Santa Barbara Independent 1/5/23

Daring

Photos by Macduff Everton

Maria Ressa

How to Stand Up to a Dictator

Thu, Jan 19 / 7:30 PM

UCSB Campbell Hall

Celebrated for her commitment to free expression and democratic government, journalist and Nobel Peace Prize recipient Maria Ressa tells the story of how democracy dies and offers an urgent cry for us to recognize the danger before it is too late.

An Evening with Amor Towles

Thu, Feb 2 / 7:30 PM

UCSB Campbell Hall

Through his evocative, absorbing novels including Rules of Civility, A Gentleman in Moscow and The Lincoln Highway, Amor Towles has become a critical favorite and a popular success.

Monterey Jazz Festival on Tour

Christian Sands, Dee Dee Bridgewater, Kurt Elling, Lakecia Benjamin, Yasushi Nakamura, Clarence Penn

Sun, Jan 29 / 7 PM / UCSB Campbell Hall

Celebrating 65 Years, the illustrious Monterey Jazz Festival sends six of its finest jazz ambassadors – including Grammy-winning vocalists Dee Dee Bridgewater and Kurt Elling – to Santa Barbara as part of its popular touring program.

Pink Martini featuring China Forbes

Cirque FLIP Fabrique

Fri, Feb 3 / 8 PM

/ Granada Theatre Tickets going fast!

“A rollicking around-the-world musical adventure.”– Thomas Lauderdale, bandleader/pianist Elegant, fun and blessed with flawless musicianship, the globetrotting Pink Martini is a perennial Santa Barbara favorite that guarantees an evening of enchanting international entertainment.

Muse

Sun, Feb 5 / 7 PM

Granada Theatre

Canada’s thrilling FLIP Fabrique explores what it means to be your true self in Muse, a refreshing view of contemporary circus that combines breathtaking artistry and athleticism and challenges gender roles.

Kurt Elling

Dee Dee Bridgewater

LIFE SET TO MUSIC operasb.org

Dreams for Dos Pueblos Ranch

“I’m part of the staff of naturalists and experts that lead the daily excursions, as well as give lectures and nightly recaps,” said Everton. “Mary gave a wonderful presentation on making watercolors in the field and fjords and she was painting onboard on this last trip.”

Their trips will continue in 2023 with a coastal New Zealand voyage from Milford Sound to Auckland next month, followed by missions to Scotland, Norway, Iceland, Greenland, and Antarctica.

Zoë Schiffer, Ethan Stewart, Tom Tomorrow, Maggie Yates, John Zant Director of Advertising Sarah Sinclair Marketing and Promotions Manager Emily Lee Advertising Representatives Camille Cimini Fruin, Suzanne Cloutier, Remzi Gokmen, Tonea Songer Digital Marketing Specialist Graham Brown Accounting Administrator Tobi Feldman Office Manager/Legal Advertising Tanya Spears Guiliacci Distribution Scott Kaufman Editorial Interns Ellie Bouwer, Melea Maglalang, Zoha Malik, Sasha Senal, Lola Watts Columnist Emeritus Barney Brantingham Photography Editor Emeritus Paul Wellman Founding Staff Emeriti

Veteran photographer Macduff Everton, who shot this week’s cover story on Dos Pueblos Ranch, and his wife, the renowned artist Mary Heebner, just returned from their latest National Geographic cruise to Patagonia, where he advises passengers on their photography. He first visited in 1994, and, with Heebner, published a bilingual book called Patagonia La Última Esperanza a decade ago.

of the

VOLUNTEER

Volunteers are needed for the county’s annual Point-in-Time Count, which sends teams across the county on a headcount of homeless people. The survey provides a basis for grant funding for housing assistance, access to programs, and selfsufficiency for individuals and families experiencing homelessness. Volunteers can sign up until 1/19 and will receive one hour of training over video conference between 1/16 and 1/20. The Point-in-Time survey takes place 1/25, 5-9 a.m., and is sponsored by the Santa Maria/Santa Barbara County Continuum of Care, County of Santa Barbara, and Santa Barbara Alliance for Community Transformation. Sign up at countyofsb.pointintime.info

Boat Runs Aground at East Beach

Easterly

winds kicking up in advance of Wednesday’s predicted storm were strong enough to drag the Norma Zane’s anchor and fling her onto Santa Barbara’s East Beach early this morning. The Indy’s advertising director Sarah Sinclair happened to be there and captured the scene in photos.

The boat ran aground at around 6:40 a.m., and the Harbor Patrol had arrived by 7:15 a.m., Sinclair said, putting up signs to warn people away from the unstable boat. The gusty winds were blowing the tops off the waves, she noted, though it was calmer in town.

Erik Engebretson, a supervisor with the Harbor Patrol, said no one was on board when the Norma Zane reached the beach. The Harbor Patrol knew who was living aboard, however, and had advised them

ENVIRONMENT

and all the boats at anchor and in the mooring area off Stearns Wharf to come into the harbor. Many often take their chances and remain at sea. Another sailboat ran aground at Butterfly Beach Tuesday. Though the storm due Wednesday and Thursday, after the Indy went to print, is expected to drop so much rain that the potential ground saturation caused emergency managers to send sandbag alerts, the rains over the holidays barely budged the capacity at Lake Cachuma. It stood at 31.9 percent full, putting the reservoir’s acre-feet at 62,361 out of the full 192,000 according to the Bureau of Reclamation. The holiday storm was the county’s ninth, and Santa Barbara was at 52 percent of rain for the water year, which runs August to September.

There Will Be (Bad) Blood

County celebrated New Year’s Day by working to contain an oil spill oozing from an abandoned open-pit oil-mining operation dating back to the 19th century up

Toro Creek high in the foothills overlooking Montecito and Summerland. This year’s drenching winter rains appear to have overwhelmed the carrying capacity of an improvised pipeline and catch-basin created 25 years ago to keep the oil from dribbling

out of that unpluggable pit at a rate of 30 gallons a day and creeping into the nearby creek and washing downstream with the rushing rains.

As of this writing, it remains uncertain just how much oil got into the creek. But reportedly none has been observed south of Highway 192 along Toro Canyon Road.

By Sunday afternoon, teams of first responders representing firefighters from multiple fire agencies, county Public Works employees, and workers with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife were busy digging dams, laying booms to block the flow of oil-soaked water, and laying down reams of oil-absorbent material.

By Tuesday, 50-60 workers would find themselves deployed in the effort. They included a team of specialists dispatched from UC Davis’s veterinary school sent to determine how many fish, birds, frogs, and reptiles may have perished. To date, it’s not clear if any have.

Pacific Petroleum, a company specializing

The city Parks and Recreation Department is seeking volunteers to trim the 1,500 rose bushes populating the Mission Rose Garden as part of its annual Rose Pruning Day on 1/14, 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Volunteers should wear sturdy long-sleeve shirts and pants, as well as sun protection, and come equipped with their own gardening gloves and tools, including hand pruners, loppers, and small handsaws. A demo for novices will be held that morning. The event will be rescheduled to 1/21 in the event of rain. For more info, call (805) 564-5433.

OUTDOORS

Los Padres National Forest fees increased on 1/1, with several S.B. County campgrounds —Fremont, Paradise, Los Prietos, Upper Oso, Nira, Davy Brown, and Figueroa going from $30 a night to $40 a night and the group camp site rate at Sage Hill rising from $125 to $150. Weekend and holiday reservations will also go up $2 per night for FridaySaturday bookings. The Forest Service stated the fees had remained the same since 2016 for the current concessionaire and that the increases were due to rising operational costs from inflation, fuel prices, and wages. Undeveloped campsites in Los Padres remain free to public use, and fees for dayuse sites are unaffected and stay at $10 a day.

COURTS & CRIME

Igor Ortiz, 22, pleaded guilty on 12/28/22 to firstdegree murder in the Cacique Street stabbing death of Alberto Torres on 6/1/19 and an association with the Westside criminal gang, DA Joyce Dudley announced in a press release. Two other adults arrested and charged at the time remain in jail without bail. Torres, 29, was walking home after finishing a shift at a downtown Santa Barbara restaurant. Ortiz, Angel Barajas, Adelain Ibarra, and two other people were driving through the Eastside tagging fences and homes; at the time, prosecutors stated they’d discussed attacking an Eastside gang member. Reportedly, Ortiz and Barajas chased Torres on foot and stabbed him nine times. Ortiz faces 25 years to life in state prison and will be sentenced on 2/8.

Santa Maria man Jaime Angel Gonzalez, 33, died following a possible opioid overdose at the county’s Northern Branch Jail on 12/28/22. According to the the Sheriff’s Office, deputies had gone to Gonzalez’s

Norma Zane ashore on East Beach early Wednesday morning

by RYAN P. CRUZ, CALLIE FAUSEY, TYLER HAYDEN, NICK WELSH, and JEAN YAMAMURA, with INDEPENDENT STAFF

by Nick Welsh

irst responders in Santa Barbara

Jean Yamamura

SARAH

Plans

by Nick Welsh

On August 8, the first handful of people began trickling into the prefabricated tinyhome village located on the 1000 block of Santa Barbara Street. Several months later, the DignityMoves transitional housing project is humming along at full capacity, offering without incident or controversy a room of one’s own to 34 of some of the most chronically homeless and vulnerable individuals on the streets of downtown Santa Barbara.

“You can drive by 100 times a day and not even know we are there,” declared Jack Lorenz of DignityMoves, a nonprofit started by a group of Bay Area entrepreneurs seeking to move the needle when it comes to homelessness. So successful has the downtown project proved in its first few months of operation, Lorenz said at a forum hosted earlier this December by the Women’s Fund of Santa Barbara, that DignityMoves is now embarking on plans to build four more tiny-home communities throughout Santa Barbara County. Translated into the number of units involved, that’s 300.

When all expenses are factored in, Lorenz said, the cost per unit at the Santa Barbara Street village is $50,000. When someone in the forum audience asked Lorenz what she could do to help, he said jokingly, “I could use $18 million.” But, of course, Lorenz wasn’t really joking.

The downtown tiny-homes project has been a collaboration between DignityMoves, the County of Santa Barbara, and Good Samaritan Homeless Shelter, which is responsible for day-to-day management and coordinating the delivery of services. These include mental-health treatment, addiction recovery, health care, and a host of support programs designed to help residents become more self-reliant and transition into more permanent housing.

Each of the tiny homes are 64 square feet and come equipped with heating, air conditioning, and a door that can be locked from both inside and out. Pets are allowed, as are partners, and ancillary storage space is available, but no visitors are allowed.

The plan is that residents will become ready for liftoff after six to 12 months of rest, recuperation, rehabilitation, and preparation. To date, all 34 residents have been made “document ready,” meaning they’ve secured all the necessary identifica-

tion documents necessary to apply for and qualify for housing vouchers and Medi-Cal benefits.

The trick, of course, is locating enough available housing units for the people making the transition. To date, a handful of residents, have, in fact, made that leap. Twenty are receiving mental-health treatment or addiction assistance. Eleven have gotten jobs. Another six were asked to leave.

As Sylvia Barnard, head of Good Samaritan, explained to the Women’s Fund, “Shelter is not enough; outreach is not enough; services are not enough; it’s the entire package.”

The land for the four new villages will be provided gratis, courtesy of Santa Barbara County. The largest proposal is slated for the City of Santa Maria, with more than 90 units. The acreage involved ranges from half an acre to a full acre; they range from vacant fields to vacant lots. Outreach to the surrounding neighborhoods is only now getting underway.

The most expensive component to this equation is not the housing per se but the services directed at the residents. The county has identified $1 million in federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding to help cover some of the service costs and another $1.5 million in federal ARPA money to cover some of the capital costs. (Pipes, plumbing, and electrical hookups are essential.) Recent changes in the costrecovery formulas allowed under Medi-Cal will make a major difference, allowing the federal government to underwrite many of the service and administrative costs. n

VILLAGE HEAD:  Sylvia Barnard is executive director of Good Samaritan, which oversees day-to-day operations at the DignityMoves village.

Photo by Todd Rosenberg Photography

Baby

As people around Santa Barbara partied into the New Year, parents and staff at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital welcomed the first babies of 2023 into the world.

The New Year’s new parents include Goleta residents Por Soua and Grayson Peters, who celebrated the birth of their first child on Sunday.

Their newborn daughter, Rose (pictured), was born at 3:33 a.m. on January 1 at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital. Rose weighed six pounds and was 18.75 inches in length.

Cottage Hospital was quick to share the news, including images of Rose’s parents looking ecstatic to be holding their daughter in their arms on New Year’s Day.

Callie Fausey

NEWS BRIEFS CONT’D FROM P. 6

address on a welfare check at around 7:49 that morning and found him to be in violation of his parole. Gonzalez was arrested, taken to the jail, and later found to be unresponsive in a cell, where he was under observation. He was given naloxone repeatedly and an ambulance was called once he regained consciousness, but he was pronounced dead at the hospital. The in-custody death is under investigation by the sheriff’s Criminal Investigation Bureau and Coroner’s Office.

