Sometimes it takes a global pandemic to highlight the crucial role that community banks play in rescuing local businesses from the economic nightmare that comes with a year-long statewide shutdown. For American Riviera Bank (ARB), which opened in 2006 thanks to about 400 local shareholders who put up roughly $25 million in start-up cash, the […]
After finally recovering from COVID-19 and feeling well enough to play golf again, Billy Mandarino woke one morning to find his hands, feet, and face completely numb. He is now re-learning how to walk. Mandarino is one of the more than one hundred thousand cases nationwide with what doctors are calling Long Haulers Syndrome, or […]
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A book is like a box of chocolates! You never know what you’re gonna get. Stop by the library on February 11 from 10 am to 1 pm for a surprise wrapped book to celebrate Valentine’s Day in Montecito. We all need a little extra love these days and we have some fun bookmarks and […]
Summerland merchants have banded together to spread some Valentine’s Day weekend community love this weekend! The town will be bursting with chocolate, flowers, cookies, champagne, pop-ups, tastings specials, and more. Participating businesses include Red Kettle Coffee (heart shaped cookies), Garde, Mary Suding Antiques, Sweet Wheel Farms & Flowers, The Bikini Factory (20% off red and pink […]
Two new stores are calling Montecito Country Mart home as business picks up throughout the Mart following the lifting of the state’s stay-at-home order in January. “People are here, they are shopping and eating, all in a safe way,” says Mart rep Kristin Teufel, who introduced us to the new shops earlier this week. The […]
All things bright, beautiful, and birds are well noted even during our cold winter lockdown, thanks to the Santa Barbara Audubon Society, who decided to hold its annual Christmas Bird Count (CBC) after weighing in on all the variants. The team organized the count with proper precautions and rules in place, including masking, distancing, and […]
The Montecito Association will host our Annual Members Meeting next Tuesday, February 9 at 4 pm via Zoom. We say goodbye to departing directors Peter van Duinwyk and Dorinne Lee Johnson, and welcome our newly elected board directors. We also appoint our officers at this meeting. Last year, we hosted California state Senator Hannah- Beth […]
Four years ago, James Joyce III began an ambitious project called “Coffee With a Black Guy.” The idea was simple: Using a combination of wit, humor, and blunt honesty, Joyce sought to help Santa Barbara residents engage in a frank dialogue about issues relating to race and politics, both in our community and nationwide. The […]
For the last 22 years, Montecito’s Friendship Center has hosted a fun-filled pre-Valentine’s event to raise funds for the Center’s HEART (Help Elders At Risk Today) Program, subsidizing the cost of adult day services for low-income aging and dependent adults and their families. This year, thanks to the pandemic, the event is going virtual, and […]
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Agronomist and farmer Jay Ruskey, co-founder of Frinj Coffee, situated on 42 acres at his family-owned and operated Good Land Organics Farm in Goleta, is trying to make the humble bean into a premium brand worthy of adjectives more associated with wine. Carved out of a 120-acre property formerly owned by Alfred and Betsy Bloomingdale […]
Just a day after California Governor Gavin Newsom announced the end of a months-long, statewide stay-at-home order, the Santa Barbara County Public Health Department officially allowed outdoor dining to take effect at exactly 8 am on Tuesday, January 26. According to First District Supervisor Das Williams, he first heard word of the coming news over […]
We can’t think of a sweeter Valentine’s gift than the one from generous Summerland resident and philanthropist Nora McNeely Hurley and her husband, Michael Hurley. Summerland School’s very tired tennis courts will be undergoing a complete renovation thanks to a two-year grant from the Manitou Fund. Nora McNeely Hurley is a Trustee and Chief Programming […]
Nearly three years to the day after the 1/9 Debris Flow that damaged or destroyed over 600 homes as well as debilitated Montecito infrastructure, the Santa Barbara County Public Works Department made a significant step in the rebuilding process with the replacement of the East Mountain Drive Bridge over San Ysidro Creek. The bridge, which […]
What – exactly – is a bank? A bank is a financial institution licensed to receive deposits, make loans, and attach ball point pens to countertops with little chains that are inevitably too short by about an inch. A bank, if it chooses, will also advise on managing your wealth, will exchange your greenbacks for […]
