More than 40 Hawks Club members gathered May 11 for a VotingMatters forum co-hosted by Noozhawk and CalMatters.
Led by executive editor Giana Magnoli and CalMatters partnerships director Dan Hu, the forum covered the June 2 election but focused primarily on the hotly contested governor’s race.
From that, we narrowed the field of 61 candidates — yes, 61 — to the top eight leaders in polling and fundraising: Democrats Xavier Becerra, Matt Mahan, Katie Porter, Tom Steyer, Tony Thurmond and Antonio Villaraigosa and Republicans Chad Bianco and Steve Hilton.
What followed wasn’t partisan cheerleading, cable-news ranting or canned talking points.
Instead, attendees rolled up their sleeves, watched candidate videos, debated affordability and homelessness in small groups, and asked thoughtful questions about voting matters.
Judging by the reaction afterward, the group is desperate not just for information, but for intelligent conversation. Imagine that.
We’re happy to do our part. While we didn’t take a vote or even a straw poll, unofficial results were that our readers overwhelmingly want Noozhawk to hold more of these town halls.
As of now, our next event is a July 23 panel discussion co-hosted with Spotlight Santa Barbara at the Lobero Theatre.
I’ll be moderating the event, “California’s Problems, Santa Barbara’s Choices,” featuring Kristen Miller, president and CEO of the Santa Barbara South Coast Chamber of Commerce; UCLA economics professor and Montecito resident Lee Ohanian; Pete Peterson, dean of Pepperdine University’s School of Public Policy; and former Fresno Mayor Ashley Swearengin.
Click here for our Pricila Flores’ coverage of the May 11 forum. Click here for our Noozhawk Voting Guide and click here for the CalMatters voter guide.
According to our WordPress analytics, Noozhawk had an audience of 143,978 readers this past week.
What follows is my own take on the Top 5 stories you were reading, based on our Google analytics.
Just remember that this is my opinion column. It is not a news story.
1. Suspect Arrested After Police Officer Shot Near Santa Barbara’s La Cumbre Plaza
A transient accused of shooting a Santa Barbara police officer in the head with a pellet gun during a confrontation last week near La Cumbre Plaza has pleaded not guilty to multiple felony charges.
As our Tom Bolton reported, 30-year-old Mitchell Grant Grote was arraigned in Santa Barbara County Superior Court on May 12 on charges that include aggravated mayhem, assault with a deadly weapon on a police officer, battery on a police officer and resisting arrest.
Prosecutors also filed enhancements alleging personal use of a dangerous weapon, causing great bodily injury and prior serious felony convictions.
Supervising Deputy District Attorney Kevin Weichbrod said the aggravated mayhem charge alleges intent to permanently disfigure the victim.
The incident started around 9:50 a.m. May 8 when an SBPD officer attempted to contact Grote near O’Reilly Auto Parts, at 55 S. La Cumbre Road.
Authorities allege he fired multiple rounds from a pellet handgun, striking the officer in the head. The officer returned fire but missed him.
Trailed by a witness with another police officer in pursuit, Grote hightailed it into La Cumbre Plaza, where he briefly barricaded himself in a mall restroom before being arrested after a large police response.
The wounded SBPD officer, who has not been identified, was taken by American Medical Response ambulance to Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital, where she later was released in good condition.
There were no other injuries in the incident.
Prosecutors say Grote was already on felony probation stemming from a 2023 knife attack outside City Hall that also landed him in my Best of Bill column.
Weichbrod said Grote served 2½ years in County Jail for that crime, and court records show he’s had numerous mental-competency hearings in the last three years.
At the time of last week’s confrontation, Grote was the subject of an outstanding arrest warrant over his failure to report to his probation officer, Weichbrod said.
Grote remains jailed without bail and is scheduled to return to court May 26.
2. Police Investigating After Woman Found Dead on East Beach in Santa Barbara
Authorities are still investigating the circumstances surrounding the death of a woman, whose body was discovered on the beach along the Santa Barbara waterfront the evening of May 8.
As our Tom Bolton reported, the woman — described by police Lt. Ryan DeJohn as “middle‑aged” — was found unresponsive on the sand in the 600 block of East Cabrillo Boulevard.
American Medical Response paramedics pronounced her dead at the scene.
Police Cmdr. Charles Katsapis later identified the woman as 46-year-old Vesna Prepolec, a Santa Barbara County resident.
3. Triple-Fatal Crash Last Year on Highway 1 Leads to Multiple Lawsuits
Nearly a year after a horrific Highway 1 crash killed three Dos Pueblos High School students and critically injured a Lompoc doctor and his wife, a complex series of lawsuits is unfolding in Santa Barbara County Superior Court.
As our Janene Scully painstakingly unpacked, the civil actions name multiple parties — including Santa Barbara County, Caltrans, the estate of 18-year-old driver Jake Curtis of Goleta and Dr. Hafez Nasr of Lompoc — with plaintiffs and defendants overlapping in several cases tied to the May 18, 2025, tragedy.
According to the California Highway Patrol, Curtis crossed into oncoming traffic while attempting to pass vehicles on Highway 1 between Lompoc and Gaviota after leaving a county Junior Lifeguard training at remote Jalama Beach.
