Since our start in 2007, Noozhawk has partnered with Santa Barbara County’s vibrant nonprofit community through our Good for Santa Barbara County section, dedicated to local philanthropy and the impact of donors, volunteers and nonprofit professionals.
Each November, our Giving Tuesday Guide launches the charitable giving season, highlighting local organizations and their missions.
Throughout the year, we provide in-depth coverage of philanthropy and a platform for nonprofits to showcase their work — complete with direct donation links that help fuel their efforts.
A special thank you is due our presenting sponsor, the Santa Barbara Foundation, for making the 2025 edition possible, along with our generous supporting sponsors:
- Lead sponsors: Cancer Foundation of Santa Barbara, Direct Relief, Hillside and the Scholarship Foundation of Santa Barbara
- Sustaining sponsors: Council on Alcoholism & Drug Abuse (CADA), Ensemble Theatre Company, Montecito Bank & Trust
- Patron sponsors: American Red Cross-Pacific Coast, Environmental Defense Center, SEE International, Solvang Friendship House
- Advocate sponsors: Domestic Violence Solutions, Elings Park, Lompoc Hospital District Foundation, Santa Barbara School of Squash
- Supporting sponsors: League of Women Voters of Santa Barbara, NatureTrack Foundation, New House Santa Barbara, Organic Soup Kitchen, St. Francis Foundation of Santa Barbara
This year’s guide — with a record number of nonprofit listings — was produced by Sheridan Taphorn, our sales and marketing director, along with her team of Claudia Delgado, Jasmin Frausto and Justin Souza.
It’s not too late for nonprofits you support to join the guide. Email Sheridan at staphorn@noozhawk.com for details.
As we celebrate this season of giving, we’re also reflecting on what makes Santa Barbara County special — including readers like you who value professional local journalism.
Our own Year-End Webathon is underway, and your financial support is essential to sustaining our independent newsroom into 2026.
Every day and night, Noozhawk’s journalists work to bring you the news that matters — from breaking news stories to local government, education, business, sports and obituaries.
We keep our reporting free for everyone, but we rely on your support to make it possible.
Will you make a contribution today?
On behalf of Team Noozhawk, thank you.
This past week, Noozhawk had an audience of 174,673 readers, according to our WordPress analytics.
What follows is my own take on the Top 5 stories you were reading over that period, as tracked by our Google Analytics.
Before we get started, I must remind you that this is my opinion column, not a news story.
1. Saturday Night Rain Hammers Santa Barbara, Trapping People in Vehicles
Who says we don’t have weather?
A sudden, intense downpour the night of Nov. 15 turned parts of downtown Santa Barbara into rushing streams, stranding drivers, flooding major intersections and triggering a burst of emergency calls as firefighters scrambled across the city.
The storm cell hit just after 8 p.m., unleashing fast-rising water that overwhelmed streets from the waterfront to the Lower Eastside to the Mission Street underpass at Highway 101.
Santa Barbara fire Battalion Chief Jon Turner told our Josh Molina that SBFD received about 10 simultaneous calls — a rare surge that included medical emergencies, traffic collisions, roadway flooding and people trapped in their cars.
One woman was unable to escape her car as water rose around her in the 500 block of Salsipuedes Street near Ortega Park. Firefighters waded in to help her out.
Four cars were stranded at East Cota and Salsipuedes streets, where an entire block in each direction flooded.
Other storm high-water marks included:
- Mission Street underpass and southbound Highway 101 entrance and exit ramps closed due to flooding
- Cota and Laguna streets intersection submerged
- Cacique Street flooded between Nopalitos and Quarantina streets
- Rock and debris blocked Las Tunas Road and West Mountain Drive
And that was just from a few hours during one night of the four-day storm, which our Daniel Green reported has been the wettest start to the rainy season since Santa Barbara County began keeping track back in 1899.
The week’s rainfall totals — including the Nov. 20 storm — were almost off the charts:
- San Marcos Pass: 14.56 inches
- La Cumbre Peak: 12.8 inches
- Doulton Tunnel, Montecito: 12.79 inches
- Edison Trail, above Carpinteria: 11.94 inches
- Upper Romero Canyon, Montecito: 11.84 inches
- Cold Spring Creek debris basin, Montecito: 10.89 inches
- Tecolote Canyon, west of Goleta: 10.84 inches
- Stanwood Fire Station, Santa Barbara: 10.11 inches
- Downtown Santa Barbara: 9.11 inches
- Refugio Pass: 9.06 inches
- Montecito: 9.05 inches
- Santa Barbara City College: 8.24 inches
- Goleta: 7.42 inches
- Carpinteria: 6.85 inches
- Lake Cachuma: 6.09 inches
- Santa Ynez: 5.4 inches
- Solvang: 4.7 inches
- Los Olivos: 4.39 inches
- Buellton: 3.72 inches
- Santa Maria: 3.34 inches
- Point Conception: 3.11 inches
- Los Alamos: 2.97 inches
- Orcutt: 2.9 inches
- Lompoc: 2.58 inches
- Guadalupe: 2.48 inches
The worst of the weather brought out the best from our reporters, with Josh, Daniel, Tom Bolton, Giana Magnoli, Rebecca Caraway, Pricila Flores and Janene Scully all covering multiple aspects of the storm throughout the week.