Former Santa Barbara bail agent Sean Wilczak, 29, was arraigned on 12/30/22 on three felony counts of grand theft for allegedly stealing thousands of dollars from his clients. According to the state Department of Insurance, Wilczak had been illegally operating in Santa Barbara under an unregistered business name, Wolf Bail Bonds, last year when he met with the families of two criminal defendants seeking bail. Wilczak secured the combined total of $25,000 in cash for bail deposits but allegedly failed to post the defendants’ bonds, file bond applications on behalf of either of the defendants, or refund any of the cash payments. The S.B. County DA’s Office is prosecuting the case, and a preliminary hearing setting is scheduled for

A San Luis Obispo woman was critically injured 1/3 near Los Alamos when her Honda Civic veered off Highway 101 and collided with a large oak tree. The crash occurred around 7:12 a.m., according to Officer Michael Griffin, a spokesperson for CHP’s Buellton office, when the 27-year-old woman was driving northbound on the 101 north of State Route 154 at an undetermined speed in cloudy, wet conditions. The woman was extricated from the vehicle and flown to Cottage Hospital with major injuries. Drugs or alcohol do not appear to be a contributing factor in the crash.

CITY

The City of Santa Barbara has a list 1,200 items long of all the trees designated for streets, ranging from the jacarandas on Abigail Lane to the coast live oaks on Wyola Road. Added to the thousands of trees under the care of the city’s urban foresters will be about 200 new trees to be planted along the city’s Eastside and Oak Park neighborhoods this year. Santa Barbara Beautiful donated $20,000 toward greener city blocks, in part through citizen donations for commemorative tree plaques; the nonprofit has donated tree-planting funds to the city for the past 57 years. Full story at independent .com/another-200-trees.

COUNTY

The high-stakes showdown over Santa Barbara County’s exclusive, multimillion-dollar ambulance contract shows no sign of letting up. Following a failed protest to the county’s procurement officer, the new special district representing all the county’s fire districts recently filed yet another administrative appeal challenging a special panel’s recommendations that the contract be awarded to American Medical Response (AMR), which has held the franchise for the past 27 years. The fire district is now petitioning the county to appoint an ad hoc Protest Review Committee to review its allegations that the process to evaluate the competing bids was fatally flawed. Full story at independent.com/ tug-of-war

With most of California now entering the fourth year of drought and the state’s major reservoirs starting to display bathtub rings where water used to be, the Board of Supervisors voted last month to spend $370,000 to dope passing rain clouds with silver iodide to better get every drop of rain possible a longtime practice known as cloud seeding. The money will go to a private contractor North American Weather Consultants which in turn

OIL SPILL

CONT’D FROM P. 6

in oil-spill cleanup, also sent along a vacuum truck with two operators to be on site 24/7 for the duration. Given the intensity of the downpour anticipated this week, that duration could prove to be intense and problematic in the extreme.

This marks the latest of many petrochemical aftershocks emanating from an oil mine drilled a couple of hundred feet into Toro Canyon’s steep hillsides back in the 1880s. As such, it’s been part of an especially complicated environmental shaggy-dog story with much shifting responsibility as to which government agency is on the hot seat for plugging the leak and cleaning up the mess.

The last spill of significance occurred in August 2020, when more than 600 gallons got loose, killing at least 17 birds, 13 bats, and one squirrel. By that time, the County of Santa Barbara had sole responsibility for containing the leak.

In 1997, 3,000 gallons leaked into the creek when a vandal destroyed a prior makeshift effort to separate the oil from the water. At that point, the Environmental Protection Agency asserted its control but subsequently passed it off.

Five years before that, there had been another spill.

In a word, it’s been a mess.

Now it’s just gotten messier still. In the last week of 2022, the Santa Barbara District Attorney’s Office filed legal papers accusing the County Counsel’s office of stonewalling its efforts to investigate the county’s response to the 2020 spill. Specifically, prosecuting attorneys Morgan Lucas and Christopher Dalbey charged the County Counsel’s office with violating the state’s Public Records Act in connection with documents pertaining to the 2020 oil spill that the DA requested and that County Counsel has declined to turn over.

If this isn’t unprecedented in county history, it might as well be.

The DA’s Environmental Protection Unit has been investigating the response to that August 2020 spill by the county’s Public Works Department since it first learned of the spill in July 2021. In September that year, the DA’s Office met with the County Counsel’s office which represents the county in legal matters and submitted a laundry list of documents it needed to determine whether the county’s response was legally adequate and whether criminal or civil charges should be filed in response.

In their pleading, prosecuting attorneys Lucas and Dalbey noted the county was first notified of the prior spill in August 2020. By January 2021, they stated, that leak had reached the creek. But the County waited until July 6, 2021, they concluded, before starting work on repairs.

“The leak continued for nearly a year with very little effort from the County to contain it or to stop it from flowing into Toro Canyon Creek,” they wrote.

Lucas and Dalbey described at length the efforts they say they went through to get the documentation they sought and the delays they encountered. They wanted to know such things as which employees

were charged with maintaining the Oil and Water Separation Unit installed by the EPA and what level of training they’d been given. They wanted to know among many other things whether the Underground Storage Unit was properly permitted and what steps were undertaken to ensure it didn’t leak.

They claimed representatives from the County Counsel’s office initially pledged to provide them all the information they sought and then engaged in repeated delays. Ultimately, many documents were, in fact, turned over, but not nearly as many as they asked for.

Only last November were they officially notified, they said, that they wouldn’t be getting all of it.

Private attorneys hired by the county to provide criminal representation argued that the Public Records Act was an inappropriate vehicle for seeking such information. If the DA wishes to pursue criminal action, attorney Davina Pujari wrote, on December 5, 2022, it should go to a judge with probable cause and get a search warrant.

“The County does not consent to a law enforcement search of its employees’ offices and computers for criminal investigatory purposes,” Pujari wrote.

Citing multiple other exemptions to the Public Records Act, Pujari argued that disclosure of internal communications among key administrators could discourage the candor needed for the job, especially during times of crisis and duress.

Pujari argued that no sanctions whether civil or criminal were warranted. The county assumed control of the site in 2009 when the EPA bowed out. The Regional Water Quality Control Board had helped fund the oil and water separation facility until 2019. That’s roughly two years after the Thomas Fire and the subsequent debris flow effectively destroyed the separator infrastructure. At that point, the county found itself forced to assume both oversight and financial responsibility for the site.

To date, the county has committed to spending $1.5 million on replacing the damaged separator and underground storage tank. To date, it’s also spent more than $200,000 on legal fees and costs associated with providing the information requested by the DA’s office while simultaneously fighting those requests. n

The largest strike in the history of higher education is over. Forty days after 48,000 student employees across all 10 University of California campuses began their statewide strike for better wages and working conditions, the end came late last month with the ratification of new contract agreements for 36,000 graduate student workers, including 17,000 graduate student researchers and more than 19,000 academic student employees (ASEs) such as teaching assistants and tutors. With the strike officially over, many student employees will be returning to their teaching and research once they are back from winter break.

The tentative agreements followed soon after the university and bargaining teams representing graduate student workers entered voluntary mediation on December 9 the same day the two other bargaining teams, postdocs and academic researchers, ratified their contracts. Despite controversy between union members, the two bargaining teams representing graduate student researchers and academic student employees reached tentative agreements with the university on December 16; the vote was then passed on to union membership, who voted to ratify the contracts on December 23.

The terms of the contracts guarantee raises for all graduate student workers, “and up to 80 percent for some of the lowest paid,” according to union representa-

NEWS BRIEFS

tives. According to the UC, “within 90 days of ratification, [teaching assistants] will receive 7.5 percent increases.” Teaching fellows will receive 8.9 percent increases in that time, hourly ASEs will receive 5-8 percent increases, and all ASEs, the UC says, “will be eligible for experience-based increases over the duration of the contracts. … By Oct. 1, 2024, the minimum nine-month salary for TAs with a 50 percent time appointment will be $34,000.”

Graduate student researchers (GSRs) “will see 10 percent increases in the first year of the contract, with 6.4 percent increases in each subsequent year. … By Oct. 1, 2024, the first step on the new, six-point GSR salary scale will be set at $34,564.50 for a 50 percent time appointment.”

The agreements also include improvements in childcare and dependent health care coverage, significant anti-bullying measures, and guaranteed remission for three years of non-resident student tuition.

The two-and-half-year contracts go into effect immediately and will be in place through May 31, 2025.

With the contract ratification and the end of the strike, all Unfair Labor Practices filed against the university for their allegedly unlawful behavior during bargaining will be cured, and related legal disputes between the two parties will be resolved.

Full story at independent.com/uc-strikeends Callie Fausey

CONT’D FROM P. 8

will launch the silver iodide into fertile cloud formations over the next three months, either by dropping it out of airplanes or launching flares from ground-based locations. Full story at independent .com/every-cloud.

NATIONAL

Last week, President Biden signed the Federal Firefighters Fairness Act, a bill sponsored by Congressmember Salud Carbajal that acknowledges the serious diseases that firefighters face. “Federal firefighters have been on the front lines in California fighting wildfires as we experience longer and more extreme fire seasons, but their threshold to prove work-related illness is much higher than their state or local counterparts here in California and around the nation,” Carbajal said in a press release. The law allows federal firefighters the presumption that their illness is due to their work, rather than making them prove when and where an exposure occurred

to qualify for workers’ comp or disability benefits. Full story at independent.com/federal-firefighters

WORLD

S.B.-based nonprofit Direct Relief announced its recent initiatives include granting $7.9 million in cash aid to help Ukrainians who’ve suffered injuries or trauma in the war access medical care and rehabilitation services. December’s grant, which has been the broadest issuing of support to Ukrainian groups from the organization so far, brings Direct Relief’s total cash assistance for programs benefiting Ukrainians and Ukrainian refugees up to a considerable $29.4 million. Overall, in Direct Relief’s fiscal year 2022, the charity provided more than $2 billion in medical aid and $58.2 million in financial assistance to healthcare providers and other local organizations in 98 countries and 52 U.S. states and territories. Full story at independent.com/direct-relief-grants. n

DA

Joyce Dudley Officially Retires and Swears In New DA, John Savrnoch

by Ryan P. Cruz

After 12 years as Santa Barbara County’s district attorney, and more than 32 years in the county District Attorney’s Office, Joyce Dudley officially began her retirement this week. Following a small retirement party with family, friends, and colleagues on Monday, Dudley swore in the newly elected district attorney, John Savrnoch, at the DA’s Office on Tuesday, January 3, before leaving the next day for an extended winter trip to Colorado.

Dudley was first hired in the Santa Barbara County District Attorney’s Office the day she passed the bar. She worked for more than 20 years as a deputy district attorney, making a name for herself prosecuting violent crimes against vulnerable victims before being elected as district attorney in 2010.

Since then, Dudley has overseen the prosecutions of some of the most notable cases in Santa Barbara County history. In 2019, she famously sought the death penalty in the multi-county case against “Golden State Killer” Joseph James DeAngelo, who agreed to plead guilty in 2020 to get a life sentence instead. In 2021, Dudley’s office successfully led the case against Pierre Haobsh in the grisly triplemurder of local doctor Henry Han, his wife, and their 5-year-old daughter in Goleta.

In the dozen years as DA, Dudley has received numerous honors and appointments. In 2016, she was appointed by former Governor Jerry Brown as Chair of the Police

(2021)

Last March, Dudley announced that she would not seek a fourth term in 2023 and instead would take the long-awaited step to retirement. In a statement released on December 30, she described her decision to retire as “bittersweet and somewhat scary.”

Dudley began working in her father’s restaurant in Queens, New York, at age 6, she said, and had never been unemployed until her final day of work on January 2, 2023.

With her DA duties now behind her, she said she’s looking forward to hitting the slopes. “I grew up quite poor, and I always dreamed about being able to ski to my heart’s content, so that is what this trip is all about,” Dudley said.

She went on to say that her trip is also about discovering who she is without her “most cherished positions” as a mother of four boys; a wife to late husband, John, who died in 2019; and as district attorney for the County of Santa Barbara. “The best part of my new life is that I will have uninterrupted time with those I love, including my children and grandchildren.”

Officers Standards and Training Commission (POST); she was previously the National Co-Chair of Prosecutors Against Gun Violence; and she has served on the Executive Board of Fight Crime Invest in Kids. She was named Woman of the Year

In her final statement, Dudley said that she “deeply appreciates the people she has worked with, as well as the people of the communities she has served,” that she was thrilled that Savrnoch will be her successor, and feels the District Attorney’s Office is “full of extraordinary professionals in every division.” n

by the Democratic Women of Santa Barbara County; Attorney of the Year (2015) by Santa Barbara Women Lawyers; and Mentor of the Year (2016) by the Council on Alcohol and Drug Abuse.

SKI

With her district attorney duties now behind her, Joyce Dudley is looking forward to hitting the slopes during her extended winter trip to Colorado.

CHANGING OF THE GUARD:  Joyce Dudley swore in the newly elected district attorney, John Savrnoch, at the DA’s Office on Tuesday.

No Dog but Dog Opinions

BEATING DEAD HORSES: Back when I still harbored entrepreneurial delusions, I thought I’d try my hand at cornering the market on nihilism. I hadn’t figured out what I’d make, exactly, but I knew what my corporate slogan would be. “Nothing Can Be Done.” Stark. Simple. Defiantly defeatist. What better way to launch a new business empire? If nothing else, I figured it would shut up Nike’s nose-to-the-grindstone optimism of “Just Do It.”