Curtis’ Toyota Yaris subcompact car collided head-on with Nasr’s Tesla Model 3 sedan, killing Curtis and his two passengers, 17-year-old Michael Ochsner and 15-year-old Alexander Wood, both of Santa Barbara.
Court filings allege the teenage Junior Lifeguard drivers received little or no training regarding transporting County Parks co-workers or traveling in a caravan on the rural highway.
Other lawsuits accuse Caltrans of creating hazardous conditions due to overgrown vegetation and unsafe roadway markings.
Attorneys representing the 54-year-old Nasr and his wife, 53-year-old Saghar Golfpayegani, allege they suffered permanent injuries, including brain trauma and disfigurement.
Other filings accuse Nasr of speeding and reckless driving.
The cases are expected to be consolidated in the coming weeks.
4. Yardi Systems Negotiates with Santa Barbara to Move Headquarters to Downtown Macy’s
A Noozhawk exclusive outlined a major potential shakeup for downtown Santa Barbara with the news that Yardi Systems is negotiating with the city to relocate its headquarters into the old Macy’s building in Paseo Nuevo.
As our Rebecca Caraway reported in her scoop, the proposal — which is still in the early stages — would convert the former department store at 701 State St. into office space for the Old Town Goleta-based real estate software company.
Just as important, the transformation would supplant earlier redevelopment concepts centered on housing.
Any final agreement would require approval from the City Council.
Yardi spokesman Ben Romo confirmed the discussions to Rebecca, and noted that a downtown headquarters could help revitalize the moribund State Street by bringing employees, activity and foot traffic back to the corridor.
He emphasized that the company wants community support before moving forward.
As we’ve reported previously, City Administrator Kelly McAdoo and her team are also in talks with Irvine-based Shopoff Realty Investments about transforming the former Nordstrom building at the other end of the open-air mall.
Using the city’s adaptive reuse ordinance, that plan would convert the three-story building into 112 housing units of various sizes.
The city has been working with AB Commercial, Paseo Nuevo’s owner, on broader redevelopment plans following criticism of an earlier proposal for 209 mostly market-rate apartments at the Macy’s site.
5. Crews Battle Structure Fire in Downtown Santa Barbara
Santa Barbara firefighters quickly knocked down a May 11 structure fire after heavy smoke poured from a duplex near downtown.
As our Tom Bolton and Evelyn Spence reported, crews were dispatched shortly after 2:20 p.m. to the 1200 block of Laguna Street, where dark smoke could be seen rising above the neighborhood.
Battalion Chief Richard Ames said smoke was coming from three sides of the building when firefighters arrived.
Firefighters launched an aggressive attack on the blaze and gained control within a short time.
Nearby homes on both sides of the structure were evacuated as a precaution during the response, according to emergency radio traffic.
No injuries were reported, but Ames said the lower unit of the duplex had heavy damage.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation.
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Good Reads
Here are six more stories you should read:
» Parents of UCSB Student Seek Public’s Help to Find Daughter’s Rapist — Staff writer Rebecca Caraway is digging into the details of an alleged sexual assault at a UC Santa Barbara residence hall and the search for the suspect.
» Rescuers Airlift Injured Hiker from Gaviota Wind Caves Trail — North County editor Janene Scully drops in on a dramatic rescue on the Gaviota coast.
» Santa Barbara Pursues Grant to Improve Castillo Highway Underpass — Rebecca wades into the umpteenth plan to dry out the Castillo Street underpass at Highway 101.
» Sinkhole Creates Hurdle for Santa Barbara High School Track Team — Rebecca continues her infrastructure reporting, but this time with a pretty big hole in her story.
» Renaming Calle Cesar Chavez Makes Headway with 3 Name Suggestions — Staff writer Pricila Flores has the latest on the search for a new name to replace that of disgraced and canceled labor leader César Chávez on Santa Barbara street signs.
» Fire Extinguished on Nonoperational Natural Gas Platform in Santa Barbara Channel — South County editor Evelyn Spence answers an emergency call at a Santa Barbara Channel natural gas platform.
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Last Year on Noozhawk
What was our most-read story this time last year? BizHawk: Rozzi Pizza Brings Slice of New York Life to Santa Barbara.
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What I’m Up To
Although I’m not looking for a free meal, I occasionally do have free time if you’re looking for a speaker for your club, group or organization and want to hear more about Noozhawk. Email me at wmacfadyen@noozhawk.com.
July 23 — In the second event of a series Noozhawk is hosting with Spotlight Santa Barbara, I’ll be moderating a discussion we’re calling “California’s Problems, Santa Barbara’s Choices.”
Our panelists are Kristen Miller, president and CEO of the Santa Barbara South Coast Chamber of Commerce; UCLA economics professor Lee Ohanian; Pete Peterson, dean of Pepperdine University’s School of Public Policy; and former Fresno Mayor Ashley Swearengin.
We’ll be at the Lobero Theatre again so save the date.
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Bill Macfadyen’s Story of the Week
There’s always a whiff of something with this guy: In “Free” Diapers Controversy, Gavin Newsom Under Fire for Multimillion-Dollar Contract Tied to His Wife.
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Best of Bill’s Instagram
The aforementioned VotingMatters forum checks all the boxes in my Instagram feed this past week.
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Watch It
Here’s a look out below, way below, off Big Sur. HT to Best of Bill reader James Mayfield.