Six of their stories were in the most-read Top 10, with three of them in the Top 5.
Here are all of their storm stories:
- Santa Barbara Records Wettest Start to Rainy Season in More Than a Century
- Local Reservoirs Near Pre-Storm Levels Despite Heavy Rain
- Saturday Night Rain Hammers Santa Barbara, Trapping People in Vehicles
- Santa Barbara Deals With More Flooding From Record Rainfall
- SCE Power Outages, Roadway Flooding Reported in Santa Barbara
- Rain Continues as New Week Begins, Adding to Impressive Storm Totals
- Santa Barbara County Gears Up for More Heavy Rain Through Weekend
- Storm Soaks Santa Barbara County Overnight, With More to Come
- NWS Forecasts More Rain Possible Thursday for Santa Barbara County
2. $7.8 Million Home Purchased for New UCSB Chancellor
UC Santa Barbara’s new chancellor, Dennis Assanis, has certainly grabbed readers’ attention with his newly purchased $7.8 million Hope Ranch home — a story our Rebecca Caraway broke last week.
The 5,900-square-foot house at 4672 Via Roblada, about nine miles from campus, replaces two aging, maintenance-deferred, university-owned residences that an independent engineering assessment in March estimated would require $8.4 million in renovations over the next two years.
University of California officials now say the prime one-acre site across from the Santa Cruz Residence Hall could instead be redeveloped for student housing.
Their argument is that the nearly two-acre Hope Ranch property will appreciate in Santa Barbara’s high-end real estate market.
That’s likely true, but the six-bedroom, 6½-bathroom house — generously billed as a “French country manor” — is itself pretty dated and uninteresting.
I don’t mean to sound condescending, but … that’s the best UCSB could do for $7.8 million?
Then again, “pretty dated and uninteresting” describes much of UCSB’s campus architecture so maybe it’s a perfect fit.
Beyond the aesthetics, the real community debate has been about funding.
UC officials assured Rebecca that the house was purchased through donor-backed external financing, with no state money or tuition dollars involved.
Assanis, who started Sept. 1, has been living in temporary housing since moving here from Delaware.
3. Santa Barbara’s Top Boss to Get $40,000 Pay, Compensation Increase Annually
Santa Barbara City Administrator Kelly McAdoo will be getting a $40,000 increase in pay and benefits, bringing her total compensation to more than $430,000 annually.
On a 4-1 vote, the City Council on Nov. 18 approved the boost, with Councilwoman Wendy Santamaria abstaining and Mayor Randy Rowse and Councilman Mike Jordan absent.
As our Josh Molina reported, the raise includes a $15,670 salary increase, putting her annual salary at $353,576, plus $24,000 in deferred compensation contributions.
That deferred compensation will be invested in a retirement plan separate from CalPERS, the under-performing state pension fund for public employees.
Daylight from the beleaguered CalPERS is a good thing for McAdoo and beleaguered taxpayers, given its mysterious $330 million loss in a green energy scheme that surfaced last month.
But I digress.
McAdoo, hired in February 2024 from the City of Hayward, also receives a $41,076 housing allowance for her first 36 months and a $9,060 annual car allowance.
“This adjustment aligns the position with current market conditions,” according to a staff report.
Councilman Eric Friedman praised McAdoo’s performance following a comprehensive 360-degree evaluation.
“She is doing a great job,” he said, citing her expertise handling major issues.
The raise, however, comes as the city faces projected multimillion-dollar budget shortfalls and significant staff turnover.
The city also has shelled out nearly $800,000 in settlement agreements for two departed department heads, former library director Jessica Cadiente and former public works director Cliff Maurer.
4. Plenty on Bell Restaurant Faces Eviction Lawsuit in Los Alamos
The owners of Plenty on Bell, a mainstay Los Alamos restaurant, are fighting an eviction lawsuit filed by their new landlord, who accuses them of unpaid rent, neglect and multiple lease violations totaling more than $85,000.
As our Nick Forselles reported, Rowles Holdings LLC — owned by Noah Rowles, who purchased the historic 508 Bell St. building in March — filed the unlawful detainer case on Oct. 27 in Santa Barbara County Superior Court.
