UC Santa Barbara’s baseball team may not have a home this side of Fresno, but Shohei Ohtani and the Los Angeles Dodgers are settling in at their home away from home at Camelback Ranch-Glendale in Arizona.
With the Super Bowl behind us, March Madness is all that stands in the way of baseball season and the thrill of the grass.
Although I’m just as happy to watch rodeo until it’s tiiiime for Dodger baseball.
This past week, Noozhawk drew a crowd of 154,069 readers, according to our WordPress analytics.
What follows is my own recap of the Top Five stories you were reading during that period.
In case you’re new to these Best of Bill columns, this is my opinion column. It is not a news story.
1. Fed Up with Regulations, Miller Family Wine Co. Moving Operations Out of Santa Barbara County
Miller Family Wine Co., a major wine-production facility in Santa Maria, is shuttering its operations and relocating somewhere other than Santa Barbara County due to regulatory frustrations here.
In a Noozhawk exclusive, the Millers, a fifth-generation agriculture family on the Central Coast, cited constraints posed by county regulations, including severe air quality rules and expansion limitations.
With the 2023 harvest over, layoffs have begun at the company’s 230,000-square-foot facility at 2717 Aviation Way, off Industrial Parkway near the Santa Maria Airport.
“We as a business made the decision that we could no longer scale and grow within that facility,” Nicholas Miller, the vice president of sales and marketing officer, told our Janene Scully.
“That we were too constrained by the geography, costs and legislation from Santa Barbara County to grow anymore.”
He said the company will be moving its operation to larger facilities in Northern California that have a more accommodating business climate.
In the once-Golden State’s hostile work environment these days, that’s admittedly a low bar, but it’s still flabbergasting.
“We feel it’s very unfortunate,” Miller said. “It’s certainly not what we had wanted to do.”
The closure marks the end of an era for the largest winery in Santa Barbara County, leaving behind a void in the local wine industry ecosystem.
The move underscores broader challenges faced by wine producers in navigating regulatory environments while striving for growth and sustainability.
“Santa Barbara County does have the most adverse wine ordinance of anywhere in the state and, I believe, in the country,” Miller said. “There are a lot of restrictions against the wine industry.”
For instance, he added, regulators took an aggressive approach regarding air quality rules, leading the company to invent new technology to preserve the existing winery operations.
County bureaucrats also told the Millers they couldn’t expand beyond the current level amid plans to add more tanks and more capacity.
Rising costs mean they couldn’t stay stagnant, Miller observed.
And therein lies the fundamental arrogance and ignorance that permeate local government: the mentality that business can bear any cost imposed on it with no negative consequence.
The Millers are demonstrating how that’s not true, but we’ll see if any of the elected officials responsible for this mess care to notice. I’m guessing those on the Board of Supervisors and the Santa Barbara County Air Pollution Control District will not.
The Santa Maria facility is one of several falling under The Thornhill Companies brand, which includes Bien Nacido Estates, Thornhill Ranches and Bagshaw Investments.
It produced wines for all but its Bien Nacido, optik and Solomon Hills labels.
2. Santa Barbara Looks to Build $32.5 Million Bridge Over Highway 101 to Enhance Mobility for Eastside
An as-yet-unfunded $32.5 million bicycle and pedestrian bridge over Highway 101 is being proposed by the City of Santa Barbara to better connect the Lower Eastside and the waterfront.
“The Eastside neighborhood has been asking for a connection for over a decade, and this project would make that happen,” City Councilwoman Kristen Sneddon said.
As our Josh Molina reported, the initiative is part of the city’s Active Transportation Plan and includes various Lower Eastside safety enhancements to improve circulation and address safety concerns.
That means new sidewalks, lighting, rapid flashing beacons, the increasingly pervasive curb extensions and — Lord, have mercy — yet another bollard-abundant bike “boulevard.”
There currently is no funding committed for either the bridge or the safety enhancements, but city officials say they’re likely to seek grants from state programs.
The city also wants to use the Santa Barbara County Association of Governments to integrate the infrastructure into the Highway 101 freeway widening project.
The proposed bridge would span Highway 101 and the Union Pacific train tracks between the intersection of Pitos and South Canada streets, on the north side of the freeway a block west of South Salinas Street, and Dwight Murphy Field, across Niños Drive from the Santa Barbara Zoo.
No timeline was provided.
Josh gets into more details in his own independent Santa Barbara Talks podcast below.
