The UC Santa Barbara Economic Forecast Project held its 2023 South Coast Economic Summit on May 24, and I think this one was the best yet. And I’m not just saying that because I’m privileged to be on the board.
As our Serena Guentz reported for Noozhawk, the summit featured Federal Reserve Bank governor Chris Waller talking about inflation, recession, and the national and global economies; Ted Egan, chief economist for the City and County of San Francisco, sharing a cautionary tale for California cities; and Economic Forecast Project director Peter Rupert providing his always entertaining perspective on local conditions and trends.
But it was Egan who held the rapt attention of 800 people, most of them with profound concerns that signs of San Francisco’s dystopian dysfunction can be found in our town, too.
Egan was optimistic but realistic about the post-pandemic economic conditions. He came up with “Four Paths to a ‘Doom Loop’” of a hopeless downward spiral.
Take downtown quality of life, for instance: “Limited amenities, worries about safety keep people away => businesses stay closed => people stay away => more businesses close.”
Sound familiar?
Of course, the City of Santa Barbara scheduled its budget hearings at the same time as the summit (which was on the calendar months ago), so there was not a single elected or senior city official to hear any of the presentations.
It did not go unnoticed, or unremarked, in the business community — as if we didn’t already know California is a hostile work environment.
As if to drive home the point, the city had a contractor jackhammering State Street just a few yards away from the 8 a.m. check-in at The Granada Theatre.
Message received.
Noozhawk had an audience of 88,928 readers this past week, according to our Google Analytics.
What follows is my own take on your Top 5 most-read stories for the period. In other words, this is my opinion column, not a news story.
1. Santa Barbara Man Killed in Highway 101 Rollover Crash in Goleta
A 55-year-old Santa Barbara man died and a second man was injured in a May 23 pre-dawn rollover crash off Highway 101 in Goleta.
As our Giana Magnoli reported, California Highway Patrol spokesman Jonathan Gutierrez said the driver of a 1999 Ford Ranger lost control of the pickup truck around 5:15 a.m. near Fairview Avenue.
He said the truck spun out and flipped on its roof in the meadow just beyond the northbound exit ramp.
Authorities said the driver, identified as 64-year-old Pedro Contreras of Santa Barbara, suffered minor injuries and was transported by American Medical Response ambulance to Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital as a precaution.
Gutierrez said Contreras’ passenger, identified as Florencio Lagara-Pérez, was pronounced dead at the scene.
Lagara-Pérez’s nephew, Javier Jijón of Goleta, has started a GoFundMe account to help with the expense of transporting his body to Mexico for burial.
As of May 26, the account had raised nearly $2,500. Click here to make an online donation.
The CHP is investigating the circumstances of the crash, but Gutierrez said neither alcohol nor drugs are suspected.
2. Santa Barbara Council Denies Appeals of Six Restaurants Fighting to Keep Dining Parklets
The Santa Barbara City Council shot down the appeals of six restaurants whose parklets were deemed to be in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act.
As our Josh Molina reported, the restaurants had appealed orders to remove their street dining structures, which City of Santa Barbara staff had determined were not compliant with the law.
On May 23, the council voted to reject the requests from Ca’Dario, 37 E. Victoria St.; Courthouse Tavern, 129 E. Anapamu St.; Folded Hills Winery, 1294 Coast Village Road; Foxtail Kitchen & Bar, 14 E. Cota St.; Taza, 413 State St.; and Trattoria Vittoria, 30 E. Victoria St.
Most of the appeals were denied on unanimous votes by Mayor Randy Rowse and council members Eric Friedman, Alejandra Gutierrez, Oscar Gutierrez, Meagan Harmon, Mike Jordan and Kristen Sneddon.
Oscar Gutierrez dissented from the rejection of the appeals by Taza and Trattoria Vittoria, and was joined by Jordan for the latter.
“To me, ADA law and accessibility is not something for us to be flexible on,” Harmon said. “It is the civil rights of community members.”
All six establishments must now dismantle their parklets. Of course, they can also reapply and start the process all over again in the endless loop of Santa Barbara bureaucracy.
3. Bill Macfadyen: Chick-fil-A Taking a Break to Pull Off Santa Barbara Backup Plan
Noozhawk readers are still feasting on Chick-fil-A, which — in one fowl swoop — hopes to fix the traffic indigestion surrounding its restaurant at 3707 State St. in Santa Barbara.
