The City of Santa Barbara has completed removing the damaged home along Las Alturas Road after part of the road collapsed, sending the house sliding down the side of the hill in the Riviera neighborhood.
Work on the area was completed in the early morning of Dec. 30, with construction crews removing the home and the garage. The house was located in the 1030 block of Las Alturas Road and began sliding down the hill last March.
The structure slid down the hill in April after months of rain weakened the ground around the road until it finally collapsed. In May, the two-story home was condemned and had remained on the side of the hill since then.
The Santa Barbara City Council recently voted to approve $1.4 million in funds to remove the home and repair the portion of Las Alturas Road that had collapsed.
The city also approved the construction of a new sewage line to replace the existing one. The line was not damaged in the initial collapse, but the continuous deterioration of the hill damaged the sewage line.
In addition to the removal, construction crews will work to stabilize the hillside to prevent further collapse.
The home belonged to longtime resident Jan Luc, who lived there with her sons. Her late husband built the home in the 1970s.
Due to the home’s condition and safety concerns, Luc and her family were forced to evacuate suddenly and could not retrieve any of their possessions.
Susan Natterstad, who has lived in the Riviera for 10 years, said she used to see one of Luc’s sons walking around the neighborhood. She said that every time she saw him along the road, he would give her a thumbs-up or wave at her.
She said the neighborhood was devastated when they found out what happened to the family.
“It was really sad. This house, their life, was a big part of Las Alturas,” Natterstad said.
She added that since the home couldn’t be saved, she is happy it was removed. She has lived on the Riviera during other natural disasters and says the city needs to make sure the road is safe.
During the removal, crews were able to recover some of the family’s mementos, such as photos.
A GoFundMe was set up by a neighbor to help with the cost of the Luc’s move and expenses. The campaign raised $26,782.