Tag archives: Four Seasons Biltmore

Biltmore Project at the Land Use Meeting
By Joanne A Calitri   |   January 21, 2025

The Montecito Association Land Use Committee (LUC) January meeting was held Tuesday, January 7, in person at the Montecito Library community room and on Zoom. The meeting was called to order by its Chair, Dorinne Lee Johnson. Attendees were the Land Use Committee members, MA Executive Director Houghton Hyatt, MA President Doug Black, land surveyor […]

Biltmore at the MPC: Schedules, Palapas, and More Discussed at Meeting
By Tiana Molony   |   October 29, 2024

On Wednesday, October 16th, the Four Seasons Biltmore received preliminary approval from the Montecito Planning Commission (MPC) for its updated development plan. The plan includes adding private hot tubs for the bungalows, renovating the guest houses, building a new pool, and renovating the outdoor dining deck.  Ahead of the vote, the MPC requested that the […]

Supporting the Reopening of the Four Seasons Biltmore Hotel
By Thomas R. Widroe   |   October 15, 2024

As representatives of the Santa Barbara County Taxpayers Association (SBCTA), we wish to address the ongoing discussions surrounding the reopening of the historic Four Seasons Biltmore Hotel in Santa Barbara. The prolonged stall tactics surrounding new pool amenities have taken an ironic turn that merits our attention. To label this situation as mere “overreach” would […]

Biltmore and More at October’s Land Use Meeting
By Joanne A Calitri   |   October 8, 2024

The Montecito Association Land Use September meeting was held in person at the Montecito Library community room, and on Zoom. The meeting was led by its Chair, Dorinne Lee Johnson. Attendees were the Land Use Committee members, Montecito Association Executive Director Houghton Hyatt, MA President Doug Black, Supervisor Williams’ Chief of Staff Darcel Elliott, and […]

Biltmore Faces the MBAR with Its Future Unknown
By Tiana Molony   |   August 27, 2024

When the Biltmore opened its doors in 1927, a stone’s throw from the Pacific Ocean, various hotel aficionados around California gathered for dinner there. According to a December 1927 issue of The Morning Press, many praised it as “a hotel in the most beautiful spot in California.” Its Spanish Revival charm, easily recognizable by the […]

Ty Warner’s Manhattan Hotel to Open
By Richard Mineards   |   June 25, 2024

After an epic four-year battle between Beanie Baby billionaire Ty Warner and the Toronto-based Four Seasons Hotel group, his 926-foot tall I. M. Pei-designed Manhattan hostelry is reopening in September. The iconic East 57th 383-room property, once known as the most expensive hotel in New York City, has been shuttered since the start of the […]

Clarity on the Future of the Biltmore
By Zach Rosen   |   May 21, 2024

Following the announcement that Biltmore employees have received their settlement packages from Four Seasons, the Montecito Journal sought clarity on the future of the historic hotel, which has been closed for over four years. Sean Lavelle, a representative for Ty Warner, commented, “as Four Seasons announced today, we are pleased to have reached a collective […]

Biltmore Updates
By Kelly Mahan Herrick   |   August 15, 2023

In a statement released last week, local hotelier Ty Warner confirmed that the Four Seasons Resort The Biltmore will reopen in the fall of 2024, over four years after closing in March 2020, at the beginning of the Covid-19 Pandemic.  Warner’s company, Ty Warner Hotels and Resorts, has been working with the Four Seasons Hotels […]

Biltmore Battle Rages On
By Kelly Mahan Herrick   |   November 15, 2022

As reported in last week’s MoJo online newsletter, the legal battle between Biltmore owner Ty Warner and hotel management company Four Seasons rages on, with Warner filing a petition at the United States District Court, Southern District of New York, asking that the Courts step in to appoint arbitrators to hear the dispute between the […]

Biltmore Legal Battle Continues 
By Kelly Mahan Herrick   |   November 4, 2022

The legal battle between Biltmore owner Ty Warner and hotel management company Four Seasons rages on, with Warner filing a petition earlier this week at the United States District Court, Southern District of New York, asking that the Courts step in to appoint arbitrators to hear the dispute between the two sides.  Mr. Warner served […]

Class-Action Lawsuit at Biltmore
By Kelly Mahan Herrick   |   February 15, 2022

A class-action lawsuit was filed in late January by former employees at the Four Seasons Resort The Biltmore against Montecito resident Ty Warner and his hotel company.  The lawsuit notes that at the beginning of the pandemic in March 2020, 450 employees of the resort were furloughed, with hotel operators not being forthcoming about when […]

Biltmore Employees Seek Legal Action
By Kelly Mahan Herrick   |   April 29, 2021

Over 250 employees of the Four Seasons Biltmore Resort are seeking back pay to account for being out of work for over 13 months, according to a recent memorandum sent to Montecito Journal. Local law firm Anticouni & Ricotta, which is representing the employees, is scheduled to mediate with the Four Seasons at the end […]

Still-Furloughed Four Seasons Biltmore Employees Now Seeking Lost Wages
By Nick Schou   |   November 26, 2020

Santa Barbara’s hospitality industry still isn’t close to recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic but few employees have had it as bad as the roughly 450 workers from the Four Seasons Resort the Biltmore Santa Barbara, all of whom were furloughed last March and who lost their employer-funded medical insurance in July. Although the resort is […]

Trees a Crowd
By Richard Mineards   |   November 21, 2019

Caroline Doiron, owner of the Village Gardener, is going to have her hands full over the next few weeks. Caroline, who regularly decorates the Christmas tree at the Four Seasons Biltmore with thousands of ornaments, has also taken on the daunting task, along with her team of eight designers, of installing and decorating Yuletide trees […]

Score Sheets
By Richard Mineards   |   June 6, 2019

Santa Barbara’s second annual hospitality summer games at the Hilton boasted 14 teams, double the number of participants at the first event at the Hotel Californian. The fun-filled event, which included a recycling race, a bed making contest, a server obstacle course, pastry cake wars, a toilet paper toss, and a talent and bike building […]

Cottage Cheese
By Richard Mineards   |   October 18, 2018

After 13 years and at a cost of $820 million, more than $110 million of which came from our community, Cottage Hospital is finally ready for its close-up. The 713,000-sq.-ft. property, which boasts 337 beds, has just opened its final two pavilions – the Compton and the Arlington – with a launch bash with more […]