Somehow I never got around to doing it. Perhaps I lacked the courage of my pessimism. Or maybe life happened. I am reminded of all this what could have been when looking back at the year 2022 In my personal rearview mirror, last year seems like one, big, messy, undifferentiated smear

On closer inspection, however, a whole lot managed to get done. And right here. And a whole lot of that was genuinely astonishing. Given the decided numbness some of us still feel as dubious groundhogs warily emerging from our COVID bunkers I thought it might be worthwhile to highlight a few.

Let’s start with the most obvious. ExxonMobil may not be the world’s biggest oil company, but in Santa Barbara County, it is. Like the poor, ExxonMobil has always been with us. It’s been one of our big, badass oil giants forever telling us to “stick it in your ear” whenever we’ve had the temerity to suggest they curb their emissions. But last year, it was Exxon’s ear into which the proverbial “it” got stuck. And it was the county doing the “sticking.”

Late in the fall, ExxonMobil spokespeople in Houston confirmed rumors that it was pulling up stakes in Santa Barbara County where it has owned and operated a massive onshore oil processing plant for more than 30 years. Over the decades, Exxon has fed this sprawling industrial fortress with crud pumped from three offshore platforms: the distilled, compressed prehistoric remains of zillions of single-cell sea creatures that over the eons have made up the vast sea of petrochemical wealth lying immediately off our coast.

I don’t know that Exxon’s departure qualifies more as part of the “Giant Resignation” or the “Quiet Quit,” but the oil giant was anything but resigned or quiet when Santa Barbara’s board of supervisors and planning commissioners voted to deny the company the trucking permits it needed to get its oil to refineries in Kern County. Exxon has been effectively shut down since the Plains All American pipeline sprung a major leak in 2015 that has been neither repaired nor replaced since.

Exxon responded by suing the county as it promised it would claiming the supervisors relied on the histrionic testimony of nitwits and rabble-rousers rather than the cold, hard science of the traffic engineers they hired to say trucking was perfectly safe. Then, later that year, the company sold off all its county assets at a reported loss of $2 billion to a newly formed corporate entity. This group is led by a team of petrochemical swashbucklers who have

demonstrated a willingness to dance with the environmentalist devil if that’s what it takes to make a deal. So stay tuned.

The headline should have been, “Santa Barbara County Beats Exxon 0-0.”

One point bears repeated overstating. Exxon and its highly paid traffic engineers got positively spanked by a team of unpaid interns who volunteered for the Environmental Defense Center (EDC).

Exxon and its experts argued that trucking 11,000 barrels’ worth of oil a day from Santa Barbara to Kern County via Highway 166 140 miles of steep, twisting, blindcurved, two-laned blacktop would fall well within the state’s road safety threshold. Yes, the additional truck traffic would add “slightly” to the safety risk, they conceded, but in the real world, they argued, Exxon would be adding just nine additional truck trips a day.

The big environmental freak-out was: What if a tanker truck overturned, spilling its contents into the Cuyama River? That river feeds into the reservoir upon which Santa Maria depends and runs alongside much of Highway 166.

Based on the company’s worst-case analysis, its additional tanker traffic would result in only one river spill every 17 years

Who could put up a fuss about that?

It turns out the interns from the EDC could. And they did. They discovered that since 2000, there had been no less than 15 oil tanker truck accidents within county limits. Of those, eight had happened along the route proposed by Exxon. Of those, six had taken place since 2016. In four of those, the driver died. In the most recent March 2020 no one died, but 4,500 gallons of crude spilled into the Cuyama River.

An interesting detail that managed to get

lost in the din involves the burgeoning cannabis industry that’s helping to strip-mine the vast groundwater basins underlying the Cuyama Valley. Not counted in Exxon’s traffic analysis was the fact that 400 to 500 cannabis workers now travel Highway 166. These are people who have no other way to go from their homes in Santa Maria to their jobs in Cuyama. Had these numbers been included in Exxon’s own traffic analysis, it’s not clear that even Exxon could have made their claims of traffic safety.

The real headline should have been “Interns Beat Exxon 0-0.”

From an energy perspective, last year proved both tumultuous and momentous. Governor Gavin Newsom, inspired by a fear of energy blackouts caused by a potential shortfall in electricity, singlehandedly gave the Diablo Canyon Nuclear Power Plant up in Morro Bay a new lease on life. Had the governor not intervened, the plug would have been pulled on Diablo in 2025 when its federal license expires. Initially, Newsom wanted to extend PG&E’s license by 10 years. But in response to the uproar generated by betrayed environmentalists, Newsom backed down to a five-year extension.

At first blush, the timing seemed a little awkward. In March of last year, the Inspector General a federal oversight position issued a scathing report on the lack of diligence exhibited during safety inspections at the plant. The report focused on a leak sprung in a steel pipe that fed one of the plant’s backup cooling systems. The pipe had corroded because moisture had accumulated under its insulation sleeve. A small hole allowed four gallons to spray out every minute.

The Inspector General was positively underwhelmed by the job performed by

on-site safety inspectors assigned to the plant by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, stating that the inspectors had only spent five hours doing some inspections that required no less than 12 hours. They claimed to have inspected the area where the leak occurred, when in fact they had not.

None of this inspires the sort of confidence one would like to have when dredging an aging and ailing nuclear power plant out of the mothballs. But with the state in the midst of yet another 1,000year drought and heat waves you could surf California’s reliable supply of hydroelectric power was iffy at best.

The big transformative possibility here, however, is wind energy. The Central Coast has long been regarded the Saudi Arabia of offshore wind energy, and this past year, the federal government finally issued about 400 square miles of offshore leases. The proposed wind farm, 20 miles off the coast of Morro Bay, is for about 300 wind turbines, each with a blade longer than the Eiffel Tower is tall.

None of this would have come to pass were it not for Congressmember Salud Carbajal, who wrestled it out with Navy brass who weren’t happy about losing an area in the ocean where they have traditionally blown things up and trained their fleet of aircraft carriers on how to stage formations. Should anything come to pass from all this, these new wind turbines should be generating at least as much clean, non-nuclear electricity as Diablo Canyon produced at its peak.

A lot more happened last year, but I’ve painted myself into a corner and run out of gas and space. But very clearly, something got done —Nick Welsh

angry poodle barbecue

CAPT. DANIEL BERTUCELLI/SBCFD

A tanker-truck oil spill off State Route 166 in 2020

obituaries

Ronald RobertsonGeorge

9/25/1927 - 10/17/2022

Ronald George Robertson passed away peacefully in the early morning hours of October 17, 2022. He had celebrated his 95th birthday on 25 September, and, despite the physical limitations accompanying his late-stage dementia, managed to blow out the candles and to devour the cake and ice cream!

Robertson was a painter, a printmaker, an assemblage artist, a sculptor, a teacher-mentor, a husband, father, grandfather, and great-grandfather.

Born in Detroit, Michigan in 1927 to British-Canadian immigrants, Ron’s artistic talents were early evident, and in his late teens, he studied painting with Zubel Kachadoorian and Stanley Twardowicz. After classes at Mexico City College and L’Académie André Lhote in Paris, France, Robertson studied at Black Mountain College in North Carolina, where his contemporaries included the artists Cy Twombly, Ruth Asawa, Robert Rauschenberg, Dorothea Rockbourne, and poet and later colleague, Mervin Lane, among others. He earned his Bachelor of Science degree in art education from Wayne State University, where he met Helen Jean Korzeniewska-Krause (19292017). They married in December 1952. For the next several years Ron was employed in Ford Motor’s styling division, and with the equally talented Helen, began to produce oil paintings and watercolors for exhibition and sale, and even silkscreened greeting cards.

Their artistic interests influenced their bold decision in 1956 to move, their young daughter Jennifer and son Daniel in tow, to Japan, where years later two daughters, Sarah and Edith, were born. The family lived in the rural suburbs of Tokyo Metropolitan Prefecture for ten years before moving to Santa Barbara, California in 1966. In Japan, Ron, a civilian, headed the Arts and Crafts division of the USFJ (United States Forces in Japan) and later directed the education program of the University of Maryland’s then “Far East Division.” At the same time, Ron and Helen conducted

ethnographic research on, and collected the works of, a wide range of Japanese artists, from woodblock prints and stone-rubbings to ceramics and hand-crafted furniture. Among the fruits of their joint research was a book on Japanese contemporary printmaking and more recently, a book manuscript on katazome, Japanese traditional stencil painting. Ron also worked long nights in his studio on oil paintings that he exhibited at different galleries in Tokyo, and several times at the well-known Yōseido Gallery in Tokyo’s Ginza district. He also began making dye-resist woodblock prints and the threedimensional assemblages that came to dominate his artwork repertory.

A job offer from the University of California, Santa Barbara, brought the family back to the United States in the fall of 1966. For Detroiters Ron and Helen, the “Mediterranean” Santa Barbara was paradise. Following stints in the UCSB Art Department and College of Creative Studies, Ron and several colleagues founded the Santa Barbara Art Institute on the Riviera, graduating a class of talented young artists before closing. Ron then was hired by Santa Barbara City College (SBCC), where he helped to shape the printmaking program, and also chair the department. He retired from SBCC in the late 1980s and continued to mentor aspiring artists in his home studio overlooking the harbor. Ron continued to exhibit his works of art at various California venues, including a recent retrospective show of his work, “The Power of Objects” (JulyAugust 2022), that doubled as a fundraiser for the Santa Barbara Arts Fund. Robertson’s artwork can be viewed at https://www. ronrobertsonart.com/.

Although Ron and Helen never returned to Japan, they took a post-retirement trip to Europe which included a tour of Helen’s ancestral home in Poland, a profound experience for them. They also traveled together and singly, sometimes with their four children, to various corners of the United States, Mexico, and Central America.

Following a diagnosis of advanced vascular dementia, Ron moved to an assisted living residence in Santa Barbara, and, following Helen’s death, to several memory-care residences in Seattle, WA, where Jennifer and Sarah live. Ron was blessed to have spent his final months at the home-like Florence of Seattle where, together with the expert nurses from Evergreen Hospice, the caring staff kept him nurtured and comfortable. In his final days and hours, Jen-

nifer and Sarah kept constant vigil, and Dan and Edie were able to convey their love by video phone.

Ronald is survived by four children (in order of birth): Jennifer Robertson (Celeste Brusati), Daniel Robertson (Linda Robertson), Sarah Robertson Palmer (Lance Palmer), and Edith Robertson; five grandchildren, Renee Robertson, Stacie Huston, Ian Robertson, Graham Palmer, and Dylan Palmer, and four great-grandchildren. Ron will be greatly missed by many friends, colleagues, and former students. If you wish, please send a donation in Ron’s name to the Santa Barbara Arts Fund (www.sbartfund.org).

Sarah and Edie are planning an event celebrating Helen and Ron for summer 2023.

William Charnley

4/8/1946 - 11/28/2022

Robert Walton Brown 4/30/1938 - 5/16/2022

Dave Rowan was a man of love and service. During the Korean Conflict he served in Naval Intelligence. Thereafter he returned to his home in Los Angeles. He married Christine Quarton and had his first child, Eric. He graduated USC with a Master's and was of service as a public school teacher at Crescenta Valley High School. He later married DeAnn Morris and had a second child, Ro. David later married Penelope Ford and they retired to Carpinteria and spent time playing tennis at the Santa Barbara Polo and Racquet Club.

Over his last several years Dad and I would walk each week to the Salt Marsh where Dad had become fond of all the creatures. He even gave names to each of the lizards like Larry and Lucretia. The last thing Dad said to me before he died was "can we go see the lizards?"

I miss you Dad, I love you Dad, and I am grateful for your gifts of Love and Service. Eric the bumletts

William Charnley passed away on November 28. Born in Pasadena on April 8, 1946, Bill had a typical California upbringing, Yorkdale Elementary, Benjamin Franklin High, and trips with friends to go surfing. He excelled at sports, especially baseball.

Upon graduating from UCSB with a degree in History, Bill married his sweetheart, Tulli. In 1969 he joined the Navy, serving on the USS Long Beach. Returning to Santa Barbara from his tour in Vietnam, Bill studied photography at Brooks, worked for the Gas Company and divorced. In 1975 he moved to Stowe, Vermont scything the ski slopes in summer and skiing in winter. Eventually, Santa Barbara called him back, where he worked as a carpenter and later as a painting contractor.

Bill liked a simple, ordered life: up early in the morning, exercise, breakfast, work, home to watch TV and read books. On weekends, he played basketball, made art, and spent time with friends.

The delight of his life was his succession of well-loved cats, Jack, Dieter, and Tommy. A skilled photographer, Bill snapped countless images of Tommy’s eccentric behavior, culminating in several books of the cat’s shenanigans.

One of Bill’s defining features was his sense of humor. It ran the gamut from The Three Stooges’ slapstick to the New Yorker’s erudite cartoons. For two decades, he assembled his favorite cartoons into books and gave them as Christmas gifts to select friends.

Bill was also a noted assemblage artist. His works were simple yet intricate and always decorative and playful. But it was photography that he really adored. He carried his camera at all times and had an exquisite ability to turn the ordinary into the remarkable. He considered life worth living if he could take and show his photographs.

Bill was intelligent, accomplished and highly aware of the needs of others. He combined logic with irreverence to succinctly sum up his world view. He was kind, generous and much loved by his many friends. He is greatly missed.

