Julie Cordero-Lamb is an ethnobotanist and a member of the Coastal Band of the Chumash Nation. She joined the effort to protect San Marcos Foothills nearly twenty years ago. She has a unique perspective on the site, which is important to her and to the Chumash community. “We have a connection to that place that […]
In addition to the majority of the business sector permitted to reopen indoors with modifications earlier this week, most county public schools – bolstered by happy and tired parents and caregivers – reopened in early March. Montecito public schools, Montecito Union School and Cold Spring School, have been open for in-person learning since late September, […]
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In 2020, the Montecito community witnessed a growing population of unsheltered individuals in the area. Encampments mushroomed and became quite visible. Bicycle thefts were up as were incidents of trespassing on private property. I started visiting the encampments in Montecito with Luis Alvarado, a case manager from Homeless Outreach Services at Santa Barbara County’s Behavioral […]
Montecito’s historic San Ysidro Pharmacy is now under new ownership, I can exclusively reveal. The 67-year-old pharmacy, located on the corner of East Valley and San Ysidro roads, was founded by Louis Miratti, who had previously owned the El Camino Pharmacy on Coast Village Road, the first one in our rarefied enclave. Robert Goodell, who […]
On Tuesday, February 23, the Santa Barbara City Council extended its Emergency Economic Recovery Ordinance until March 8, 2022. The ordinance, which was adopted last May, continues the temporary closure of certain streets, on-street parking, and public parking to allow outdoor dining and outdoor business uses in the public right-of-way or on private property, which […]
The Internet and townsfolk are all abuzz about the Big Yellow House’s new “yellow” paint job. About a month ago, I received a text with a photo of the building being painted. It read: Dear Summerland correspondent, The Big Yellow House is being painted cream. Signed, Nancy Drew I was relieved that the super bright, […]
In an effort to provide a special experience to their 5th grade class, teachers at Montecito Union School brought Colonial Williamsburg to MUS. “Most years, fifth graders are able to attend the D.C./Colonial Williamsburg trip as a culmination of their studies of the early history of our country. Clearly, that wasn’t in the cards this year, but our […]
On Monday, March 16, Santa Barbara Interim Police Chief Barney Melekian issued a statement responding to a March 12 Los Angeles Magazine article that raised allegations of corruption and undue influence involving Anthony Wagner, the department’s public information officer, who previously helped run the city’s cannabis dispensary licensing process. Melekian’s announcement stated that he was […]
It has been quite a hair-raising year for Montecito crimper Marcus Boyle, owner of the Halo & Horns salon on Coast Village Road with his wife, Clara, just a curling tongs’ throw from Ca’Dario. Marcus, 45, who trained at Vidal Sassoon in London, celebrates the first anniversary of his business this month having worked for […]
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For the last several months, Larry Balducci, the beloved owner of Plaza Deli in La Cumbre Plaza, has been offering his expansive and easily accessible patio as a drop off location for pet food donations. “After hearing all of these stories about how people can’t afford to feed their pets during the pandemic, I knew […]
A newly built pedestrian pathway along Hot Springs Road has sparked some neighborhood controversy, which was discussed at the Montecito’s Land Use and Transportation Committee meeting this past Tuesday. Bucket Brigade founder Abe Powell, who was an integral part of the County-led road enhancement project, explained to the Committee that the impetus for the trail […]
At 2:07 pm, Montecito resident Abe Powell was driving north on San Ysidro Road when he noticed a pair of paragliders swinging in the sky. “They were just too low,” Powell said. “I knew they weren’t going to make it to the beach, because they were coming low and towards the powerlines that come across […]
It’s sometimes said that Santa Barbara, with its powerful full-time city administrator overseeing more than 1,000 city employees in ten different agencies, tends to leave the mayor as a figurehead, not much more than a glorified seventh city councilmember who happens to represent all constituents rather than those in one district. But don’t tell that […]
–From County Public Health Office Appointments for first doses of COVID-19 vaccines are available to eligible Santa Barbara County residents every Monday at 9 am through the county’s public health vaccination sites. People who are eligible for these appointments are those who work in emergency services, agriculture, and food services, and any remaining Phase 1A […]






