13 Jan 2026
Montecito Fire Protection District Seeks Fire Chief and Carp-Summerland FPD Chief Retires
The Montecito Fire Protection District is taking applications for a Fire Chief. Responsibilities and job requirements are posted on the website, see 411. 411: www.montecitofire.com/fire-chief Carp-Summerland FPD Chief Retires The Carp-Summerland Fire Protection District announced the retirement of Fire Chief Robert Kovach, who has served 15 years with them for a total of 40 years […]
Lea más
Herman’s Unanticipated Invasion
Peter Noone, the lead singer of Herman’s Hermits for more than six decades, has sung “I’m Henry the VIII, I Am” and “Mrs. Brown You’ve Got a Lovely Daughter” way too many times to count, not to mention some of the British Invasion band’s astounding run of other hits in the mid-’60s that included “I’m […]
Lea más
With a Little Help from my Friends (and Kids)
The other big show in town this week is also not only a benefit, but one that also supports nonprofits geared toward helping kids. It’s even in the organization’s title: Kids Helping Kids which, as it turns out, is also marking a 20th anniversary. The student-led nonprofit, which was founded in 1982 by then-San Marcos […]
Lea más
Stories Matter: Heartfelt Start to ‘26
‘All the Little Houses’ The writer of The Hunting Wives, a hit Netflix series, is back with a new snarky suspense, All the Little Houses. May Cobb delivers up her signature dish of cocktail swilling, misbehaving meanies with plenty of action set in the 1980s in East Texas. Expect intrigue, sex, and salacious behavior with […]
Lea más
Sheriff’s Blotter — 93108
POST Alarm Pulls Driver Over / 300 block San Ysidro Road — Tuesday, December 30, 2025, at 09:34 hours A Montecito resident was driving by the Montecito Union School when an SUV approached from behind, activated bright white lights and requested over a loudspeaker that the subject pull over. Subject complied. A white male exited […]
Lea más
Tecolote Hosts Local Author and More News Bytes
On Saturday, Jan. 17, from 3-4 pm, Montecito’s storied Tecolote Bookshop, now entering its 101st year of operation, will host a book launch and reading by local author Fran Davis of her historical fiction novel Red Summer. A tale of love, betrayal, and revenge in the McCarthy era, the novel portrays a small California town […]
Lea más
12 Jan 2026
In Memory of Roger Cass: Jan 13, 1939 – Dec 10, 2025. Loving Husband, Father, Grandfather, Friend, and Coach
Obituary prepared by Roger’s wife and six children As a teenager attending Midnight Mass at Mt. Carmel Church in the 1980s, I remember singing the carol “What Child Is This?” and its haunting lyric, “the silent word is pleading.” Amid the noise of the holidays, it offered a reminder that love, grace, and power often […]
Lea más
11 Jan 2026
‘Last Light’ and a New Year
Happy New Year! And boy, could we use one. These days have not been sunny, however the Montecito Journal is trying to brighten the path in 2026 by sharing with you a book we’ve fallen in love with. Last Light in Paradise is the first novel published by the Montecito Journal Media Group. Book publishing […]
Lea más
Last Light in Paradise – Chapter 1
Chapter 1 The man and the horse moved out of the pine trees, crossed open meadow for a quarter mile, then took the old farm road down past the big boulders of the dry river and came up into orchard. His name was Creek. He was riding the black thoroughbred named Spinnaker and liked how […]
Lea más
9 Jan 2026
King Tides and Deluge Carve Into Butterfly Beach
The recent storm delivered a dramatic punch to Montecito’s shoreline, and nowhere was that more visible than at Butterfly Beach. The County of Santa Barbara rainfall sensor near Olive Mill and Hot Springs roads registered 11.40 inches of rain (year-to-date) on December 23; by the time the weather calmed on January 5, it read 20.87 […]
Lea más
Predictions, Futures, & Hopes for 2026?
My editors invited me to offer my predictions and/or hopes for the year ahead. I claim no special talent for making predictions. Nixon and Reagan were fond of psychics, notably the Republican Jeane Dixon. Dixon gained fame by claiming to predict the assassination of President Kennedy. Sort of. She also predicted that Nixon would win […]
Lea más
5 Jan 2026
New Year’s Comminution
It’s frankly impossible to imagine a written document less likely to be read than a newspaper column on New Year’s Day. The original Magna Carta, maybe? Does that actually exist? Is it in the British Museum’s basement? etc. But the New Year’s Day newspaper column must be written. Much more than a contractual obligation – […]
Lea más
A New Year of Wonder
Do you have a moment in your day that highlights how fast time is passing? For me, it is at night when I turn down the covers of our bed. It seems I just did this and yet, intellectually I am aware that it was closer to 24-hours ago. Recent studies have shown that one […]
Lea más
2026: Where Are We Going?
Making prognostications about the future of 2026 is, I admit, a stupid thing to do. No one can predict the future. Those who say they can are mostly just lucky. But, what the heck, maybe my guesses are just as good as anyone’s. We will see on January 1, 2027. Here goes. Mid-term Elections and […]
Lea más
2026 Art Market Predictions
Where is the art and decorative art market heading in 2026? Straight to the 1970s. Some recent high profile sales this past few weeks show that collectors are aggressively returning to sexy trophy objects, the more culturally evocative, the better; take for example a recent sale by the private boutique auction from Fair Warning on […]
Lea más
The Courthouse Clock Tower
Welcome to a new column, one that will take you out on the water, up into the mountains, and all around the town to explore the bounty of opportunities on land, sea, air (and otherwise) that make Santa Barbara a mecca for visitors, but that so many locals have never actually visited – or least […]
Lea más
Holiday Calm in Montecito? I Found It at the Bissell Clinic!
The holidays have a funny way of sneaking up on us. One minute we are sipping chai tea and admiring fall leaves, and the next we are juggling party planning, gift lists, airport pickups, and those surprising drop-ins from houseguests who somehow forgot to mention they planned to stay for three days. During this season […]
Lea más
Montecito Association Reflects on a Year of Action and Looks Ahead to 2026
As 2025 comes to a close, the Montecito Association reflects on a year marked by active advocacy, community collaboration, and meaningful progress on issues that directly affect quality of life in Montecito. With strong support from its members, volunteers, and community partners, the Association continued to serve as an independent and consistent voice for the […]
Lea más
New Year, New You: Articles to Start Your New Year.
Here we go again, turning the page on another year! For us over here at the Montecito Journal, 2025 marks 30 years of publication in this Village of the Charmed. By our quick and approximate reckoning, that’s ~ 62,400 pages (gulp) and several warm decades of neighborly “gossip” over the back fence, public announcements, hometown […]
Lea más
Sheriff’s Blotter — 93108
Bank Fraud Wells Fargo / 1400 block East Valley Road, Montecito — Thursday, December 11, at 12:18 hours The victim received a phone call from an unknown suspect warning of fraudulent activity with regard to her bank account. The suspect told the victim she needed to withdraw $27,000 from her account at Wells Fargo and […]
Lea más