A husband, father, uncle, grandfather, and friend. Robert Walton Brown passed away in his sleep on the evening of May 16, 2022, at the age of 84. Robert, known Bob to most friends, was born on April 30, 1938, in Mineola, New York to Muriel Skinner of New York and Bertram Brown of Montana. Robert attended the New York Military Academy 1953-1956. After graduating from the Military Academy, he attended Lafayette College 19561958 followed by the University of Arizona from 1960-1962. He was drafted into the U.S. Army in 1962 and served through 1964 as a Communication Center Specialist in Washington D.C. He had the privilege of representing the Army as a member of their basketball team. He loved to play basketball. I can remember the sneaker squeaks from when I was a little watching him play at the SBHS Gym. During the Army Bob also attended George Washington University and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in English in 1964. After receiving his Bachelors degree, Bob travelled through many countries in Europe with his soon to be wife Nina Hill of Tucson Arizona. He held teaching residences in Greece and Morocco. Bob and Nina moved together to Santa Barbara, CA in 1967 for Bob to attend the Master’s of English program at UCSB. They married in 1967 at the Santa Barbara Court House. They made their life in SB and raised their family together. Robert is survived by his wife Nina Hill Brown, son Jonathan Brown, daughter Dricka Brown Thobois, son in law Gregory Thobois, and two grandchildren Dylan Robert and Gabriel Frederick. My Dad loved his family, the English language, literature, grammar, philosophy, music and poetry. He was a poet at heart and will be truly missed.

David L. Rowan 1931 - 2022

We Reject Bigotry

Santa Barbara is home to a thriving and diverse Jewish population with a strong sense of belonging to the larger community. Perhaps that is why our area was recently targeted by a small and fringe hate group seeking attention and revenue by distributing virulently anti-Semitic fliers designed to heighten concern, reaction, and financial support from their own supporters. We won’t address the content of the fliers to avoid amplifying them, but the conduct warrants response particularly in the context of rising anti-Semitism nationally and globally.

The troubling trends of anti-Semitism are mirrored in rising hate and bigotry targeting Black, Latino, Asian American/Pacific Islander, LGBTQ+, Muslim, and other often-marginalized or minority groups. Whether fueled by animus, political division, social isolation, or ignorance, we reject the diminution of others’ value based on their identity and immutable characteristics that contribute to it. This disgusting incident intended to spread hate and fear provides an opportunity, as do other recent incidents targeting other groups, to reaffirm our conviction in the value of a diverse and inclusive community that respects and embraces the wide range of experiences, beliefs, and backgrounds that define it.

We encourage community members, Jewish and non-Jewish, who would like to respond to this specific incident to display candles in a window of your home.

Our community is at its best when we come together to reject bigotry in all its forms.

Dan Meisel, Regional Dir.; Ashley Myers, Assistant Reg. Dir.; Mark Goldstein, Reg. Board Chair Anti-Defamation League Santa Barbara/ Tri-Counties

Rabbi

Rabbi Arthur Gross-Schaefer; Itzik Ben-Sasson, Exec. Dir.; Peter Melnick, Pres. Community Shul of Montecito and S.B.

Cyndi Silverman, Exec. Dir.; Eric Berg, Board Pres.-Elect Jewish Federation of Greater S.B.

Rabbi Evan Goodman, Exec. Dir.; Rabbi Maddie Anderson, Assistant Dir.; Mark Silverberg, Board Pres. Santa Barbara Hillel

Congressmember Salud Carbajal

State Sen. Monique Limón

Assemblymember Gregg Hart

Mayor Randy Rowse; Councilmembers Mike Jordan, Eric Friedman, Oscar Gutierrez, Meagan Harmon, Kristen Sneddon City of Santa Barbara

S.B. County Supervisors Laura Capps, 2nd District; Joan Hartmann, 3rd District; Das Williams, 1st District

S.B. County Former District Attorney Joyce E. Dudley

Catherine Swysen and Paula Lopez, Past and Current Presidents S.B. Women’s Political Committee

Tiny Homes

been doing a little math about the apartments proposed for La Cumbre Plaza, and unless I’m wrong, “The Neighborhood” units appear to be quite small.

The development is on 8.79 acres. That is approximately 76 units per acre. The average unit size is something like 716 square feet per unit, or 27 by 27 feet. I imagine this figure does not include walls and dividers. Nevertheless, furniture, counters, appliances, beds, etc. will be added, and what is left?

I live in a condominium, not a particularly large one, and the master bedroom is 20 feet wide, and that is measured from the inside. These sound like very small, compact units. Am I wrong?

The developers appear to be packing in as many units as they possibly can. I call it cram housing. I would like to know how wide the sidewalks are. Is there access for emergency vehicles? I can’t imagine a fire engine or an EMT van getting in there. Of course, roads surround the place. There appears to be very little to no open space. Where are children going to play? Their voices will be heard echoing off the canyon walls.

I wouldn’t call it “The Neighborhood.” The Maze or the Beehive would be more apt. Is this Dormzilla for the non-college crowd? Please, give me my Macy’s back.

—Nathan Post, S.B.

The Independent welcomes letters of less than 250 words that include a daytime phone number for verification. Letters may be edited for length and clarity. Send to: Letters, S.B. Independent, 1715 State St., Santa Barbara, CA 93101; or fax: 965-5518; or email: letters@independent.com. Unabridged versions and more letters appear at independent.com/opinions

Steve Cohen, Cantor Mark Childs, Rabbi Daniel Brenner, Elizabeth Gaynes, Exec. Dir.; Marcy Wimbish and Nancy Sheldon, Co-Board Presidents; Janet Wolf, Board Exec. VP Congregation B’nai B’rith

I’ve

obituaries

EDWARDS, Donald Robert         6/22/1939 - 12/6/2022

Don attended the Seattle Seafair Trophy Race, which featured a class of racing boats called ‘Unlimited Hydroplanes’. He was instantly drawn to these boats and decided to retire from drag boat racing at the end of the 1967 season.

Donald Robert Edwards passed peacefully, in his sleep, on December 6th, 2022, at his home in Solvang, California. Don was the first son born to James Robert and Wilma Jean Edwards on June 22nd, 1939, at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital. Don grew up in Santa Barbara, with a native’s love for sunshine, beaches, and mechanics. Growing up in Santa Barbara, California, Don loved mechanical things and always toyed around with engines. As a youngster, he started hopping up lawn mowers, then motor scooters, then motorcycles. At a young 16 years of age, while in high school, he had a 1940 Ford coupe with a “full race” flathead engine, which he raced at the Santa Maria drag strip, but, when he first saw a Crackerbox race boat, his life was forever changed. He had to have that boat and sold the Ford to buy it.

After attending Santa Barbara city schools, and San Jose State College, Don enlisted in the U.S. Coast Guard, and served his full term as a reservist. Don’s racing career began in 1959 in an 18-foot flat-bottom boat built by Don Beck. He loved the competition, and in 1961 he was able to hit speeds of over 80 miles per hour, which was pretty fast for the day. According to Don, the boat was painted in gold color, and caused a lot of commotion wherever it went. So, it became known as the ‘Golden Komotion’. A few years later, Don worked with the sports legend Rich Hallett, to design and build a 21- foot wooden hydroplane drag boat. Don set a record in 1966 on the Feather River at 136 miles per hour. All in all, Edwards, Hallett, and their engine builder Dave Zeuschel won four National Championships between 1965 and 1967, making this new version of the ‘Golden Komotion’ the “World’s Winningest Gas Hydro” drag boat in 1967.

While in the Coast Guard,

Don was innovative, enterprising, and determined – he commissioned Rich Hallett to build the first ever Unlimited Hydroplane hull specifically to be powered by a turbine engine. No one had ever built a turbine powered hydroplane before. But that effort perfectly defined Don Edwards. At the time, finding one available at any price became problematic. After doing some research they found one, an Allison T40, at T.M. McBride, a WWII surplus company in Los Angeles.

Edwards was able to purchase the engine for a mere $1,500, but it came without any documentation, records, manuals or virtually any information at all. The Allison T40 was an experimental engine that had been in development for the Navy, and, to say the least, was an unusual engine. The boat also had some very advanced technology features, too, which in years to follow became standard. ‘Golden Komotion’ was the first attempt at using turbine power in an unlimited hydroplane, something that is the standard today. The history of the ‘Allison T40 Golden Komotion’ can be found in Doug Ford’s book “What Were They Thinking?”.

After boat racing, Don pursued real estate investing. He was also a successful entrepreneur, owner of Golden Komotion Enterprises, dealing in various agricultural equipment and trucks. Together, Don and Lydia purchased and operated a 160-acre cattle ranch in the Santa Ynez Valley. After seven years of ranching, they moved to Solvang. Never one to sit still, Don and Lydia traveled to lakes, harbors and rivers of counties that held their interests – racing! Don, while visiting Bass Lake in the Sierras, one of his favorite lakes, wanted to have a reunion with his racing friends. That year, 2006, was the beginning of the annual Bass Lake Boat Fest, a 4-day celebration and event that takes place at the Pines Resort every June.

While living in Solvang, Don and Lydia pursued their passions as authors. Don wanted to ensure that the history and

achievements of the ‘Glory Days’ – along with that of his close friends in the boat racing world – would be well documented. His best-selling book “Drag Boats of the 1960s” was co-authored by Barry McCown, a fellow drag boat racer. Writer/ filmmaker Bob Silva was the writer, and famed race boat driver Larry Schwabenland wrote the foreword.

Don is survived by his loving wife Lydia Schwartz Bell Edwards, his brother Richard J. Edwards (Gale), nephew Torey M. Edwards, niece Mandy Edwards Kirschner (Aaron), stepchildren Ryan Bell (Jill) and Jennifer Bell Courcier (Richard), cousins James, Michael and Thomas Brinks, William Brinks’ daughter, Pamela Brinks, and many extended family members, all of whom will miss him dearly.

Don’s legacy can be seen, and appreciated in museums, websites, and books, including: -Evergreen Museum near Portland, Oregon.

-Antique Aero in Paso Robles, where his last drag boat is located. Locally – in Buellton at Mendenhall’s Museum and Anderson’s Museum. National Automobile Museum in Reno, Nevada.

-Hydroplane & Raceboat Museum in Seattle, Washington. -NHRA Motorsports Museum in Pomona, California.

Online at:

– www.donedwardsdragboats.com

– Facebook groups:

• Drag Boat Racing’s Golden Years

• Southern California Speedboat Club

• Hydroplane History

• Drag Boat Review

More history can be found in books by:

–What Were They Thinking? by Doug Ford

–Turbine Racing in Seattle Images of Sports by David D. Williams

–Central Coast Motor Sports by Tony Baker

–Drag Boats of the 1960s by Don Edwards and Barry McCown

The family expresses their deepest gratitude to the nurses and staff of VNA Health and Serenity House of Santa Barbara for their care and comfort for Donald.

A service and celebration of Donald Edwards will be held in late January 2023.

Esperanza Ramos Pintor 4/26/1926 - 12/28/2022

ates Mortuary; 2020 Chapala Street, Santa Barbara CA

On Thursday, January 5, 2023 at 12:00pm gathering for a prayer will take place at Calvary Cemetery; 199 N. Hope Avenue, Santa Barbara, CA

Kovanda, Nancy Pauline 1/15/1933 - 12/23/2022

PINTOR, Esperanza Ramos, decided to join the other angels on December 28, 2022. She passed away peacefully with her family at her side.

Esperanza was born Esperanza Luna in Lompoc California on April 26, 1926. She moved to Santa Barbara after meeting and marrying her beloved husband Cristino Pintor, Sr. of Puerto Rico. They remained happily married for 59 years until Cristino Pintor Sr. passed in 2005.

Esperanza was a kind, thoughtful, generous, patient and caring person who touched many lives. She loved gardening, Bingo, entertaining and most of all dancing! She was a proud homemaker who successfully raised, taught and nourished her family’s lives.

Her legacy is her nine successful and wonderful children, grandchildren and great-children and she will live forever in our hearts and memories.

She was truly a beautiful person.

She was the wife of Cristino Ramos Pintor, Sr. (deceased June 24, 2005), her children Lydia Vogler (Otto deceased) of Murrieta, (Cristino Pintor Jr.-deceased and Rebeccawife deceased), Mario Pintor (Michelle) of Goleta, Cesar Pintor (Debbie-deceased) of Paso Robles, Marcos Pintor (Judy) of Santa Maria, Carminia Castillo (Francisco) of Goleta, Irasema Powell (Jamesdeceased) of Goleta, Blanca Rivas (Karl) of Santa Maria and Oscar Pintor (Maria) of Pleasant Hill; 25 grandchildren, 42 great- grandchildren and 4 great- great- grandchildren.

We are so grateful and thankful that in her later years her daughters Carminia and Irasema and grand-daughters Judy and Monica gave her the care and love she so deserved. Thank you!

We give great gratitude to Assisted Home Health and Hospice Care, especially Monica and Raquel in caring for our mom.

Rosary will be held on January 4, 2023 at 6:00 pm at McDermott-Crockett & Associ-

Nancy Pauline Kovanda, the daughter of Maurice and Pauline Costello, was born on January 15, 1933.  She passed away peacefully at age 89 on December 23, 2022.

