You know it’s a big week of news when reports of a pending royal flush are little more than a footnote.
It’s also been a long one, as you’re about to read, so let’s jump right in.
According to our WordPress analytics, Noozhawk drew an audience of 151,115 readers this past week.
What follows is my own take on the Top 5 stories you were reading during that span, as tracked by our Google Analytics.
You should also know that this is my opinion column, not a news story, and I write it in my civic capacity as Noozhawk’s publisher.
1. Fire Destroys Multifamily Residence in Santa Barbara; 10 People Displaced
A spectacular predawn fire tore through a multifamily residence on Santa Barbara’s Lower Eastside on Aug. 16, collapsing the roof, damaging four cars and displacing 10 people who lost nearly everything they owned.
Santa Barbara fire Battalion Chief Cory Cloud told our Evelyn Spence that crews were dispatched around 5:20 a.m. to 316 N. Alisos St., between East Gutierrez and East Montecito streets, a half-block from Trader Joe’s.
He said the single-story wood structure was already engulfed in flames when firefighters arrived less than four minutes later.
All the occupants got out, but one apparently went back inside and burned his arm.
Firefighters, including crews from the Carpinteria-Summerland and Montecito fire departments, had the flames out within 30 minutes but remained on the scene for several hours as they mopped up.
Our Peter Hartmann, who arrived just after emergency personnel, said the structure’s roof collapsed in the blaze.
Four cars parked next to the structure also caught fire and were heavily damaged or destroyed.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation, Battalion Chief-Fire Marshal Ryan DiGuilio said Aug. 19.
Adriana Aguirre Salcedo told our Pricila Flores that her brother, Eduardo Gallo, suffered second-degree burns on his right arm and was receiving treatment at UCLA Health’s burn center in Los Angeles.
Their mother, Maria Salcedo, also lived in the residence and managed the property on behalf of the owner, Aguirre Salcedo added.
She said her brother heard “something short-circuiting” around the kitchen and living room area, where he sleeps, and that it “sounded like a little explosion” before fire appeared.
Gallo tried to put out the flames but, Aguirre Salcedo said, “when he realized he wasn’t going to be able to do that, he started knocking on everyone’s door to get out of the house.”
The American Red Cross of the Pacific Coast is assisting the displaced families with temporary housing.
Neighbors are rallying to support them, too.
Norma and Sebastian Aldana stopped by, saw two ash-covered men sitting on the sidewalk “in shock” and, without hesitation, invited them to breakfast at nearby Milpas Taqueria.
There they learned about their plight, gave them laundry detergent to wash their clothes, and resolved to do more. Within hours, they and other neighbors had launched a donation drive.
“We were looky-loos, and then we became doers,” Norma Aldana told Pricila. “Sometimes you don’t have to think, you just have to act.”
They are requesting adult men’s and women’s clothing, shoes, toddler necessities, toiletries, gift cards for food and groceries, and luggage to pack belongings.
Donations have poured in from the community, as well as from Catholic Charities of Santa Barbara County and the Red Cross. Click here for more information on how, what and where to make a donation.
2. Media and Military Members Held at Gunpoint at Vandenberg Space Force Base Despite Escort, Invitation
When you’re as old as I am, few things in journalism astonish me anymore. And then there was Monday.
As our Janene Scully reported, an alarming breakdown in communication among Vandenberg Space Force Base security personnel led to an even more alarming incident in which Janene, our North County editor, staff writer Jack Dindia and three other journalists were held at gunpoint at the base entrance.
The two uniformed Vandenberg public affairs staffers accompanying them were handcuffed while the media crew — which included reporters from KEYT News, KSBY and the Santa Maria Times/Lompoc Record — was ordered to sit on a curb.
But I’ve jumped ahead of the Aug. 17 story.
Janene, who has covered Vandenberg for decades, and her colleagues were invited — yes, invited — by the base to attend a groundbreaking ceremony for a new training center.
