Tag archives: hotel

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 […]

Meeting Managers Past and Present
By Richard Mineards   |   August 27, 2024

After four years as manager of the tony 92-cottage Belmond El Encanto, Janis Clapoff, has passed the torch to new manager Pedro Dias, who is moving to our Eden by the Beach after running the hotel group’s 113-room Cap Juluca in Anguilla. Janis is taking over as manager of the historic California Club, founded in […]

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 […]

A Grand Garden Opening for The Steward
By Richard Mineards   |   September 26, 2023

Our Eden by the Beach’s latest hotel, The Steward, is a charming and historical gem on nearly five acres with 87 one-bedroom suites. The Tribute Portfolio by Marriott, described as “a modern hideaway rooted in horticulture,” dates back to the 1860s when the charming Goleta estate was the Victorian home of pioneer horticulturist Joseph Sexton, […]

Ritz-Carlton Bacara: Out-of-this-World Experience in Our Own Backyard
By Leslie Westbrook   |   August 29, 2023

Why would anyone want to spend $55 million for a three-day trip to the moon on SpaceX (estimated cost in the future) when they could merely drive 15 minutes from Montecito to The Ritz-Carlton Bacara Resort and book an “out of this world” spa experience? I indulged in “Body Melt,” an 80-minute treatment that has […]

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 […]

Puttin’ on the Ritz
By Richard Mineards   |   May 23, 2023

Susanto Bhattacharya, who started his culinary career in a small town in India, is the new executive chef at the Ritz Carlton Bacara. With skills acquired in Europe, Asia, North America, and Africa, including the Caribbean, he will oversee the oceanside hostelry’s six culinary venues, including the Angel Oak, housing the tony resort’s 12,000-bottle wine […]

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 […]

Getting There is Half, a Quarter, Hardly Any of the Fun
By Ernie Witham   |   August 2, 2022

Our plane from LAX to Charlotte was late. “We will begin boarding as soon as the arriving passengers are off the plane,” the gate attendant announced. “What’s the holdup?” I asked. Before he could answer, the scheduled departure time advanced by 30 minutes. “It needs to taxi to the gate… as soon as it actually […]

Meanwhile, back to Rancho Valencia…
By Leslie Westbrook   |   June 28, 2022

While the world was going to hell in a handbasket, I escaped to Rancho Santa Fe, a sort of Montecito for the horsey set, for a couple of glorious nights at lovely Rancho Valencia Resort & Spa, a Spanish-Colonial hacienda style resort set on 45 acres in north San Diego County that’s a three-and-a-half-hour drive […]

Hotel Santa Barbara Sold to Wisconsin-Based Hospitality Group
By Nick Masuda   |   December 14, 2021

The iconic Hotel Santa Barbara has been sold for $41.9 million to the Geronimo Hospitality Group, ending a 46-year run by the current ownership. Hotel Santa Barbara, located at 527-533 State Street, has seen renovations as recently as 2019, but the new ownership will be utilizing 2022 to prepare upgrades to the 75-key facility. “We […]

The Man in the Miramar
By Gwyn Lurie   |   December 13, 2021

In the movie version of this story, we open on a shot of Invictus, a sleek 215-foot yacht with sophisticated, timeless maritime beauty – all six decks of it – replete with a swimming pool, a gym, a theater, nine bedrooms, and an elevator. Of course.  We pull out further to reveal Rick Caruso, the […]

Escape to the North: A Look at What San Luis Obispo Has to Offer
By James Buckley   |   July 15, 2021

After having been locked up for more than a year, there is a real need among many Montecito residents to just get away — anywhere. The nice thing about choosing San Luis Obispo is that one needn’t go very far to feel very far away; it is a mere two hours by car, yet it […]

Copus Family Unveils California-style Brasserie on Coast Village Road
By Claudia Schou   |   October 1, 2020

Step into the al fresco dining area at Coast & Olive, the new California-style brasserie that recently opened at the historic Montecito Inn, and you get a sense of its history. The hotel, built by silent film star Charlie Chaplin in 1928, has been a beacon of hospitality for nearly a century with its Spanish […]

The Webster Opens at Rosewood Miramar
By Kelly Mahan Herrick   |   July 23, 2020

Last week, the Rosewood Miramar Beach welcomed a new retailer to its grounds: The Webster, a luxury multi-brand retailer opened its first permanent boutique within a hotel property. The store was designed by the creative director of The Webster Home, Stéphane Parmentier. The 500-sq-ft storefront has elements of both “femininity and brutalist design,” with clothing […]

Hot List
By Richard Mineards   |   May 21, 2020

Despite the doldrums created by the pandemic, Los Angeles billionaire Rick Caruso is smiling after Conde Nast’s Traveler listed his Rosewood Miramar hotel on its 2020 Hot List, one of the hospitality industry’s most esteemed awards that honors the best newly opened and renovated properties around the world. Based on the firsthand experiences and reviews […]

Rosewood Ribbon Cutting
By Richard Mineards   |   April 18, 2019

Billionaire Los Angeles developer Rick Caruso nearly came a cropper at the final hurdle when developing the Rosewood Miramar, he has revealed. Rick was at a ribbon cutting ceremony at the oh-so tony five star resort and recounted he was in our Eden by the Beach for the final hearing on his $200 million development, […]

Speer-Headed
By Richard Mineards   |   November 8, 2018

Kevin Speer, the affable manager of Beanie Baby billionaire Ty Warner‘s Coral Casino, is celebrating his 25th anniversary in the role. But his career at the beachside club came about by chance. “Chris Hart, the former general manager of the resort, asked me to come over to the club from the hotel to correct some […]