She was predeceased by her sister Jeanne Spale and her two brothers Maurice Costello Jr. and Robert Costello, her daughter Deborah Kovanda and son Stephen Kovanda.

Nancy graduated from Cathedral High in Lincoln, Nebraska.

Nancy met Norman Kovanda in June 1950 at a teenage dance at the Summer Pavilion in Lincoln.  They were both 17 years old.  They dated for four years until Norman graduated in 1954 from the University of Nebraska.  They were married on February 12, 1955 and started a marriage that lasted until now, 67 years later.

They had four children, Deborah, Sandra, Jeannie and Stephen Kovanda in Denver.  They moved to Santa Barbara in 1962.

Norman and Nancy started a tax and investment business in 1964, heading it until their retirement in 2019, 55 years later.

Nancy was a fond fan of Nebraska Cornhusker football.  GO Big Red!

Nancy is survived by her husband Norman, daughter Sandra Kovanda, grandson Dean Kovanda, daughter Jeannie (Rob) Graham, grandson Steven (Kathleen) Symer, great-grandsons Nathan and Jack Symer, granddaughter Kristin (Geoff) Payton, great grandkids George and Eleanor Payton, and many beloved nieces and nephews.

Nancy will be greatly missed by all who knew her.  She was a wonderful woman.

Nancy’s memorial will be held at burial site at the Santa Barbara Cemetery, Friday January 6th at 1:15PM located at 901 Channel Dr., Montecito, CA.

BY PAUL CRONSHAW

Robert Frederick Christensen Jr., known to friends and the community as Rik, left this world on November 26, 2022, at the age of 77. Rik was a friend, a backpacker, a restorer, a tinkerer, an inspiration, an educator, and a legend.

I met Rik in the ’90s on a backpacking trip to a campsite in Los Padres National Forest called Forbush. We became instant backpacking friends who both embraced the lightweight backpacking philosophy of “take less, do more.” Rik was a fellow Los Padres Forest Volunteer Wilderness Ranger who helped maintain trails in the Santa Barbara backcountry, including clearing trails after fires. He was a mentor and friend to many people in the backpacking community, and I considered him a brother.

In his younger years Rik was an avid cyclist, and later in life he embraced walking, hiking, and backpacking. He hiked many trails, mostly in wilderness areas of Washington State, Los Padres National Forest, the Sierras, the Desolation Wilderness, and Mantor Meadows. His favorite trails were in the San Rafael Wilderness, including the Manzana Trail to South Fork Cabin and the North Cold Spring Trail to Forbush Camp. He did many overnight trips from 3 p.m. Saturday to 10 a.m. Sunday to cure “Nature Deficit Disorder” and test new gear. He was a steward of both trails and campsites.

After graduating college from the University of Illinois, Rik moved to Canada, where he learned antique car restoration through a three-year apprentice program. He moved to Santa Barbara in 1980 and opened RF Christensen Restoration. Rik became a master restorer of pre-WWII classic cars, with many of his restorations winning awards at major competitions. I once witnessed him spend two years restoring an old Mercedes to new glory.

Rik’s most significant restoration project, however, was saving the historic South Fork Cabin along the Sisquoc River. Turning this cabin from a fire-scarred, rodent-infested shack to a comfortable lodging spot for wilderness volunteers and backpackers was a seven-year project that took countless hours and required innumerable hiking miles. This cabin has become an icon in Los Padres forest and a legacy that Rik has left for all to enjoy.

Having developed a special relationship with the lightweight backpacking company Gossamer Gear, Rik co-founded and promoted the GG Trail Ambassadors program. He also founded and organized Los Padres Forest Association Used Gear Sale, now in its seventh year, to raise funds for trail work in the forest. He was a backpacker’s tailor with the skill of repairing tents and packs for fellow backpackers. He tinkered with backpacking gear, including a light-

weight camp chair (“The Rikcliner”) and a day pack (“The RikSac”).

As a Los Padres Forest Volunteer Wilderness Ranger, Rik interacted with the public on the trails and in campsites. He gave lightweight backpacking presentations, and he taught lightweight backpacking philosophy to California Conservation Corps interns working on trails and to Boy Scout troops. He loved to pass around his complete backpack and have the crowd guess the weight (usually around eight pounds without food and water). In exchange for teaching me lightweight backpacking, I taught Rik about beekeeping. He helped me rescue a number of swarms, and he looked pretty good in a bee suit!

Rik is a legend in Los Padres National Forest. He now joins another Los Padres Forest Association (LPFA) legend, Dave Weaver, the founder of Los Padres Forest Volunteer Wilderness program, who passed away in 2013. Rik met Dave at Dabney Cabin on one of his backpacking trips. Dave invited him inside the cabin to share conversation and a meal. This visit developed into a long-term relationship. Fittingly, Rik was the first recipient of the Dave Weaver Wilderness Award.

As a final, generous gift to the community and the wilderness he loved so dearly, Rik has donated his estate to the LPFA to maintain and work his beloved Los Padres trails for perpetuity. This huge and important legacy will keep the trails accessible on a large scale for decades to come.

I have section hiked 1,800 miles of the Pacific Coast Trail in the memory of my mother, who passed away in 2008. With Rik’s passing, I have decided to finish the remaining 800 miles in his memory. Says John Muir: “The clearest way into the universe is through a forest wilderness”: May your hiking journeys continue, my friend. n

“ The mountains are calling, and I must go.”

—John Muir

obituaries

Catalina Belen Unzueta 11/15/1938 - 12/25/2022

On Christmas afternoon, in the comfort of home, encircled by family, Catalina Belen Unzueta passed from our world to Heaven.

Catalina, Belen to family, Cathy to a special few, was born on November 15, 1938, in El Paso, Texas. When Catalina was five, her mother, Consuelo, moved the family to Los Angeles, and then to Santa Barbara.

Catalina graduated from Santa Barbara High School, and went on to attend Santa Barbara City College. Catalina’s brother, John, introduced her to his good friend, Martin Unzueta, who became the love of her life.

Catalina and Martin shared many of the same interests, if sometimes in different ways; when it came to music, our Mom loved to dance, Dad doesn’t, he loves to sing and she was so happy to see him get up and join a Mariachi. Ambitious, and willing to step beyond some of the social confines of those years, Catalina went into banking, working originally for Bank of America and then switching to Crocker Bank. United by their Catholic faith and an abiding love for God, their commitment to family, a deeply rooted work ethic, and a love of travel, Catalina and Martin began planning their future and were married, the first time, in a civil ceremony on October 1, 1960, in Las Vegas, Nevada.

In 1961, Catalina gave birth to her first child, Michael, the next great love of her life. In 1965, the little family built and moved into their home on L’Aquila Lane, setting down roots that would anchor their life together. Mom was happy in her work, in her role as a wife, mother, and daughter. Catalina loved long driving trips with Martin; together they explored Canada, Mexico, and, bundling Michael up into their pick-up truck with blankets, a cooler, and a Coleman stove, they made the first of what would be many trips to the Redwoods. Years later, Mom’s face would light up when she

shared memories of those early years as a family of three; weddings, work, weekend barbecues with friends, and special breakfast dates with Michael made up her days. In 1969, much to their surprise, Catalina and Martin added to their family when she gave birth to their daughter Mary-Ann, and, because they could, they tried for one more and their youngest child, Jesus, was born in 1970. Sundays often saw the family routinely attending mass at St. Anthony’s and, with their children and her mom in attendance, Martin and Catalina were united in Holy Matrimony. For the next 49 years, the couple had fun celebrating not one, but two, October anniversaries. Some of the memories Mom loved looking back on were camping, hauling us to the Plunge, weekend forays to Sav-On’s for icecream, summer baseball games in the cul-de-sac, and Sunday nights spent watching Mutual of Omaha’s Wild Kingdom. Mom could be counted on to help us with whatever we needed, she was our best cheer-leader, always reminding us we could be whatever we wanted, or were called, to be.

She loved being our mom, but being a Grandma topped it all, and in that role, Grammy shone. Her big heart, her capacity for joy, her sense of fun, her willingness to show up for school fundraisers, to stretch out for a good floor picnic and movie marathon, her ability to listen, to adapt, to counsel, and to never judge, made her the best Grammy ever. As a wife, a mother, a Grandmother, she was treasured and we will never stop missing her.

Catalina is survived by her beloved husband of 62 years, Martin Unzueta, her children and their spouses, Michael Unzueta (Laurence Miller) Mary Unzueta (Jeff Hilmer) and Jesus Unzueta (Christyn Unzueta). Catalina is also survived by her grandchildren, Jordan McAlister (Matt), Michael T. Bradshaw, Ethan, Lucas, Andrew, Arie, and Catalina Unzueta.

There will be a funeral mass Friday, January 6, at 11:00 a.m. at Old Mission Santa Barbara. In lieu of flowers, the family would appreciate donations be made to the Alzheimer’s Association of Santa Barbara, at 1528 Chapala Street, Suite 204, Santa Barbara, CA 93101, attention: Donor Services.

Bruce HalversonMackay

4/4/1940 - 12/22/2022

a number of important initiatives. Bruce enjoyed traveling to many wonderful places over the last 20 years with his longtime companion, Lillian Salas. Bruce’s life serves as an example to all of us and he will be greatly missed. There will be a memorial service celebrating Bruce’s life at 11am on January 11, 2023 at Live Oak Unitarian Universalist Congregation, 820 N. Fairview Ave., Goleta.

and liked a challenge.

Raising a family of four, with a variety of pets, and a husband to boot was one such challenge she handled with aplomb. She liked to keep busy, and even after the family was grown, she would ask “How can I help?” or say “Put me to work!” whenever she visited.

After celebrating his 82nd Santa Lucia Day and winter solstice with family and loved ones, Bruce Halverson went happily to bed where he died peacefully in the early morning of December 22, 2022. Bruce was born in Bismarck, North Dakota, the only child of Lawrence and Kathryn Halverson. After a short stay in Washington State, the family moved to sunny southern California for health reasons. There, Bruce thrived, working on the family’s poultry farm and running his own successful egg delivery business from a young age. Always a profound thinker, Bruce graduated from Stanford University with a Bachelor’s Degree in American History and then from the University of Hawaii with a Master’s Degree in Eastern Philosophy, learning Sanskrit along the way. As an officer, he studied Chinese in the U.S. Army’s language school in Monterey. Bruce then taught for a brief spell at the University of California at Santa Barbara before getting married to Georgia French and having a son, Joel, to whom he was fiercely devoted for the rest of his life. Bruce later married Valerie Halverson and was stepfather to her children, Mike and Sara. Bruce had a successful career in life insurance and financial consulting, earning a spot on the Million Dollar Round Table, although he would often say that he “retired” at 28 years of age. In fact, Bruce did play much, but also worked hard the last forty years of his life to provide a modest number of safe and affordable boarding rooms to some of the less affluent of Santa Barbara. Bruce lived life to its fullest, enjoying the arts, literature, music (he was a disc jockey at KCSB, presenting “Classical Music, Ancient and Modern”), and nature, leading the local Sierra Club Chapter in

Dolores Romofsky (née Williams)

9/9/1930 - 12/7/2022

She was proud of her kids and grandkids, and she loved nothing more than to tell a story to them or hear a story from them.

Even more, she loved to feed people and play hostess. Inviting friends over for dinner and drinks, organizing annual Christmas teas, and wrangling all the family under one roof for many a holiday.

She’ll be remembered for her distinctive laugh, her occasionally but never admitted stubbornness, her stories, and her biscuits and Irish bread.

It’s often the little things you remember. And fortunately, Dolores was a little thing. Standing at +/- 5’0”, she proudly showed off her relatively towering family. “Can you believe these are all mine?”

Friends and Family called her Dolores, her kids called her Mom and Mama, and her grandkids called her Grandma D and Grandmar. She had names for everyone, too. Fun names like Katrina for her daughter Katy and Marksalot for her son Mark. Matter-of-fact names like Scott Anthony and Steven Francis. Was somebody in trouble? Could be or could just be enjoying the way the names ran together.

There was a music to the way she talked. And music was never far off the subject. Plenty of time spent singing in the church choir at St. Mel or just whistling like a bird to her old favorite tunes. “I’ve always got a song in my head”, she was fond of saying.

She had a language her own too. “Oh fish feathers” was a favorite swearing substitute. You knew things were serious if she also stamped her foot.

Often on her feet, she stayed active most of her life. From years spent playing tennis in round robins with her friends, to just tackling the steep terrain of Woodland Hills on her morning walks, Dolores kept busy

To Dolores, Mom, Grandma D, and Grandmar, See you later, alligator

After a while, crocodile

Dolores Mae Romofsky (née Williams) born September 9, 1930 – died December 7th, 2022. Dolores was born to Francis (Frank) and Mary Jane Williams in Ocean Park, CA, the second of two daughers. She is preceded in death by her parents, her sister Mary Frances and brother-in-law Charles, her Irish cousin Kieren Kennedy, and her husband William “Bill” Romofsky. She is survived by her sons Steven (Karen), Mark (Stevee), and Scott (Eve), daughter Kathleen (Brian), and grandchildren Brian, Jonathan, Priscilla, and Savannah, as well as her nephews Pat and Chris, and niece Cindy. More loved ones went before, and more remain behind.

