BizHawk is published weekly, and includes items of interest to the business community. Share your business news, including employee announcements and personnel moves, by emailing news@noozhawk.com.
The ice blended mocha will soon be replaced by the mocha frappuccino.
Starbucks is in talks with the City of Santa Barbara to replace the former Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf at 3052 De la Vina St., on the corner of State and De la Vina streets.
The property is fenced off as it moves through the city’s planning process for aesthetic review.
The press team in Seattle for the corporate giant could not comment on the plans for the store.
Starbucks isn’t using a local firm for its permitting process, instead opting for Irvine-based architectural firm GreenbergFarrow.
Proposed changes to the building include new exterior paint and material changes, landscape alterations, ADA upgrades, outdoor seating, and exterior lighting to rebrand.
According to plans submitted to the city, it appears that the leather chairs have been removed in favor of bar seating.
The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf at the site closed last July. It was a popular uptown hangout for residents — an air-conditioned and cozy getaway for many San Roque, Samarkand and outer State Street residents looking to read books and work on their computers. The corner spot was popular with gamers, and small groups often would gather on the soft leather chairs. The spot was also popular with nearby orthopedic clinic workers.
“It is good to have a business move into that location and not have a vacant building for an extended period of time at such a high-profile intersection,” said Councilman Eric Friedman, who frequently attended the Coffee Bean. “However, I do have concerns about potential impacts to local coffee shops just a couple blocks away. Local businesses are an important part of our city overall and the character of this neighborhood. Ultimately, customers will need to continue supporting our local coffee shops to minimize impacts.”
The Daily Grind is a football field away from the new Starbucks.
Something’s Fishy in the Upper Village
Montecito has a new store, Aquatic Jewels and Aquarium Designs.
The store, 1470 East Valley Road, offers a variety of services for fish enthusiasts.
It’s a full-service, saltwater store. It carries coral and performs custom installations.
“We service restaurants, homes, other businesses in the area,” Dottie Allen, one of the owners, said. “Santa Barbara didn’t have an aquarium store, so we opened up one.”
She has served aquariums for more than 30 years, and previously had a store on De la Vina Street.
Radius Moves Into New Office
Radius Group has a new home at 226 E. De la Guerra St., Suite 100 in Santa Barbara.
Envisioned in 2019, the firm has settled into its 5,500-square-foot, single-level office space. Plans also call for 26 new apartment units to be built on the overall property.
“We’ve settled into digs better-suited to provide the top-level service our clients expect,” Radius said in a news release.
Radius was previously on East Carrillo Street.
In addition, broker Rob Hambleton has been promoted to senior vice president.
“We believe success starts with bringing the very best talent to the table,” a news release states. “Rob Hambleton has consistently played a key role in The Radius Team’s success, brokering many of the industry’s highest profile transactions and ranking among the top producers in our market time and again.”
— Noozhawk staff writer Joshua Molina can be reached at jmolina@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.