Bearing the proper VSFB-issued credentials and with a VSFB-authorized escort, the media convoy had cleared the base’s main gate and was following a government minivan carrying uniformed public affairs personnel when security forces reportedly received a report of “gate runners.”
A phalanx of officers from the 30th Security Forces Squadron converged on the scene, blocking California Boulevard while steel barricades popped up to prevent further access.
With firearms drawn, they ordered everyone to, one by one, exit the vehicles with their hands in the air.
Vandenberg acknowledged a “breakdown in communication,” saying movement in the convoy apparently continued before the entry verification process was completed.
It took the security forces about a half-hour to sort things out, which caused the media to miss the event they had been asked to cover.
Our editor in chief, Tom Bolton, called the incident “a failure on multiple levels” and said the affected journalists were owed apologies.
It was a concise and entirely reasonable statement of facts. After national media picked up the story, however, courageous keyboard warriors were quick to launch an attack … on us.
From “weak-ass punks” to “suck it up,” my favorite response came from a guy who said we should keep our mouths shut and that our obvious attempt to “paint security forces in a bad light is disgraceful and disgusting.”
Then, adding a crucial detail that seems too good to be true, he shared, “I personally have put a base commander on his face in the mud while serving as a United States Marine purely because he failed to properly identify himself.”
I tried looking him up in the Marine Corps Muster Rolls, but couldn’t find any trace of his name.
Meanwhile, back at the base, an actual commander, Col. James Horne, head of Space Launch Delta 30, agreed with Tom.
In a meeting with Tom, Janene and me on Aug. 20, he explained how the process broke down but why security forces responded the way they did, discussed what the base was doing to review and rectify, and promised to ensure there would not be a repeat.
Horne was joined by Chief Master Sgt. Shannan Sanchez and Jennifer Green-Lanchoney, the Space Launch Delta 30 public affairs chief.
We very much appreciate how forthright and chastened they were, and Noozhawk considers the matter closed.
Vandenberg Space Force Base is a growing component of Santa Barbara County’s economy. Yet it’s got one significant drawback that no other local organization has: It’s an active-duty military base.
Juggling national security obligations with civilian economic development opportunities is a 24/7 challenge, and I don’t envy the responsibility.
But the next time Noozhawk journalists are invited on base, I expect VSFB personnel to be fully informed of and trained for their presence.
3. State Lists Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital as One of 7 ‘High-Cost Outliers’
State regulators are putting new pressure on Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital to curb healthcare spending after identifying it as one of California’s seven “high-cost outlier” hospitals.
As our Jack Dindia reported, the state Office of Healthcare Accountability is proposing annual spending-growth limits of 1.6% to 1.8% through 2029 for the designated hospitals, compared with statewide targets of 3% to 3.5%.
All but one of the hospitals are in coastal counties with some of the highest costs of living in California.
Cottage Health president and CEO Scott Wester said the nonprofit hospital system is committed to improving efficiency and affordability while maintaining access to care, particularly for vulnerable patients.
“We recognize the way healthcare is financed in this country,” he told Jack. “It doesn’t make a lot of sense in which you have governmental payers that don’t pay according to the true cost, which then drives up the self-insured and the employer-based (costs).
“That’s been going on for decades.”
Wester acknowledged the added expense of operating in Santa Barbara County but said “we’re not ashamed of the work we do and the access we provide for people who need us most, especially at their time of most difficult challenges.”
Senior vice president and CFO Matt Morgan said Cottage — which owns and operates the Santa Barbara, Goleta Valley and Santa Ynez Valley Cottage hospitals and other medical clinics, facilities and services in the county — is continuously reviewing costs throughout the 5,000-employee organization.
State data show Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital’s costs are about 305% of Medicare reimbursement for comparable services.
But hospital officials note that Cottage also provides substantial unreimbursed care and financial assistance, which can cover all costs for residents with a household income less than $165,000.
In 2025 alone, the charity-care program provided $65 million in aid to families facing medical crises.
“If your household makes $165,000 or less … we’re here for you, and we’ll provide care for you,” Morgan said. “This is how you access that … under our charity-care provision.