A Funeral Mass will be held: Saturday, January 7th, 2023 at 11:00am

Holy Cross Catholic Church 1740 Cliff Dr

Santa Barbara, CA 93109

Reception and Luncheon: Saturday, January 7th, 2023 Noon to 2:00pm

Hayes Hall on the grounds of Holy Cross Catholic Church

In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation to Direct Relief International in Dolores’ name.

www.directrelief.org

obituaries

Wanda Evelyn Michalik

Livernois 11/9/1938 - 11/15/2022

1950s. The Livernois family has long roots in the Detroit area, having immigrated there from France in 1702. In fact, Wanda was born four blocks from Livernois Avenue. Robert and Wanda’s love created a strong union that lasted until his death in 2012.

Wanda Evelyn Michalik Livernois passed away November 15, 2022, from the effects of an age-related illness. She spent the last year of her life in Salem, Oregon, near family.

Wanda was born in her grandmother’s home in Detroit, Michigan, November 9, 1938, the last of four children of Joseph and Hedwig Michalik, both Polish immigrants. Typical of many Depression-era families, the house sheltered a different branch of the family on each floor. With the house becoming crowded after her birth, her family moved to a new home in nearby Dearborn, where Wanda attended parochial grammar school. Freshman year of high school was spent at St. Joseph’s Academy, a girls’ boarding school in Adrian, Michigan. When the school year concluded, she informed her parents that “wild horses could not drag me back there,” so the rest of her high-school education took place at Dearborn’s Fordson High School, and she graduated in 1956. She was the first in the family to receive a college degree, earning a BS in Elementary Education from Eastern Michigan University in 1961.

She began her teaching career in the Riverview, Michigan, school district, but she and her good friend Kay Preston decided to relocate to southern California in the early ‘60s. Wanda continued her teaching career in the Los Angeles area and later in Carpinteria, California.

Wanda met Robert Livernois in Los Angeles, and they married in late 1964. Robert was also a Detroit native, who had relocated to California in the

Wanda and Robert moved to Santa Barbara, in June of 1965. They bought the Victorian cottage at 533 Brinkerhoff and began their successful partnership, which included over the years creating the Brinkerhoff Country Store antiques shop (later Robert Livernois Art & Antiques), acquiring and improving additional property and structures on Brinkerhoff and de la Vina streets, and supporting historic-preservation projects throughout Santa Barbara. Their tenacious efforts for historic preservation were rewarded by having the Brinkerhoff area designated the first Historic District in the City of Santa Barbara; Wanda was especially proud. Also, she, Robert, and Brinkerhoff neighbors championed to have Brinkerhoff Avenue changed from a twoway street to a one-way street— no easy task in the City of Santa Barbara. Wanda carried the torch to the end and the avenue is now a one-way street. Wanda was a regular attendee of civic meeting and hearings, where she would sometimes just sit quietly observing the proceedings while knitting something special; she never hesitated to set down her needles to get up and speak. She was also a recipient of many awards recognizing her historic-preservation efforts.

In 1980, Wanda changed careers. “After some soulsearching, real estate sales beckoned me in 1980,” she said, adding that “[m]ore than anything else, real estate is working with people.” She worked as a real estate agent into the late 2010s and enjoyed great success and satisfaction in that field.

Wanda was an individualist, often ignoring traditional expectations. In her college dormitory, she was denied breakfast one morning for having two clips in her hair, and her

response was to draft a petition on the spot to change the rule. She spent the summer of 1959 touring Europe by bicycle, a venture, she admitted, that was ahead of its time. True to form, she confounded her Detroit auto-worker family by making her first vehicle purchase a VW Beetle. Especially surprising to the Michigan clan was her move to California, followed by marrying a man 10 years her senior. Her unique perspective and independent nature made her an inspiring role model to her nieces and nephews and a lively companion to her friends.

Wanda had a passion for many pastimes. A series of poodles kept Wanda and Robert company over the years: Snoopy, Margeaux, Gordon, Toby ( #1 and #2). She was an expert knitter and quilter and was especially adept at traditional hand-piecing, applique, and hand-quilting. She was a long-time member of the Coastal Quilters Guild of Santa Barbara and Goleta. She was a skilled gardener, she filled her yard with ferns, orchids, succulents, and most everything that flourishes in this climate. The natural world was especially appealing to her: she appreciated the waterfalls near her nephew Robert Mitchell’s home in Oregon, a patch of pink lady’s slipper wildflowers her niece Christine Brady found in Walled Lake, Michigan, and—of course–Santa Barbara’s beautiful land- and seascapes. For several years she was a dedicated docent at Lotusland in Montecito, California, and a board member at the Santa Barbara Museum of Art. Wanda was also known as a terrific cook, and many friends treasure recipes that she generously shared with them. In keeping with her “Buy Local” philosophy, she patronized the various Santa Barbara and Montecito farmer’s markets to gather the freshest ingredients to perfect her recipes and was well-known to the purveyors. Wanda was most comfortable entertaining at home in the Brinkerhoff “compound” she and Robert worked so hard to create, but she also enjoyed the

bakeries and cafes in Santa Barbara, sharing a treat and a cappuccino with friends.

Many will remember the topics that sent her into diatribes of complaint: computers, answering machines, and cell phones. She was a determined graffiti-removal volunteer for the Brinkerhoff Avenue area until her last days in the neighborhood.

Wanda was a loyal friend and supportive family member, remembering birthdays and searching—sometimes for years—for the perfect gift. She was a good listener and was equally good at dispensing a quirky mix of advice.

Wanda Livernois was a Santa Barbara icon. Even if you didn’t know her personally, there’s a good chance you benefited from her intelligence, her wit, her kind heart, her tenacity, her generosity, or her civil activism.

Wanda was preceded in death by her husband, Robert Livernois; her parents, Joseph and Hedwig Kancyan; her siblings, Joseph Mitchell, Frances Michalik Niedzwiecki, and Thaddeus Michalik. She is survived by her nieces and nephews: Christine Niedzwiecki Brady, Diane Mitchell, Robert (Cheryl) Mitchell, James (Julie) Mitchell; her sister-in-law Carmen Mitchell; and several distant cousins.

Cremation was conducted by Weddle Funeral Service in Stayton, Oregon. A memorial service and dispersal of ashes will take place at a later date in Santa Barbara; details to be announced. (Contact cbrady@ fiberpipe.net for memorial information.) Gifts made in Wanda’s honor may be directed to Lotusland, the Santa Barbara Botanic Garden, or the Santa Barbara Museum of Art.

Samuel Noble Harris Jr.

12/4/1945

- 12/2/2022

Samuel Noble Harris Jr., 76, of Santa Barbara, CA died December 2, 2022. “Big Sam” passed away from a battle with dementia and is survived by his wife Char Lockerbie Harris and two daughters Sunny Harris Bandy and Lindsay Harris Cooney. He is also survived by his five grandchildren – Kaylin Cooney (17), Kealakai Bandy (16), Rosie Cooney (15), Alohileimomi Bandy (13), Griffin Cooney (11), son in-laws Tim Cooney and Trey Bandy, sister Mahealani Harris, nephew Bret Shellabarger, niece Kalei Shellabarger Owens as well as much family in Hawaii and the Southern California area.

Sam was born and raised in Hawaii and was a standout football player for Kamehameha Schools and went on to the University of Colorado earning All-American recognition and continued his career with the New Orleans Saints. While he loved football, his biggest passion was golf and always chasing the ‘perfect swing’. Sam loved music of all genres especially Hawaiian, country and Sinatra and his singing will be missed by friends and family especially over a big Hawaiian bbq ‘plate lunch’ that he loved to prepare for everyone. Sam will be greatly missed for so many things but mostly for his kindness, generosity, friendliness, and humor.

A memorial will be held January 13, 2023 at El Paseo Restaurant in Santa Barbara at 1pm, as well as a private Hawaiian paddle-out service at Waikiki Beach, Hawaii on March 1, 2023.

el Arte de Santa Bárbara! was founded in 2006 on the belief that everyone deserves access to the inspiration and joy of the arts. Each Viva residency starts with cultural programming in schools and after- school programs, and culminates in FREE performances of music and dance that distinguish our communities’ Latinx heritage at neighborhood venues in Isla Vista, Santa Barbara, and Guadalupe.

el Arte de Santa Bárbara! was founded in 2006 on the belief that everyone deserves access to the inspiration and joy of the arts. Each Viva residency starts with cultural programming in schools and after- school programs, and culminates in FREE performances of music and dance that distinguish our communities’ Latinx heritage at neighborhood venues in Isla Vista, Santa Barbara, and Guadalupe.

¡Viva el Arte de Santa Bárbara!

J

¡Viva el Arte de Santa Bárbara! is co-presented by UCSB Arts & Lectures, The Marjorie Luke Theatre, and the Guadalupe-Nipomo Dunes Center, in partnership with the Isla Vista School Parent Teacher Association.

¡Viva el Arte de Santa Bárbara! is co-presented by UCSB Arts & Lectures,

Marjorie Luke Theatre, and the Guadalupe-Nipomo Dunes Center, in partnership with the Isla Vista School Parent Teacher Association.

¡Viva el Arte de Santa Bárbara! is co-presented by UCSB Arts & Lectures,

The Marjorie Luke Theatre, and the Guadalupe-Nipomo Dunes Center, in partnership with the Isla Vista School Parent Teacher Association.

el Arte de Santa Bárbara! is co-presented by UCSB Arts & Lectures, The Marjorie Luke Theatre, and the Guadalupe-Nipomo Dunes Center, in partnership with the Isla Vista School Parent Teacher Association.

de Santa Bárbara! is co-presented by UCSB Arts & Lectures, Marjorie Luke Theatre, and the Guadalupe-Nipomo Dunes Center, partnership with the Isla Vista School Parent Teacher Association.

el Arte de Santa Bárbara! is co-presented by UCSB Arts & Lectures, The Marjorie Luke Theatre, and the Guadalupe-Nipomo Dunes Center, in partnership with the Isla Vista School Parent Teacher Association.

de Santa Bárbara! is co-presented by UCSB Arts & Lectures, Marjorie Luke Theatre, and the Guadalupe-Nipomo Dunes Center, partnership with the Isla Vista School Parent Teacher Association.

¡Viva el Arte de Santa Bárbara! is co-presented by UCSB Arts & Lectures, The Marjorie Luke Theatre, and the Guadalupe-Nipomo Dunes Center, in partnership with the Isla Vista School Parent Teacher Association.

¡Viva el Arte de Santa Bárbara! is co-presented by UCSB Arts & Lectures, The Marjorie Luke Theatre, and the Guadalupe-Nipomo Dunes Center, in partnership with the Isla Vista School Parent Teacher Association.

¡Viva el Arte de Santa Bárbara! is co-presented by UCSB Arts & Lectures, The Marjorie Luke Theatre, and the Guadalupe-Nipomo Dunes Center, in partnership with the Isla Vista School Parent Teacher Association.

¡Viva el Arte de Santa Bárbara! is co-presented by UCSB Arts & Lectures, The Marjorie Luke Theatre, and the Guadalupe-Nipomo Dunes Center, in partnership with Isla Vista School Parent Teacher Association.

the inspiration

performances

¡Viva el Arte de Santa Bárbara! is co-presented by UCSB Arts & Lectures, The Marjorie Luke Theatre, and the Guadalupe-Nipomo Dunes Center, in partnership with the Isla Vista School Parent Teacher Association.

el Arte de Santa Bárbara! was founded in 2006 on the belief that everyone deserves access to the inspiration and joy of the arts. Each Viva residency starts with cultural programming in schools and after- school programs, and culminates in FREE performances of music and dance that distinguish

de Santa Bárbara! is co-presented by UCSB Arts & Lectures, Marjorie Luke Theatre, and the Guadalupe-Nipomo Dunes Center, partnership with the Isla Vista School Parent Teacher Association.

Daring Dreams for Dos Pueblos Ranch

Conservation, Education, Restoration, and More Planned for Historic Gaviota Coast Property

by Matt Kettmann

Photos by Macduff Everton

With an otter pelt slung from his shoulder and a kelp-bulb rattle shaking in his hand, Aleqwel Mendoza and his wife, Marissa Velez, are singing verses from their Chumash people’s pelican song, just as a lone pelican flashes alongside the nearby cliffs and dives into the sea. It’s a few days before the winter solstice, and the sun is burning warm and brilliant above the small group of us who’ve gathered at Dos Pueblos Ranch to talk about ways of the past, challenges of the present, and hopes for the future.

The couple had just finished an up-tempo song about the woodrat near where their ceremonial solstice pole its yucca shaft covered in asphaltum and abalone shell, topped with blue heron feathers will soon be hoisted to overlook the Santa Barbara Channel. A little while earlier, after chopping tule reeds from the estero to weave, Mendoza had let out a few lines from a whale song when we saw one spout a couple hundred yards off of the coast.

We’re standing on the grassy Gaviota Coast bluff that for generations housed the Chumash village of Mikiw,

just across a creek from the neighboring clifftop village of Kuya’mu. Velez draws her ancestral ties to these villages specifically to Chief Beato Temicucat, who died in 1821 while Mendoza’s roots are a touch farther west, at the village of Qasil, in today’s Refugio Canyon. As “most likely descendants,” or MLDs, from this coastal paradise, both dream of a more established, rather than passing, presence around these ancient sites, one that synthesizes spiritual, educational, historical, and ecological goals into a cohesive experience.

