Totally Local: The Indefatigable Mollie Ahlstrand
By James Buckley   |   December 12, 2023

After nearly 30 years, the mudslide of 2018 put an end to her elegant Trattoria Mollie on Coast Village Road. She opened a new Mollie’s next to the Granada on State Street, but COVID-19 crushed that endeavor too. Armed conflict broke out in the Tigray region of Ethiopia in 2020 and the country is now […]

Home for the Holidays: Lower Coast Village Road
By Kelly Mahan Herrick and Jeff Wing   |   November 28, 2023

by Kelly Mahan Herrick and Jeff Wing The first in a four-part series on shopping locally in Montecito, we’re throwing some light (and a lot of love) on our shade-dappled Lower Village: Montecito’s Coast Village Road and beyond, which has long been a shopping and dining destination for locals, visitors, and lucky accidental tourists. We […]

 

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Poster Artist Rick Sharp: Ambassador of ‘70s-era Santa Barbara
By Jeff Wing   |   November 21, 2023

There are people who so inhabit and illuminate their respective epochs, their lives can seem almost foreordained. Add to that list a starry-eyed surfer from Houston named Rick Sharp, whose canon of poster art so deeply captures the ‘70s ambiance it can truly be said to have helped define it. Sharp will be discussing and […]

Iconic Cypress Tree Comes Down
By Kelly Mahan Herrick   |   November 14, 2023

Earlier this week, an iconic cypress tree in the Highway 101 median just south of the San Ysidro Road exit was removed, in preparation for the expansion of the freeway in both directions. The removal has spurred many comments in online and social media forums, with commenters lamenting the loss of the tree, which many […]

Message to the Community from Pat McElroy and TPRC
By Pat McElroy   |   November 7, 2023

It is with great disappointment to inform you that when the five-year emergency permits expire, the Project for Resilient Communities will need to remove the six Debris Flow “Swiss Nets” in the canyons above Montecito by December 1. Without strong local government support and budget for the six Nets that may have to be cleaned […]

Birthday on the Backcourt
By Richard Mineards   |   November 2, 2023

Santa Barbara warbler Katy Perry celebrated turning 39 in grand style – showing off her pickleball skills against British actor fiancé Orlando Bloom at the inaugural Light Up the Court event for her Firework Foundation, which she founded in 2019 with her sister, Angela Lerche. Racketeers galore turned out at the Montecito Club for the […]

Ghost Village Road
By Kelly Mahan Herrick   |   October 31, 2023

Coast Village Road’s popular trick-or-treating event, Ghost Village Road, is happening next week, from 3 pm to 6 pm on Tuesday, October 31. The event attracts  roughly 2,000 costumed kids and their parents each year. Many of the Lower Village’s business owners report they will take part in the festivities, passing out candy and other […]

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  • Citizen of the Year Announced
    By Kelly Mahan Herrick   |   October 24, 2023

    Save the date for Saturday, November 4, for the 38th annual Montecito Association Beautification Day. Themed “It Takes a Village,” this year’s event is shaping up to be a super successful event, after several years of COVID-induced, pared-down versions of the popular volunteer event. “We’re back! And we are thrilled that so many people and […]

    Teddy Bear Cancer Foundation Expands Reach
    By Kelly Mahan Herrick   |   September 19, 2023

    Teddy Bear Cancer Foundation (TBCF), a local nonprofit organization providing support for families battling childhood cancer along the Central Coast, has announced a major milestone as it enters its 21st year of operation: TBCF is now able to extend its age eligibility to 21 years.  For the past two decades, TBCF has been a place […]

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    Montecito Association Meets
    By Kelly Mahan Herrick   |   September 19, 2023

    At this month’s Montecito Association Board of Directors meeting, President Megan Orloff announced the Association’s new Executive Director: Houghton Hyatt, who served on the MA Board of Directors for six years, and has helped with countless community events. We’ll have more with Hyatt and her ideas for the MA in a future edition.  During Community […]

    Granada Legends: Annual Gala Takes the Stage
    By Steven Libowitz   |   September 12, 2023

    There’s no doubt that The Granada Theatre has played a vital role in developing and extending Santa Barbara’s thriving music and performing arts landscape for many decades – especially since 2008, when the theater reopened after a massive multi-million dollar renovation. The result not only restored The Granada to its 1930s glory but established the […]

    It Works… But Does It Quirk?
    By Gwyn Lurie   |   September 5, 2023

    Gwyn Lurie Reflects on What We’ve Gained and Lost with Our New Roundabouts Let me start by saying I’m not anti-progress. But driving through Montecito’s recent road “improvements,” I have to admit to some feelings of nostalgia… and loss. For those not aware of the origin of our new roundabouts bookending Coast Village Road, and […]

    In Conversation With SBMA’s Larry J. Feinberg
    By Joanne A Calitri   |   August 29, 2023

    What is Art if not Pivotal? This week, I talked with the Robert and Mercedes Eichholz Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Santa Barbara Museum of Art (SBMA), Larry J. Feinberg PhD, at his office about the legacy of his brilliant leadership since being appointed in 2008. Under his progressive vision, we find his […]

    Grammy-Winning Executive Director Is Coming to the Music Academy
    By Steven Libowitz   |   August 22, 2023

    The Music Academy (MA) didn’t waste any time finding a successor to Scott Reed, who announced last spring that the 2023 Summer Festival would be his last as president and CEO after 12 years at the helm. Less than a week after the final symphony concert at the Granada earlier this month, the Music Academy […]

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