4. Pedestrian Struck, Killed by Amtrak Train Near Santa Barbara
A man walking along the Union Pacific railroad tracks near Santa Barbara was struck and killed by an Amtrak train the night of May 22.
As our Tom Bolton reported, the incident occurred just after 10 p.m. in the area north of Encore Drive, a residential neighborhood off Modoc Road about a quarter-mile east of Hollister Avenue
According to an Amtrak tweet, the northbound Pacific Surfliner was stopped in the area for a “trespasser incident.”
Santa Barbara County fire Engineer Mike Gray told Tom that the dead man appeared to be in his early 20s. His identity was withheld pending notification of relatives.
5. Actor Fred Savage Wins Gold Medal at American Riviera Classic Pickleball Tournament
“When it came to surveillance, the KGB had nothing on my mother.”
That quote has nothing to do with this item, but it’s one of the lines I remember from The Wonder Years and its protagonist, Kevin Arnold, aka actor Fred Savage.
Savage does have something to do with this item because, as our Barry Punzal reported, he was among the big winners in the sixth American Riviera Classic of Santa Barbara, a USA Pickleball-sanctioned tournament held recently at the Santa Barbara Municipal Tennis & Pickleball Center.
The tournament drew a field of 280 players.
Savage, a 46-year-old Los Angeles resident who started playing the sport during the COVID-19 pandemic, won a gold medal in men’s doubles with his pickleball partner, Ryan Anderson, also of Los Angeles.
Barry has the full list of winners and medalists, which also includes my good friend, gold medalist Clark Stirling, and his doubles partner, Joe Lambert of Solvang.
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Good Reads
Here are a half-dozen other stories worth your time, too:
» Santa Barbara’s Inspiration Point Trail Reopening for Memorial Day Weekend — Just in time for the long holiday weekend, managing editor Giana Magnoli spreads some inspiration for outdoor enthusiasts.
» Heading Out for a Hike? Follow These Safety Tips While On the Trail — After last week’s widely read story on the rattlesnake-bit hiker, staff writer Serena Guentz packs in the safety tips for your next trail excursion.
» Headless Alabama Body Identified as Long-Missing Santa Barbara Man — Giana brings home a cold case murder involving a 20-year-old Santa Barbara man whose mutilated body was found 26 years ago in Alabama. Now the hunt is on for his killers.
» Laurie Jervis: Santa Maria’s Historic Bien Nacido Vineyard Opens On-site Tasting Room — Wine columnist Laurie Jervis visits Miller Family Wines’ new Bien Nacido Vineyard tasting room at the storied Rancho Tepusquet east of Santa Maria. She says you should, too.
» Mark Patton: Spirit Of 1983’s ‘Gauchos On Fire’ Still Burns Within UCSB Baseball — Sports columnist Mark Patton takes one of his patented strolls down memory lane to one of the most exciting eras in UC Santa Barbara baseball history.
» Santa Barbara Athletic Round Table Honors Prep, College Athletes, Coaches of Year — Sports editor Barry Punzal wraps up another banner year for the Santa Barbara Athletic Round Table at its Evening with the Athletes awards ceremony.
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Last Year on Noozhawk
What was our most-read story this time last year? San Marcos High School Student Identified as Victim Who Died After Trail Rescue.
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Bill Macfadyen’s Story of the Week
But it’s for the environment: How Solar Farms Took Over the California Desert.
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Here’s What I’m Up To
- June 2 — I’m honored to be participating again in the annual sixth-grade exit interviews at Mountain View School in Goleta. This is one of my favorite things I get to do as Noozhawk’s publisher, and the school’s Cougar cubs are always inspiring.
- June 2 — Speaking to the Rotary Club of Santa Barbara. HT to my friend, Steve Baker, for the invitation.
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Best of Bill’s Instagram
It was a spectacularly beautiful day to celebrate Santa Barbara County’s ranching and agricultural heritage at the 113th Society of Los Alamos Picnic on the Chamberlin Ranch near Los Olivos. My Instagram feed provides the pictures.
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Watch It
These coyote pup stars make the most of their close-ups. HT to Best of Bill reader Brooke McCarthy.