3. Detectives Investigating ‘Suspicious Death’ After Body Found in Toro Canyon
A man’s body was discovered in Toro Canyon Creek near Summerland on Feb. 14, and Santa Barbara County sheriff’s detectives are investigating the death as “suspicious.”
As our Tom Bolton reported, a passerby made the chance find just before 11 a.m. where Toro Canyon Road curves along the creek about 15o yards north of Foothill Road.
Sheriff’s spokeswoman Raquel Zick said the roadway was closed between Foothill and Torito roads while investigators were combing the scene for clues.
That’s the extent of the information released by the Sheriff’s Department.
Anyone with information about the case can click here to leave an anonymous tip for sheriff’s detectives.
4. Lake Cachuma Fills to Capacity, Continues to Spill in Wake of Major Storms
Lake Cachuma, the primary water source for most of Santa Barbara County, reached full capacity in the wee hours of Feb. 11.
As our Tom Bolton reported, the county Public Works Department confirmed that the Santa Ynez Valley reservoir hit the 753-foot elevation mark — signifying 100% full — at 3:30 a.m.
Water has been flowing through Bradbury Dam’s gates for more than a week to accommodate runoff from recent storms.
While officially full, the lake level continues to rise due to an additional foot of “freeboard” on the dam gates, according to Matthew Young, manager of the county’s Water Agency.
In dam terminology, “freeboard” is the vertical distance between the crest of the dam embankment and the reservoir’s water surface.
At capacity, Lake Cachuma holds approximately 193,135 acre-feet of water, supplying Santa Barbara, Goleta and downstream users in the Santa Ynez and Lompoc valleys.
5. BizHawk: Craving Barbecue? The ‘Best’ Arrives on Santa Barbara’s State Street
Best BBQ has opened in Santa Barbara, serving up tri-tip, chicken, beef and pork ribs, and hot links from the heart of downtown.
As our Josh Molina reported, business partners Raj Singh and Juan Ramirez have opened their barbecue joint at 716 State St., across from Paseo Nuevo between East De la Guerra and East Ortega streets.
It’s actually a sister restaurant to Singh’s original Best BBQ, which he opened in Santa Paula nine years ago.
“Barbecue chose me,” Singh told Josh. “I like cooking.”
Ramirez is responsible for the recipes, and everything is made from scratch in house.
“Our dry rub we put on our meat, we prepare ourselves,” Singh said, acknowledging that the pork ribs are his favorite.
“If someone is looking for good, healthy food, we don’t use any preservatives or oils.”
Born in India and raised in Ventura, Singh’s culinary journey started early, influenced by his family’s restaurant ventures, including Subway franchises and convenience stores.
Keeping things in the family, Singh’s cousin owns Apna Indian Kitchen at 718 State St., next door to Best BBQ.
Best BBQ is open daily from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.
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Good Reads
Don’t miss these six stories before you go:
» Supervisors Amend Housing Code to Streamline Permitting, Comply with New State Laws — Executive editor Giana Magnoli homes in on new state housing laws and their effects in Santa Barbara County.
» Santa Barbara County Shares How It Monitors for Bluff Erosion After Balcony Collapse in Isla Vista — Staff writer Rebecca Caraway digs into Santa Barbara County’s bluff erosion problem and uncovers an alarming admission.
» Biltmore Hotel in Montecito Seeks Permits for More Renovations as Closure Nears Four-Year Mark — Does anyone even remember the Four Seasons Resort The Biltmore anymore? Rebecca learns the place has not been abandoned — despite its construction fencing appearance.
» Sheriff Salutes Father, Son and Family Dog for Finding Missing Man in Vandenberg Village — North County editor Janene Scully has a heart-warming story about a dog-gone impressive rescue in Vandenberg Village.
» Laurie Jervis: Tonnage for 2023 Up 1.6% in Annual Grape Crush Report — Wine columnist Laurie Jervis uncorks the latest Santa Barbara County grape report, then pours out some analysis.
» More Rainy Weather on Its Way to Santa Barbara County — Editor in chief Tom Bolton has a soggy forecast for the weekend.
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Last Year on Noozhawk
What was our most-read story this time last year? Man Accused of Murder in Death of Girlfriend’s 3-Year-Old Daughter in Santa Barbara.
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Bill Macfadyen’s Story of the Week
Which outlasted the other? The chicken or the egg? Aylesbury Roman Egg with Contents a “World First,” Scientists Say.
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Best of Bill’s Instagram
I have to say that being elected president of @thesantabarbaraclub was the highlight of my week — and my Instagram feed.
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Watch It
Nope. I don’t recognize these people. At all.
