since it opened a now vacant bingo hall in 1983 after struggling with other failed economic development programs.
The new casino, with Chumash icons inlaid into its granite walls and incorporated in the colorful carpeting holds 2,000 slot machines three restaurants and a new modernized bingo hall. Theres a stage for entertainers to perform, which will be officially inaugurated by Jay Leno during a VIP party Thursday nigh.
With a $200 million-a-year payroll, the casino is the biggest employer in the Santa Ynez Valley and the second largest private employer in the North County. The casino employs well over 800 people with that number expected to surpass 1,000 when the planned hotel is built in the next year.
Located about 5 minutes from my house is the South Coast Railroad Museum. It's located in a reproduction of the original Goleta Railroad station and is full of all kinds of fun stuff. There's also a miniature train that runs around the grounds.
Here are some picture pictures I took of the South Coast Railroad Museum and here's a Virtual Tour that I put together.
Right next to the Railroad museum is Stow House which has it's own amazing array of interesting things. Here are some pictures I took of Stow House and here's the Virtual Tour
The "Funk Zone" is located between Highway 101 and the tracks bordering State St. Over the years as Santa Barbara has developed, the funk zone has slowly turned into something of an artchitectural relic, and some feel that it is ripe for development and revitalization.
As far as city planners are concerned they would like to see the zoning changed to eliminate hotels and allow for more businesses that need to be near the ocean. But the Coastal Commission saw it as an opportunity to twist the city's arm to adopt stricter rules for residential development, which is also allowed in some areas.
Last week the Coastal Commission approved new rules that would require new residential developers to designate at least 30 percent of their projects for commercial uses.
The city disagrees with a ratio and prefers to review each project on a case-by-base basis. Planners say that they don't want to see luxury condos either, but that fixed rules handed by a state panel with little knowledge of Santa Barbara won't work. Stay tuned for more.
For almost a decade, a core group of city leaders have talked up the idea of housing more people in Santa Barbaras downtown, softening the resistance to building more homes, apartments and condos in the citys urban core.
Using the downtown relieves the pressure to sprawl into suburban neighborhoods and begins to satisfy the insatiable demand for more affordable housing, they say. Their efforts are starting to bear fruit.
City leaders are heralding projects, such as the newly completed Chapala Lofts, where people live downtown above offices and shops. And theyve pushed other ideas, such as building affordable housing atop parking garages. All in an effort to increase the number of people living downtown.
With people hungry for more housing, efforts to increase density downtown have met little opposition so far. The notion has even enlisted support from odd allies, environmentalists and developers who see potential for different reasons. More people living downtown, closer to work, could relieve traffic congestion, environmentalists say. And allowing more density gives developers more flexibility to maximize the value of the land they build on.
Residents on the Eastside of Santa Barbara had better get ready to move their cars. The tree-trimmers and street sweepers are heading their way. The trimming begins Monday the 11th of August and the sweeping on October 6. Anyone who doesnt move his or her car out of the crews way is subject to a $35 fine.
The plan is the latest step in a two-year-old pilot program aimed at helping to clean creeks and ultimately improve ocean water quality. Temporary signs warning of the trimmers arrival are expected to go up at least 72 hours before the work begins.
Sweeping the streets may inconvenience some people, but city officials say sweeping debris off the residential streets adjacent to creeks keeps it from winding up in the water. The program is in keeping with the citys goal of eliminating pollutants, lowering harmful bacteria, reducing the need for beach closures and returning creeks to a neutral state.
It's the last day of Fiesta but there's still a lot to do. There's the Arts and Crafts show down on Cabrillo Blvd at the Beach. The Carnival at the City College parking lot is from 12PM-7PM. The Rodeo at Earl Warren showgrounds starts at 1:30, the Fiesta Concert at the Sunken Gardens of the Court House is at 3:30. And the Fiesta Finale Performance is at the Sunken Garcens at 8PM.
All this and the El Mercado at De La Guerra Plaza and the El Mercado Del Norte at McKenzie. So get out there and have a great time at Fiesta 2003 in Santa Barbara
Fiesta in Santa Barbara continues today with what I consider the best event of the whole festivities. It's the Children's Parade and starts at 10AM at the corner of Sola and State.
I'm going to start the day with another long time Santa Barbara favorite the Pancake Breakfast sponsored by the Kiwanis club. That will be at Alameda Park and will run from 7AM to Noon.
After that I'll probably wander down to the El Mercado at De La Guerra Plaza and enjoy a fish taco or two. Fiesta in Santa Barbara is a great time, don't miss it.
It's the Friday of Fiesta in Santa Barbara and I'm going to be a parade announcer. I'm going to be at the corner of State St and Cabrillo Blvd right at the foot of Stearn's Wharf. So come on down!!
The parade is a mixtue of the familiar, with some floats being used year after year. Mixed with a few surprises. If you haven't been to the Fiesta Parade you definitely should plan on attending. It starts at the corner of Castillo and Cabrillo Blvd on the beach and winds its' way up to State and Sola. Finally ending at Alameda Park
Here are the pictures I took of last year's Fiesta Parade
Its the weekend of the 26th and 27th of July in Santa Barbara and that could only mean that its time for the Greek Festival in Oak Park. We went yesterday and had a great time eating pork under the spreading oak trees and gawking at all the wonderful displays. For $1 you can win a trip to Greece or just wander through all the booths selling jewelry, clothing, books and figurines.