“That’s what community hospitals do.”
4. Exotic-Car Drivers Cited for Traveling 115 mph in Santa Barbara County
Last week’s Best of Bill top story still had gas left in the tank from Monterey Car Week and the speedsters not fast enough to elude a California Highway Patrol dragnet in Santa Barbara County.
5. BizHawk: Santa Ynez Chef Offers a Taste of Italy with New Montecito Restaurant
Montecito diners have a new destination for Italian food, with Ancora Osteria open at last in the former Via Vai space in the Upper Village.
As our Rebecca Caraway reported, chef Luca Crestanelli has opened the restaurant at 1483 East Valley Road with a menu featuring pastas, pizzas, salads, ribeye, fish, pork chops and roasted vegetables.
Crestanelli, known for his S.Y. Kitchen in Santa Ynez, describes Ancora as an approachable restaurant with an emphasis on quality ingredients, generous portions and seasonal dishes.
“I see the restaurant for all moments of life,” he said. “You can come for lunch right after the beach in your shorts and flip-flops and a T-shirt, or you can come for an important event and dress it up or dress it down.
“That’s kind of what we’re selling — welcoming all moments of life.”
The location carries personal significance for Crestanelli: Via Vai was where he ate his first Santa Barbara meal nearly 20 years ago.
Ancora currently serves dinner from 5 to 9 p.m. Thursday through Monday, with plans to eventually add lunch, brunch and daily service. Email hello@ancoraosteria.com to make reservations.
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Good Reads
Don’t miss these six stories:
» Fire Near Los Alamos Reaches 70% Containment; Cause Under Investigation — North County editor Janene Scully has the latest on the Drum Fire, burning only about 1½ miles up Drum Canyon from my eventual home at Los Alamos Cemetery.
» Yardi’s Plans to Turn Paseo Nuevo Space Into HQ Deemed ‘Immensely Supportable’ — Staff writer Rebecca Caraway is tracking the building support for the resurrection of a cornerstone of downtown Santa Barbara.
» Santa Barbara County Churches Eliminate $13.1 Million in Medical Debt for Local Residents — Staff writer Jack Dindia follows a coalition of North County churches living out Matthew 25:40-45.
» Ray Ford: Remembering the 1977 Sycamore Fire — Outdoors columnist Ray Ford recounts another frightening wildfire from our past, the 1977 Sycamore Fire, which had one of the most notorious accidental starts ever.
» Candidate Lists Set for Santa Barbara Council and Races Across the County on November Ballot — Executive editor Giana Magnoli fills out your upcoming ballot for the Nov. 3 election.
» Friday Night Lights: Santa Barbara, San Marcos Begin 2026 Campaigns at Home — You’ve read all of sports editor Diego Sandoval’s high school football previews, and now it’s time to kick off the 2026 season for real.
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Last Year on Noozhawk
What was our most-read story this time last year? Dos Pueblos High Attracts Large Number of Student Transfers From Rival Schools.
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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. 29 — I don’t recognize who Scouting America — Los Padres Council is describing, but I’m being honored with the National Outstanding Eagle Scout Award at the annual Salute to Scouting celebration at the Santa Barbara Club, #myhomeawayfromhome.
Dec. 10 — Having not learned their lesson from last year, the Channel City Club has invited me back to emcee its Christmas brunch at the Hilton Santa Barbara Beachfront Resort. I’m privileged to do this in honor of my close friend, the late Erin Graffy, the club’s longtime host.
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Bill Macfadyen’s Story of the Week
Man, I spent a lot of money in high school on cassette tapes of Waylon Jennings, The Eagles and Merle Haggard: Columbia House — Yes, It Still Exists — Is Going Out of Business.
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Best of Bill’s Instagram
My Instagram feed finally discovered @maizpicantetaqueria_sb this past week. The Los Cabos Taco is without a doubt a #bestofbillrecommendation.
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Watch It
This polar bear cub gets his point across. HT to Best of Bill reader Lilou Molin. You’re welcome.
