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Another out-of-state organization has advertised its intentions to establish some kind of a local presence in Santa Barbara County with remote oversight and direction from elsewhere in Southern California.
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According to our WordPress analytics, Noozhawk had an audience of 142,049 readers this past week.
What follows is my own take on the Top Five most-read stories over that period, as tracked by our Google Analytics.
In case you don’t know, this is my opinion column, which I write in my civic capacity as Noozhawk’s publisher. It is not a news story and I am not a reporter.
1. Driver Dies of Injuries After Train Hit Diesel Tanker Truck in Santa Maria Valley
A tanker truck driver died of his injuries Oct. 1 after an Amtrak passenger train slammed into his big rig at an uncontrolled railroad crossing near Guadalupe.
Our Giana Magnoli reported that Highway 1 was closed between Brown Road and West Main Street for more than 24 hours while crews worked to clean up the spilled diesel fuel and Caltrans made emergency repairs to the nearby roadway.
Authorities say approximately 3,500 gallons of the tanker’s diesel cargo spilled across a wide swath of ground and splashed all over the train.
As Giana previously reported, the northbound Coast Starlight train — with about 260 passengers and crew aboard — struck the truck around 4:15 p.m. Oct. 1 as it crossed the Union Pacific tracks on a dirt road leading to an agricultural field about 1½ miles south of Guadalupe.
The impact obliterated the truck and trailer, which rolled onto its side, rupturing the tank and spilling diesel fuel onto the road, tracks and nearby farmland.
Although the marked “Private RR Crossing” has stop signs on each side of the tracks, there are no lights or railroad crossing arms to warn of approaching trains.
California Highway Patrol Officer Maria Barriga said the truck driver was transported by American Medical Response ambulance to Marian Regional Medical Center in Santa Maria, but he later died of his injuries.
On Oct. 2, the Santa Barbara County sheriff’s Coroner’s Bureau identified the driver as 58-year-old Santiago Saucedo Sr. of Santa Maria.
Three train passengers were taken to the hospital with minor injuries, county fire Capt. Scott Safechuck said.
He said a hazardous materials crew was dispatched to clean up the mess.
The California Department of Fish & Wildlife reported the fuel was contained near the tracks and did not reach waterways, with no visibly oiled wildlife observed.
Amtrak canceled the train’s service between Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo, and arranged for buses to ferry passengers past the no-go area. The Coast Starlight runs between Los Angeles and Seattle.
The CHP is investigating the circumstances of the wreck.
The tragedy is the latest in several train-vehicle collisions at crossings in the vicinity in recent years, including a 2018 incident when an Amtrak train hit a fertilizer tanker at the exact same location.
2. BizHawk: Madam Lu Chinese Restaurant Closing; Sando Truck Backs Out of Goleta
Our Josh Molina had a couple of scoops in his Sept. 25 BizHawk column.
Madam Lu, a Chinese restaurant with a “down-home taste,” has closed after 27 years in Santa Barbara.
Founded by Taiwan-born chef Mei-Jung Lu Gaffney, the restaurant at 3524 State St. built a loyal following for its “country-style Chinese cooking,” friendly service and family staff.
Now, Gaffney says, retirement awaits.
In Goleta, The Sando Truck has abruptly closed after just two months at the Target Shopping Center, at 259 Storke Road.
In a statement thanking customers for their support, owner Nick Gillio called it a difficult decision driven by “circumstances beyond our control.”
He said the truck — known for crisp chicken and pork katsu sandos inspired by family visits to Japan — is cooking up a menu of future pop-up appearances.
3. Santa Barbara Man Convicted of Murder, Assault in Toddler’s Death
After deliberating less than a day, a Santa Barbara County Superior Court jury found 27-year-old Elvis Alberto Lopez guilty of first-degree murder in the death of 3-year-old Mila Solis, the daughter of his then-girlfriend.
Our Daniel Green reported that Lopez — who was “babysitting” Mila at the time of her death — was convicted Oct. 1 on all six criminal counts, including murder, assault on a child causing death, and corporal injury to a child.
Mila died from internal injuries and a severed spine on Feb. 4, 2023.
Prosecutors presented evidence demonstrating that her death resulted from an “intentional, violent blow to her back” following months of physical abuse.
Coroner’s Bureau pathologist Manuel Montez testified that Mila died from blood loss after a fractured spinal cord punctured her aorta.
He described the injury as comparable to a massive fall or a car crash.
With a straight face, the defense argued that the girl fell from a bed while she and Lopez were sleeping.
Lopez faces a maximum sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole at his Dec. 4 sentencing hearing. He remains in custody in County Jail.
“Mila was a bright, loving little girl, full of life and promise,” Chief Deputy District Attorney Jennifer Karapetian said after the verdict.
“While nothing can bring her back, this verdict ensures the defendant is held accountable for the violent actions that ended her life.”
Rest in peace, Mila.