The lawsuit, which was obtained and reviewed by Noozhawk, followed September notices demanding payment and that the 10-year tenants vacate the property.
The complaint alleges that the restaurant’s owners — chef Jesper Johansson and author Christine Gallagher — failed to maintain required insurance, denied access to contractors and refused to pay more than $55,000 in repair charges.
Gallagher disputed the claims, calling them “unreasonable demands” raised only after the sale.
She said Plenty has maintained State Farm insurance since 2015, with the only issue involving a small deductible adjustment.
She also argued that Rowles is seeking repairs identified in his own purchase inspection report, not problems covered under Plenty’s lease.
The lawsuit also challenges a lease extension through September 2027, signed by the previous landlord, Sean McGrath, before his 2024 death.
In the suit, Rowles — a Los Angeles high-tech entrepreneur-turned-winemaker and owner of Dovecote Estate Winery in Los Alamos — called the lease extension conditional and invalid because of alleged tenant defaults.
Gallagher said rising legal costs have forced the duo to accept community support.
A Nov. 16 fundraiser drew a packed crowd of fiercely loyal locals … and me, a longtime Plenty on Bell customer and big-time fan of Johansson’s, as my Instagram #bestofbillrecommendation posts will attest.
5. Protesters Clash with Federal Agents During Raid Near Santa Maria
Federal agents arrested four people — three undocumented individuals from Mexico and one U.S. citizen — in the Santa Maria Valley on Nov. 13 in a case involving alleged visa and labor contract fraud, according to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials.
As our Pricila Flores reported, Homeland Security Department investigators led the operation east of Santa Maria, where labor recruiter Jorge Vasquez is accused of scamming H-2A visa agricultural workers at JJB Farm LLC and elsewhere.
Federal authorities allege Vasquez charged illegal fees, took money from workers’ wages and threatened violence — including reporting them to immigration officials — if they fell behind on payments or productivity.
During the operation, witnesses reported that 10 to 15 anti-ICE protesters were detained after clashing with law enforcement officers near Telephone Road and Cambridge Way, east of Santa Maria.
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Good Reads
Here are six more stories you should read:
» Paseo Nuevo Developers Now Have Option Not to Build 80 Affordable Units — South County editor Josh Molina uncovers an interesting twist in the repurposing of Santa Barbara’s Paseo Nuevo.
» Santa Ynez Cheers Return of Fat Albert, Stolen Beloved Black Cat — North County editor, and cat woman, Janene Scully shares the happy ending for a Santa Ynez coffee shop’s stolen feline.
» Father Ordered to Stand Trial for Crash that Killed His Daughters — Janene is in court at the preliminary hearing for a New Cuyama man charged in a horrific 2024 wreck near Lompoc that killed his two daughters, 3-year-old Stella Hernandez and 7-month-old Luna Hernandez.
» DA Charges Lompoc Councilman With Forgery, Grand Theft of City Funds — Janene reports on felony charges the Santa Barbara County District Attorney’s Office has filed against Lompoc City Councilman Steve Bridge.
» Review Board Approves Plans for World War II Santa Barbara Airport Hangar — The relocation and rehabilitation of a vintage Santa Barbara Airport hangar are on staff writer Rebecca Caraway’s radar.
» Mark Patton: Having a Ball is Kids’ Play, by St. George, at the World Senior Games — Sports columnist Mark Patton and his softball team came up short at the Huntsman World Senior Games, but another Santa Barbaran, Dr. Steve Zelko, and his volleyball mates struck gold.
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Last Year on Noozhawk
What was our most-read story this time last year? Conflict Erupts at Santa Barbara School Board Meeting Over Evangelical Club.
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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.
Dec. 11 — The Channel City Club has asked me to emcee its Christmas brunch at the Hilton Santa Barbara Beachfront Resort. I’m honored to be recruited, all the more so because I’m following the giant footsteps of my close friend, the late Erin Graffy.
Feb. 5 — Noozhawk is partnering with Spotlight Santa Barbara on a 2026 speaker series and I’ll be moderating a Q&A with Dan Walters, the legendary gold standard of California political writers. His topic at the Lobero Theatre? California politics — past, present and future. Click here to purchase tickets online.
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Bill Macfadyen’s Story of the Week
My friend and Noozhawk’s insurance agent, John Hawkes, was ahead of his time: Your Next Concert Could be a House Away.
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Best of Bill’s Instagram
Rainbows, @plentyonbell and #thanksgiving pre-gaming are all fueling my Instagram feed this past week.
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Watch It
You probably can’t try this at home, but you definitely shouldn’t try it next to a moving ship carrying more than 100,000 tons of cargo.
