Tag archives: hot springs

I am a lifetime, 8th generation South Coast resident. I have resided in Montecito most of my life. I have also lived in Santa Barbara, Carpinteria and today, Summerland. After attending SBHS, UCSB, and practicing Water & Land Use law locally for over 20 years I am now retired. In my retirement I served for […]

On the early morning of May 27, 2024, a group of local homeowners/residents escorted a demolition crew carrying picks and shovels to destroy the Montecito Hot Springs pools. About eight people in all, dressed in black. This event was captured on a video taken by a hiker, a young man, who was en route to […]

By 1880, Montecito’s Hot Springs were so ancient that the Morning Press felt compelled to write their history. The hot springs, the article said, had been used by the Chumash since time immemorial. After the coming of the Europeans, the springs, though belonging first to the Pueblo and then to the City of Santa Barbara, […]

An unsightly gate was recently installed at the trailhead to Hot Springs Canyon with the given reason that the trail should be closed on days of high fire danger for safety reasons. This is the same canyon that was closed several months ago after heavy rains and where the authorities imposed draconian penalties of possible […]

The tumultuous saga between four Montecito homeowners and the County of Santa Barbara’s Public Works Department continues, as the California 2nd District Court of Appeal ruled in favor of the County at an appeal hearing in mid-July. The ruling stated that the County could legally remove unpermitted encroachments in the public right-of-way along East Mountain […]

I would like to add something to the comments on the recent Board of Supervisors’ decision regarding sound walls along the 101 corridor in Montecito, which meeting I attended. My concern is that in this conversation we are perhaps disregarding the “elephant in the room,” which would be the status of our creeks and their […]

A month ago, I questioned in these pages who owns our creeks, because I was getting the runaround from various authorities on who has responsibility to stop: – Pool construction on Hot Springs – Wall building in San Ysidro creek On Tuesday, April 4th, I pulled up to the Ennisbrook trailhead on San Leandro Lane […]

I think it’s time to cede Bryan Rosen space as a columnist; there is no other way to describe his way-too-regular contributions on a single topic. Certainly, no one can doubt his passion for the Hot Springs Trail and its attendant issues, but his letters exceed the accepted word limit by hundreds; often they cannot […]

Montecito Journal, thank you for printing the letter I wrote on the surveillance cameras placed at the Montecito Hot Springs and nearby. Unfortunately, changes were made to what I submitted, greatly confusing the matter. First, the quote from Lieutenant Ugo “Butch” Arnoldi’s February 21 email was altered. It’s not proper to alter quotes from people […]

As a neighborhood association, we receive lots of questions, and some can be difficult to sort, particularly if they cross multiple jurisdictional lines. We encounter this often with Hands Across Montecito, when we work the area around the Hot Springs exit. In just a few steps on the tracks, you’re moving back and forth between […]

On Feb. 16, 2023, a camera was placed facing a newly restored pool at the Montecito Hot Springs. The camera bore a tag that had printed on it “County of Santa Barbara, Public Works, Trail and Creek Monitoring in Progress, Do Not Tamper or Remove, Enforced by County Sheriff.”  The Dept. of Public Works wasn’t […]

After receiving a report of five cameras being placed around the Montecito Hot Springs areas and several agencies unaware of their presence, Montecito Journal reached out to local authorities for answers regarding the cameras. The response received was concerned with the current mandatory closure of the local forests, trails, and recreation areas to the public, […]

Continued education and understanding of cultural groups are needed across our community. Last month, anti-Semitic flyers were dispersed across the Mesa on the first day of Hanukkah. This was a coordinated effort that occurred in the Second District that Laura Capps represents and is compounded by the horrific displays of anti-Semitism across the country. Like […]

Project Progress Highway 101 Widening Project  The long-awaited widening project from Carpinteria to Santa Barbara was discussed at length in 2022, with countless meetings to discuss design, construction, timing, and other details related to the addition of a third lane through Montecito.  The Montecito segment of the project (called 4D) includes widening 1.4 miles of […]

The Community Services Department is currently accepting applications to fill two Hot Springs Trail Assistant vacancies in Montecito at the Hot Springs Trail. “This position is important in promoting better relations between trail users and residents near the trail, and a part of the County’s responsibility protecting the public safety of both groups,” said First […]

Montecito – home to such luminaries as Oprah and Stedman, Ellen DeGeneres and Portia, Ariana Grande, Katy Perry, and, of course, Prince Harry and the Duchess of Sussex. The glitterati of the world. Every inhabitant a multi-zillionaire. Well… maybe… but not if your name is Hollis Crawford and you’ve just been fired from your third […]

We work a lot with the county, from sheriffs to Public Works to Flood Control to Zoning. Normally, the relationship is pretty good. The county is usually responsive, and our community benefits from working closely with our government.  But our county is doing something we don’t understand at all. Apparently, neither do the judges. You’ve […]

Last week, nearly a dozen homes on East Mountain Drive were given notice by the County of Santa Barbara to remove encroachments in the public right-of-way within a 10-day period, refueling an ongoing battle between homeowners, the County of Santa Barbara Public Works Department, and users of the Hot Springs Trail. On Tuesday, Santa Barbara […]

Imagine being elected to serve in local government, only to find yourself in a global health emergency. That’s exactly what happened to Gregg Hart, then Chair of the County Board of Supervisors, when the COVID-19 pandemic hit in early 2020. “I was hoping to use my chairmanship to highlight the need for emergency and disaster […]

On Tuesday, May 3, the Montecito Association Land Use Committee met via Zoom to further discuss the parking issues at the Hot Springs Trailhead, which we’ve covered extensively over the last several weeks.  On the call were 30 members of the community, including members of the Land Use Committee, as well as representatives from the […]