4. Size of Proposed Paseo Nuevo Housing Projects Sparks Concerns
Santa Barbara’s Historic Landmarks Commission delivered a blunt message to developers proposing to transform Paseo Nuevo into housing: The project is too big.
As our Josh Molina reported, the revised plan calls for demolishing the long-vacant Macy’s building to construct a seven-story, 233-unit, market-rate apartment building stretching the entire first block of West Ortega Street between State and Chapala streets.
A separate, six-story affordable housing building with 85 units would be built two blocks away up Chapala Street, replacing the northern section of city Parking Lot 2 next to the Canary Hotel.
“I want to know what happened to the 60-foot height limit that is in our charter,” commissioner and former Mayor Sheila Lodge said, referring to the City Charter.
“This is 75 feet, a block long. It is huge.”
The developer, Paseo Propco LLC, is using California’s density bonus law to exceed local height restrictions by including affordable housing.
The City of Santa Barbara owns the land but fears that AB Commercial, an entity of AllianceBernstein, the Nashville-based global investment company that owns the mall’s long-term leases, will abandon the deal without height concessions.
City officials are offering major incentives, including giving away land valued between $32 million and $39 million and not enforcing the charter’s height limit.
Assistant City Attorney Dan Hentschke said the existing mall configuration is uneconomic, with AB Commercial controlling the lease for 40 more years.
The proposal heads to the City Council on Dec. 2 for a development agreement.
5. Former UCSB Student on Trial for Allegedly Assaulting 6 Women
A criminal trial began Sept. 29 in Santa Barbara County Superior Court for 23-year-old Arian Eteghaei, who faces a boatload of felony charges connected to alleged sexual assaults on six women.
As our Rebecca Caraway reported, the charges include forcible rape, attempted rape, sexual penetration by foreign object, forcible oral copulation, false imprisonment and battery.
Eteghaei, a 2020-2021 UC Santa Barbara freshman from Dublin in Alameda County, was arrested in August 2021 after three women reported assaults.
Three additional women came forward during the investigation.
Deputy District Attorney Lauren Franco told jurors that one victim, identified as Jane Doe H.O.C., dated Eteghaei from October 2020 to June 2021.
Franco described an alleged assault on June 8, 2021, after the two argued at a party where Doe H.O.C. learned Eteghaei was cheating on her.
Defense attorney Leonard Levine argued that all interactions were consensual, claiming the women became upset after discovering Eteghaei was sleeping with multiple people.
Levine acknowledged his client was unfaithful and “someone you would call an asshole,” but denied criminal conduct.
The jury of 10 men and two women will hear testimony from Eteghaei later in the trial. Doe H.O.C. continues her testimony on Oct. 3.
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Good Reads
Here are six more stories that are worth your read:
» Author Ashleigh Brilliant of Santa Barbara, 1933-2025 — My friend, Stacey Wright, has the last word on an eccentric, incomparable author. As crazy as Ashley Brilliant drove me and as corny as I used to think his renowned “Pot Shots” were when we published them in the old daily newspaper a hundred years ago, I eventually realized that just about every one of his haiku-length bon mots stood the test of time. Not only was that a remarkable talent, it was an astounding achievement for such a prolific writer. May Ash rest in a leaf blower-less peace.
» County Proposes Changes to Zoning Ordinance to Clear the Way for More Housing — Staff writer Daniel Green has an update on Santa Barbara County’s quest for more housing.
» Newly Restored San Ysidro Trail, Old Romero Road Reopen to Hikers — Staff writer Nick Forselles takes a hike on a couple of newly reopened Montecito trails, which underwent a year of storm repairs.
» It’s Game On as Game Seeker Store Scores New Spot on State Street — South County editor Josh Molina follows the next move for the Game Seeker store, which has been seeking a new home for several months.
» Judy Foreman: Susan Bridges Brings ‘Inside Heaven’s Gate’ Home to Santa Barbara — If you’re a fan of the epic Western, Heaven’s Gate, you’ll enjoy 93108 columnist Judy Foreman’s account of Susan Bridges’ rarely seen, behind-the-scenes photographs.
» Dos Pueblos High School Mock Trial Team Defends Championship Title at Empire Philly — Lucas Trexler of The Charger Account is on the case of the Dos Pueblos High mock trial team.
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Last Year on Noozhawk
What was our most-read story this time last year? 1 Person Killed in Fiery Crash on Highway 154 Near Lake Cachuma.
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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.
Oct. 6 — Thanks to my uncle, Don Macfadyen, I’ll be sharing Noozhawk’s North County expansion plans with the Santa Ynez Valley Men’s Forum. It pays to have connections.
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Bill Macfadyen’s Story of the Week
Not the sharpest tool in the shed, I’m sure he was just searching for a solution to the bass-ackward insurance debacle he’s saddled Californians with: State Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara’s Taxpayer-Funded Travel, Security Raise Questions.
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Best of Bill’s Instagram
Los Alamos Old Days parade and the defending World Champion Los Angeles @dodgers take over my Instagram feed this past week.
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Watch It
Cat videos are now out of this world.