There are several more fun and interesting festivals scheduled for the rest of the summer and on into the fall. Heres a list of Ethnic Festivals in Santa Barbara
Today at our marketing meeting we heard from someone from the city of Santa Barbara concerning what have been called granny flats. These guesthouses have been given the fast track by the state of California making them no longer have to go through a lengthy public hearing process. The structures do have to be okayed by the Architectural Review Board, at which there would be a public hearing, but can not be stopped by neighbors who simply dont like the idea of an extra structure on a property.
The guidelines have not changed for the structures but the process has been speeded up substantially. Heres a link for more on building a granny flat on your property, or anything else concerning Santa Barbara city government.
In Santa Barbara where were supposed to be adding affordable housing one contactor has spent more than $50,000 in fees and more than two years of his life without an approved plan anywhere in sight on a vacant lot he purchased in Isla Vista.
The project has been hampered by a revolving door of county planners and a reversal of an Architectural Board of Review ruling suggesting further changes in the roofline of the structure.
The contractor who has built residential and commercial structures for close to 20 years said the Sueno Road project is especially personal because he ultimately he hopes to retire and live off the income generated by its tenants. Stay tuned for more.
Senator Boxer came to Santa Barbara this week to look at the damage to the Mission. Earlier this year the Senator introduced a bill to provide $10 million in grants over five years to repair and restore the states 21 missions and the artifacts associated with them.
The bill would be part of a $50 million fund-raising effort spearheaded by the private California Missions Foundation. As part of the $50 million rescue package, Solvangs Mission Santa Ines would receive about $900,000 mostly to restore and protect paintings and other artifacts and the Santa Barbara Mission is schedule to receive a total of $2.8 Million.
Here are some pictures of the Santa Barbara Mission
It's Bastille Day weekend so that can only mean one thing in Santa Barbara, the French Festival at Oak Park has finally arrived. This is a great two day event and really a lot of fun. There's food and games and entertainment galore. You can even win a trip to France, is that cool or what?
Here's a list of all the Ethnic Festivals in Santa Barbara for 2003, and here's the Santa Barbara French Festival website.
The big hole in the ground at the corner of Chapala and Carrillo Sts. where the Carrillo Retirement Hotel once stood is on it's way to seeing a new building erected. It will be a five story building with 96 rooms and 5,000 square feet of meeting space.
By late next year the Hotel Carrillo will be reborn. Builder John tynan at last week's groundbreaking ceremonies was gacious by thanking present and past City Council members and staff for helping see the the new hotel wll become a reality.
The Santa Barbara Mission is starting to show its' age. The restoration that occurred after the 1925 earthquake has trapped water inside the columns and walls and they are deteriorating. According to experts if new repairs are not begun soon substantial decay will occur.
Santa Barbaras 217-year-old landmark is already showing some signs of decay. The retrofitters in 1925 chose materials like concrete and Portland cement that they thought would provide the best combination of covering and strength. But unfortunately that has not been the case.
Here are some pictures of the Santa Barbara Mission
The Lobero theatre in Santa Barbara has raised the curtain on their newly redone patio. The patio is now enclosed by old adobe walls and boasts a brick floor, as well as Santa Barbara stone retaining walls with a ledge for seating, ironwork gates and lighting and a Spanish tiled fountain with water flowing from an eye-catching cobalt blue urn.
The area has been renamed the Lobero Courtyard. The renovation has been on the to-do list for the past 20 years and is a direct result of the work of the Lobero Theatre Foundation and the determination of the women of that organization said Betty Richardson president of the association.
It's the 4th of July in Santa Barbara and around our house that can only mean one thing. The Santa Barbara Symphony free public concert on the steps of the County Court House.
This is a great annual event and draws people from all over. The whole area of the sunken gardens gets filled up with people arriving hours ahead of the concert and enjoying the rehearsal.
I took some virtual pictures of the Court House grounds with my egg software lens a few weeks ago, but you'll just have to imagine what these pictures would look like with people everywhere and red, white and blue balloons swaying in the breeze. To check out the Santa Barbara County Court House click here.
Pearl Chase was an amazing lady who had a lot to do with how Santa Barbara looks today. She spear headed the drive after the earthquake in 1925 to make Santa Barbara have a unified Spanish-Moorish architecture.
There is a park at the beach named in her honor and there is the Pearl Chase Society which has an annual tour of homes. During the last event we had the pleasure of touring all the homes and here are the pictures.
It's the 78th anniversay of the earthquake that reshaped Santa Barbara in so many ways. At 6:44 AM on June 29, 1925 Santa Barbarans were thrown out of bed by what has since been labeled a 6.8 quake that was followed by 264 aftershocks.
As with any cataclysmic event it gave people an opportunity to re-think a lot of things. For instance, city officials had the opportunity to enforce stricter building codes and require downtown commercial businesses to adhere to a Spanich-Moorish architecture. This distinctive architecture has made Santa Barbara a popular tourist destination for over 70 years.
Even though I drive past the Mission every week and have been there for events over the years I still hadn't taken the tour in quite a while. In fact I think the last time I took the tour was when I was in 4th grade at Cathedral Oaks Elementary School. Since there's no time like the present to visit one of Santa Barbara's great landmarks I jumped in the car and took a field trip. Here's the pictures I took http://www.santabarbaraproperties.com/fieldtrips/TheMission/Mission1.htm
It's Saturday in Santa Barbara and it's the day of the Summer Solstice parade. It's a great parade with all sorts of fun and wild participants both in the parade and watching the festivities. Check out the pictures I took of last year's parade. http://www.santabarbaraproperties.com/fieldtrips/SummerSolstice/Solstice1.html