Given the massive acreages and even more massive dollar signs associated with this coveted coastline, which is one of the last stretches of relatively pristine seaside Southern California, creating such a place here has always seemed far-fetched. But with Dos Pueblos Ranch under new ownership and one that’s motivated by preservation over profits the notion of meaningful and maintained Chumash involvement sounds much more possible.

Indeed, incorporating the Indigenous community is one of the initial ideals for the Dos Pueblos Institute, which now manages this land. The brandnew nonprofit was launched in January 2022 when the 214-acre ranch was purchased by Roger Himovitz. The progressiveminded developer and land conservationist is best known around these parts for creating the El Capitan Canyon resort, which sits two miles to the west. While turning that property’s once-rustic campground into a premier glamping operation, Himovitz helped dedicate the 2,500 surrounding acres to the

The Chumash people of which Mendoza and Velez represent a fraction of potential players are just one of the stakeholders in what that legacy might look like. There’s nature to restore, historical structures to save, school groups to teach, and agriculture to revive in regenerative ways. In time, Himovitz wants the ranch to become a global center for ecological thought.

While tackling that laundry list of future to-dos, the Dos Pueblos Institute is already facing the pressing bottom-line issues of now. Though wealthy, Himovitz is not a bottomless pit of money. So how can the ranch generate enough income to recoup the existing investments, fund future land purchases, and make the institute self-sustaining? What sort of operations will the community and county planners tolerate in exchange for helping these daring dreams come true?

The search for these answers remains in the formative stage. But no matter the outcome, it would be hard to find a more symbolic setting for such a grand experiment. The very name “Dos Pueblos” harkens back to October 17, 1542, when the explorer Juan Cabrillo anchored his ships off of the two villages. As the first contact between Europeans and the people of what would become Santa Barbara County, this visit triggered a cultural and ecological cataclysm that continues to reverberate today.

Over the centuries, Dos Pueblos Ranch bore witness to it all, from the Chumash, Spanish, Californios, and Yankees to the farmers, developers, surfers, skaters, pot-growers, politicians, and environmentalists who continue to plot what this landscape will look like. Will this be the place that untangles our modern mess? A land that resets our relationship to nature, repairs connections between cultures, and provides a model for how to do that everywhere else? Can Dos Pueblos salvage our broken world?

state park system, and then played integral roles in preserving another 7,500 acres around Santa Barbara County through various deals. What happens at Dos Pueblos will be his lasting legacy.

A CHUMASH RETURN? Aleqwel Mendoza and Marissa Velez are “most likely descendants” from Chumash villages along the Gaviota Coast, and they would like to have a more steady presence at Dos Pueblos Ranch in the future. But they are just a few of the stakeholders interested in shaping the future of this property, which includes the blufftop site of Mikiw, where they're standing here.

GAVIOTA COASTING: Dos Pueblos Ranch sits about midway between El Capitan State Beach to the west (as seen in the distance of this photo) and the Bacara Resort to the east.

CAMINO REAL

7040 MARKETPLACE DR GOLETA 805-688-4140

M3GAN* (PG13): Fri: 2:00, 3:15, 4:40, 5:45, 7:15, 8:20, 9:45. Sat: 11:30, 12:45, 2:00, 3:15, 4:40, 5:45,7:15, 8:20, 9:45. Sun: 11:30, 12:45, 2:00, 3:15, 4:40, 5:45, 7:15, 8:20. Mon-Thur: 2:00, 3:15, 4:40, 5:45, 7:15, 8:20.

Babylon (R): Fri-Thur: 3:45.

Avatar Way of Water* (PG13): Fri: 1:30, 3:00/3D, 4:30, 5:30/3D 7:00/3D, 8:30, 9:30. Sat: 11:00, 12:30, 1:30/3D, 3:00/3D, 4:30, 5:30/3D 7:00/3D, 8:30, 9:30. Sun: 11:00, 12:30, 1:30/3D, 3:00/3D, 4:30, 5:30/3D 7:00/3D, 8:30. Mon-Wed: 1:30, 3:00/3D, 4:30, 5:30/3D, 7:00/3D, 8:30. Thur: 1:30, 3:00/3D, 4:30, 7:00/3D, 8:30..

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (PG13): Fri, Mon-Thur: 7:45. Sat/Sun: 12:15, 7:45.

Plane* (R): Thur: 6:00, 8:40.

Avatar Way of Water* (PG13): Fri: 1:25/3D, 4:15, 5:30/3D, 8:15/3D, 9:15.Sat: 12:15, 1:25/3D, 4:15, 5:30/3D, 8:15/3D, 9:15. Sun: 12:15, 1:25/3D, 4:15, 5:30/3D, 8:15/3D. Mon-Thur: 1:25/3D, 4:15, 5:30/3D, 8:15/3D.

M3GAN* (PG13): Fri: 1:35, 3:00, 4:05, 5:30, 6:45, 8:00, 9:30.Sat: 12:30, 1:35, 3:00, 4:05, 5:30, 6:45, 8:00, 9:30.Sun: 12:30, 1:35, 3:00, 4:05, 5:30, 6:45, 8:00.Mon-Thur: 1:35, 3:00, 4:05, 5:30, 6:45, 8:00.

THE MOTIVATION

As much as he shies from attention, everyone who hopes or worries about the future of Dos Pueblos wants to know what makes Roger Himovitz tick. Only after much cajoling did he open up to me for this article, and we’ve known each other since 2003, when we participated in a wild fundraising bicycle trek from the Bolivian Andes to the Amazon with middle school students, including his own daughter.

Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody (PG13): Fri, Mon-Thur: 4:15, 7:30. Sat/Sun: 1:00, 4:15, 7:30.

Puss in Boots* (PG): Fri, Mon-Wed: 4:00, 5:10, 6:30, 7:45. Sat/Sun: 12:10, 1:30, 4:00, 5:10, 6:30, 7:45. Thur: 4:00, 5:10, 6:30.

The Menu (R): Fri, Mon-Thur: 5:30, 8:05. Sat/Sun: 12:20, 2:55, 5:30, 8;:5.

The Old Way (R): Fri, Mon-Thur: 5:20, 7:55. Sat/Sun: 12:15, 2:45, 5:20, 7:55.

Sat: 1:00, 4:30, 8:00. Tues: 4:30, 8:00.

Plane* (R): Thur: 7:45.

805-682-6512

The Whale (R): Fri, Mon-Thur : 4:45, 7:30. Sat/Sun:2:00, 4:45, 7:30.

Empire of Light (R): Fri, Mon-Thur: 4:30, 7:15. Sat/Sun: 1:45, 4:30, 7:15.

ARLINGTON

1317 STATE STREET SANTA BARBARA 805-963-9580

Avatar Way of Water* (PG13): Fri-Thur: 3:00, 7:00.

A Man Called Otto* (PG13): Fri, Mon-Thur: 4:30, 7:30. Sat/Sun: 1:30, 4:30, 7:30.

Babylon (R): Fri, Mon-Thur: 4:05, 7:45. Sat/Sun: 12:15, 4:05, 7:45.

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (PG13): Fri, Mon-Thur: 4:15, 8:05. Sat/Sun: 12:30, 4:15, 8:05.

The Fabelmans (PG13): Fri, Mon-Thur: 4:00, 7:20. Sat/Sun: 12:40, 4:00, 7:20.

“My belief is that people have become disconnected to our environment,” Himovitz explained to me over the phone on a conference call with attorney Rob Egenolf, his right-hand man in this project. “If we’re going to survive as a species, it’s going to be because we recognize how interdependent we are on the land. It’s important to me to continue to do these conservationoriented projects to preserve the land from overdevelopment and to reconnect people to it. That’s what my vision for the Dos Pueblos Institute is, and that is really from where my motivation comes.”

Born in Los Angeles but raised in the San Joaquin Valley town of Hanford, Himovitz attended college in Alabama during the heady 1960s, marching and getting arrested with Martin Luther King Jr. in Selma on Bloody Sunday. Eventually graduating from UC Berkeley in 1968, he volunteered to serve for the Navy Seabees during the Vietnam War instead of attending law school, and returned to work in his family’s construction business. That led to real estate development, mostly in San Luis Obispo County. Though never thinking he’d become a family man, Himovitz married Robin Pattis almost 40 years ago, and they had four kids, raised primarily in Montecito.

His affinity for the Gaviota Coast concretized in 2000, when he purchased El Capitan Canyon and turned the simple campground popular with RV owners into a world-class glamping operation, with

cozy cabins, daily activities, and an on-site restaurant. Though many feared the changes initially, the general consensus is that El Cap is an environmentally appropriate use of that canyon. A cornerstone accomplishment was conserving the surrounding 2,500 acres, which are now part of El Capitan State Beach. Himovitz used the knowledge he gained in working with land trusts which can preserve properties while providing tax benefits and even cash to landowners to protect more acreage in the ensuing years. To date, he’s been involved in conserving about 10,000 acres.

Dos Pueblos Ranch landed on Himovitz’s radar long ago. Its history is legendary, from the ChumashCabrillo connection to the Irishman-turned-Californio Nicolas Den, who was deeded the initial 15,500

IRISHMAN COMETH: Irish-born Nicolas Den was deeded the initial acreage of Rancho Dos Pueblos Ranch back in 1842.

TWO TOWNS: A map of the Chumash villages, Mikiw and Kuya’mu, that sat at the mouth of today’s Dos Pueblos Canyon.

Paseo Nuevo

acres by the Mexican government in 1842. The 20th century’s owners included oil magnate Stan Mosher who drilled critical wells into the side of the Santa Ynez Mountains and developed the orchid-growing business and Rudi Schulte, a German watchmaker-turnedmedical device inventor who bought the ranch’s main 2,800 acres in 1977. (Read Santa Barbara’s Royal Rancho by Walker A. Tompkins for 276 pages of further detail.)

Schulte died in 2005, long after diversifying beyond lemons into avocado, cherimoya, and macadamia nuts. In 2010, his family put the entirety of the ranch which Schulte had grown back to nearly 12,500 acres, most of it on the mountainside of 101 on the market for $155 million.

A decade later, Himovitz’s interest focused on the 214 seaside acres, but buying even that small slice of the royal rancho took years to iron out. Due to a complicated menagerie of lot splits, easements, water rights, and so forth, Egenolf the attorney told me that it was “one of the most complex transactions I’ve ever been involved with.”

When the purchase became public on December 31, 2021, the price was not disclosed, but it was last listed for $40 million. Himovitz may acquire other properties as well, the most obvious candidate being the Dos Pueblos Orchid Farm, which occupies more than 50 acres in the middle of the existing ranch.

THE MISSION

The Dos Pueblos Institute was launched in conjunction with the purchase. Its official mission is “creating and fostering public/private and community partnerships to enhance environmentally responsible uses, including but not limited to providing a critical piece for future completion of the California Coastal Trail, environmental justice initiatives, Chumash Tribal access for ceremonial purposes, cultural preservation, and education, and the establishment of a retreat center to serve as a living laboratory and thought center for the exploration of these organizing principles.”

In charge of bringing these lofty goals to life is the institute’s director, Geoff Alexander, who served as the Santa Barbara County’s film com-

DETAILED HISTORY: Walter A. Tompkins gets deep in Dos Pueblos lore in this book.

missioner from 2008 to 2018 and then started his own filming locations company. He was introduced to the ranch while handling various shoots and then was asked to help with an assessment of the property’s buildings and infrastructure. That evolved into the director job.

“I was looking for a second act, personally, that would be more meaningful,” explained Alexander of his career shift. “I like locations work; it’s interesting, but it doesn’t feed my soul. It sounds cheesy, but the most rewarding things I’ve done in my life have been mentoring students and coaching youth sports, where you just see kids achieving growth on a personal level. I was looking for something like that.”

He’s making quick headway on the education front, working with NatureTrack and Wilderness Youth Project to bring kids and people with disabilities out to the ranch. He’s hosted volunteers with the Gaviota Coast Conservancy to count butterflies in the eucalyptus groves and engaged with environmental consultant Larry Hunt to conduct a biological assessment of the property. And he’s the one who invited Aleqwel Mendoza out for the winter solstice season, keeping in line with the access that the Schulte family often allowed for Chumash visitors.

More complicated, and costly, will be the restoration of the ranch’s physical structures, many of which are of incredible historic importance and most of which are in utter disrepair. Another more nuanced challenge will be bringing regenerative agriculture to Dos Pueblos in a meaningful way, and developing a native plant nursery is likely to be more difficult than it sounds.

This seemingly endless string of well-intentioned ideas for Dos Pueblos is dizzying, but the biggest question of all is how they are going to pay for it. “Can we create an economic model that will generate enough money to pay for the purchase of the land and create the opportunities for access and education and so on?” asked Himovitz. “All of the things we want to do are predicated on that.”

With intensive development not on the table this time, that means enhancing the existing operations, which include the avocado and cherimoya orchards, The Cultured Abalone aquaculture company, rental income from the handful of residences, and as a location for advertising, film, and television shoots. That won’t pay all of the bills, though.

A major potential profit-driver would be hosting more private events, which have happened at Dos Pueblos for as long as anyone can remember, though

perhaps not always with the right permits. (Currently, the ranch is only hosting nonprofit fundraisers, which are allowed.) The idea of a campground also came up in early conversations with the county. But beyond all that, the ideas grow more vague and off-the-cuff, from museums to farm stays to beach access fees.

With so many possibilities on the horizon, Alexander agreed that it’s really hard to be patient.

“We want to do big things, and we’d like to do them quickly,” he said. “But we really have to understand the land and what it needs, the stakeholders and what they need, and what we can do and what we should do.”

THE MOVES

Whatever is proposed will be thoroughly vetted by planners and the public at large, who are already watching the property like hawks. The ranch got its first taste of community controversy last summer, when Dos Pueblos hosted the filming of television’s Love Island, a raunchy dating game program. Content critiques aside, neighbors complained about the bustling activity, including big white tents and bright lights at night that were visible from the highway.

“People were unhappy,” admitted Alexander, who said the complaints were immediately addressed and stressed that Love Island was the first film production in the history of Santa Barbara County to have a biological monitor. “I feel like we did a stellar job and they left the place better than how they found it.”

Doug Kern, the director of the Gaviota Coast Conservancy, was satisfied with the fixes. “They were responsive,” he explained. “I’m grateful for that.”

As a regional watchdog, Kern is building a direct relationship with the Dos Pueblos team and is “really supportive” of their initial concepts. “When they have something they want to talk to us about, we engage, and when we have something, we feel free to pick up the phone,” said Kern. “We’re open to talk with them at any time and engage in informal ways.”

The former head of a nonprofit in San Francisco that helped shape the development of the Presidio into a national park, Kern knows acutely about the convergence of public access, education, and restoration, both for old buildings and natural landscapes. He’s also well aware of the need for income to pay for maintenance and programming. “We’ve had conversations with them about wanting to have something reasonable,” said Kern. “But, of course, there is nothing out there for us to react to yet.”

THE BIG HOUSE: The architectural and social centerpiece of Dos Pueblos is the Casa Grande, a five-bedroom, seven-bath mansion.

There’s plenty of potential synergy between Dos Pueblos and the evolving mission of the GCC. “We’ve been known for making sure that inappropriate development didn’t happen so we could preserve the landscape,” said Kern. “But we’ve gone further in the last three years to help ranchers and farmers stay on their property and make it sustainable so that developers can’t come in and take over. It was a process for us to go from just saying ‘No’ to saying that we want to see permanent protection of these coastal properties.”

That proactive strategy aligns with the Community Environmental Council’s push for “climate-smart” agriculture along the Gaviota Coast and the rest of Santa Barbara County. They’re working with willing landowners on compost applications, managed grazing, and other initiatives that sequester carbon while keeping ranching viable.

“We have relatively intact ecosystems on those rangelands,” said the CEC’s Molly Taylor, who runs the climate-smart ag program. “Economic stability is the number-one factor that’s protecting that land from being converted into more intensive crops like grapes or row crops that have higher greenhouse-gas emissions. But it’s also preventing those areas from being developed.”

She’s yet to speak to anyone from Dos Pueblos but was encouraged to hear that they are already talking about regenerative agriculture. Though increasingly popular in environmental circles, regenerative can still be a tough sell to landowners who’ve farmed conventionally for generations.

“Farmers are adapting every day. They understand why adaptation is necessary,” explained Taylor. “There just has not been a very clearly articulated road map of how to get them there and how to really provide the adequate financial incentives and technical assistance to make that transition viable.” One day, if regenerative goes from an idea to reality at Dos Pueblos, the ranch will be a stop on that regenerative road map.

THE MESSAGE

Down the road, Himovitz hopes that the Dos Pueblos Institute will become a stop for environmental thinkers from across the globe, a comfortable but casual place to share ideas across disciplines, and a laboratory for testing strategies for land conservation, restoration, and education. While there is no exact model to follow, he envisions something like the Aspen Institute or the Chautauqua Institution, with an emphasis on reconnecting people to the land.

“I think we can create a model that is specific to Santa Barbara and the Gaviota Coast, but that is scalable,” said Himovitz. “I don’t know what that’s gonna look like, but I’m hoping we can create a venue and environment in which the smartest people in the world can get together and figure it out.”

He witnessed the power of such collaborations in the early days at El Capitan Canyon, when he co-hosted a global summit for refugee aid workers. “It was a seminal event in my life,” said Himovitz, remembering that those conversations led to actual and immediate solutions that persist to this day, such as matching the mouths of water bottles to standard water pipes, thereby eliminating waste while reducing mud and insects. “Simple things like that come out of bringing people together.”

For Himovitz, and everyone else, the Dos Pueblos Institute will ultimately be judged by what it does, not just what it says. “I don’t want to build a think-tank,” said Himovitz. “I want to build a do-tank.”

Sponsored by Jerry and Elaine Gibson, Knight Real Estate Group of Village Properties, First Republic Bank, Kathleen Kalp and Jim Balsitis, Kelly and Tory Milazzo

COVID-19 VENUE POLICY

THURSDAY 1/5

1/5: Art Matters

Lecture: Art in California Professor in the History of Art & Architecture at UCSB Jenni Sorkin will discuss the distinctive role the state played in the history of American art, from early 20th-century photography and Chicanx mural painting to the fiber art movement and beyond. 5:306:30pm. Mary Craig Auditorium, S.B. Museum of Art, 1130 State St. Free$15. Call (805) 963-4364. tickets.sbma.net

1/5:

S.B. Blues Fusion New Year

Dance Get into the groove with a night of blues fusion and some West Coast swing with friends, fun, and food. The first 45 minutes will be an all-levels class. 7-11pm. Soul Bites, 423 State St. $5-$10. tinyurl.com/BluesFusionJan5

1/5: AIA Santa Barbara Design Awards Exhibition Opening

1/6-1/7: M.Special Brewing Co. (Goleta) Fri.: Larry Williams & The Groove. Sat.: Kathleen Sleek & the Paradise Road Band, 6-8pm. 6860 Cortona Dr, Goleta. Free. Call (805) 968-6500.

mspecialbrewco.com/ goleta-taproom

1/6: Pali Wine Co. Live music. 6-8pm. 116 E. Yanonali St., Ste. A-1. Free. Ages 21+. Call (805) 560-7254.

urbanwinetrailsb.com/events

1/6: Uptown Lounge The Trio, 5-7pm. 3126 State St. Free. Call (805) 845-8800. uptownlounge805.com/events

1/7-1/8: Cold Spring Tavern Sat.: Oddly Straight, 1:30-4:30pm; Cadillac Angels, 5-8pm. Sun.: Tom Ball and Kenny Sultan, 1:30-4:30pm. 5995 Stagecoach Rd. Free. Call (805) 967-0066. coldspringtavern.com

1/7: Figueroa Mountain Brew Co. (S.B.) The New Vibe, 7pm. 137 Anacapa St. Free Call (805) 324-4461. figmtnbrew.com/events

1/7: Maverick Saloon Carmen & The Renegade Vigilantes, 8:30-11:30pm. 3687 Sagunto St., Santa Ynez. Free. Ages 21+. Call (805) 686-4785. mavericksaloon .com/event-calendar/

1/7,

1/10: SOhO Restaurant & Music

Club Sat.: Doctor Wu Playing the Music of Steely Dan, 6-7:30pm. $25. Ages 21+; Me Sabor Presents Orquesta Latin Soul, Salsa class: 9pm; show: 10pm. $18-$25. Ages 21+. Tue.: Antonio Artese’s West Coast Trio, 7pm. $18-$20. 1221 State St. Call (805) 962-7776. sohosb.com/events

1/9: Red Piano Church on Monday: RJ Mischo, 7:30pm. 519 State St. Free Call (805) 358-1439. theredpiano.com

The American Institute of Architects’ (AIA) annual juried Design Awards Program will honor the work of its membership. View entries in 10 categories such as Commercial Buildings, Conservation Projects, Small Projects, and more with three levels of recognition. Drawings from the Architectural Foundation of S.B.’s “Kids Draw Architecture” program will be exhibited alongside Design Award submissions. The exhibition will be open through January 30. 5:30-7pm. Faulkner Gallery, S.B. Central Library, 40 E. Anapamu St. Free Call (805) 966-4198 or email info@aiasb. com tinyurl.com/AIASBreception

Reception

1/6:

FRIDAY 1/6

Annual Solvang Julefest Tree

Burn Join for community at this annual tradition. 5-7pm. Old Mission Santa Inés, 1760 Mission Dr., Solvang. Free solvangjulefest.org

MONDAY 1/9

1/9: Honed Knife Skills Class Learn about knife selection, usage, care, and maintenance, including foundational vegetable and fruit cuts, segment, and coring. The meal served will be garlic roasted chicken, roasted potatoes, salad, and apple & pear cobbler. 6:30-9:30pm. 619 E. Gutierrez St. $65. Call (805) 318-9056 or email info@HEATculinary.com tinyurl.com/HonedKnifeSkills

VICTORIA SNIDER by & TERRY ORTEGA

RJ Mischo

living

Techniques Ancient Farming Lessons for the Future

Though UCSB doles out plenty of awards to faculty and students every year, they almost never go to citizen scientists, those folks who help academics collect data and provide critical insights while going about their daily lives. But next week, UCSB’s longtime leader Henry Yang will bestow the university’s top medal upon Narciso Torres, a Maya forest gardener and longtime collaborator with archaeologist Anabel Ford who will receive the Chancellor’s Award on January 12.

“We knew he had a wonderful garden and were delighted to have him work with us,” Ford said. “Over the years, we realized he was our teacher and we were learning from him. His observation skills are subtle, and his knowledge rivals ecologists’. Every situation we encounter, he will assess it from a perspective that will seem novel to me but evident to him. He can return to an exact spot without a compass or GPS. He can tell how soon the rains will arrive, he can identify the ancient Maya presence without doubt, and he can interpret potentials of soil without a pH test!”

“Chancellor Yang is highlighting the importance of different ways of knowing and seeing,” explains Ford, who’s built a legendary career around her discoveries at El Pilar in western Belize. After achieving initial acclaim for unearthing the ancient ruins on the border of Guatemala, Ford soon realized that there was more to learn from people like Torres, who rely on generational knowledge to cultivate the region’s flora and fauna in sustainable ways that have much to teach us today.

“In this award,” said Ford, “the academy is opening its eyes and welcoming traditions born of the basic scientific method of trial and error, recognizing the wide range of contributions to the world of science.”

Torres and Ford met in the early 1980s, when she was surveying the area where he lived. Her field director, Scott Fedick, hired Torres as part of the team and learned that he was growing cacao trees, among other native species. “I got hooked and I can’t get unhooked,” said Torres with a smile via a video call last month, while a rainstorm pelted his home in Belize.

With the rise of regenerative farming and a broad public desire for more ecofriendly methods of everything, Torres’s lessons are increasingly relevant. “I’m seeing that young kids are getting more in tune with what this means,” he explained, but life often gets in the way, as people are pulled away to careers in the big cities. “Children are very, very happy when they are outdoors and playing with plants, but I think we’ve broken that love. Some can do it and some want to do it, but they don’t have the opportunity.”

Ford recognizes this better than most. “Even in Santa Barbara, we don’t respect farming like we should. The average age of the forest gardener is quite old. But if we don’t capture that knowledge now, we could lose it forever.”

This will only be the second time that Torres has visited the United States the first time was just last year. He has a full schedule of visits to farms and historic sites around Santa Barbara, where he’ll certainly be sharing his wisdom with all who listen.

“We are losing so much,” said Torres of the plant species he cultivates, which are often slashed and burned by more industrial agriculture. “We are destroying them with chemicals. We are using things that are not Mother Nature.” Yet he remains jovial and hopeful, explaining, “We want to see a better life for our future generations.”

Master forest gardener Narciso Torres (left) and UCSB’s Anabel Ford at El Pilar

SPENCER BRUTTIG

Spiritual Reflections on the Debris Flow

My Life

Shortly after 3 a.m. on January 9, 2018, an intense downpour fell on the foothills above Montecito, where just a month before, the Thomas Fire had incinerated the native vegetation, creating a geological force most of us had never witnessed: a “debris flow.”

Defined as “a fast-moving mass of material slurries of water, rock, soil, vegetation, and even boulders and trees that moves downhill by sliding, flowing and/or falling,” that debris flow would soon become a defining tragedy for our community.

the debris flow. Fourteen acres of our historic property were wiped clean by the flow. Nine buildings disappeared, including the two-story administration building that had been designed to withstand floods and earthquakes. Crushed oak trees were everywhere.

The flow propelled a large boulder through the wall of the historic chapel, filling it with mud and broken furniture. The crucifix, calm and still as it overlooked the scene, was untouched; photos of it went viral. For many people, the chapel scene became an image of both tragic destruction and transcendence amid suffering.

It quickly became clear that we would not be able to operate again. Our staff of 45 was cut by two-thirds as we began to assess our future. More layoffs soon followed. Eventually, a decision was made to completely shut the facility down until a later date. I retired that summer.

In the weeks after the event, I walked the property, trying to fathom all that had happened. I looked for lessons I could draw from this experience. I came up with four.

EMBRACE ENVIRONMENTAL HUMILITY

Brigade” rose out of the chaos to become both a symbol and a force for resilience and renewal; it played a critical role in removing mud and debris across our campus, including vital work to save the magnificent oaks. As David Brooks has said, our fragmented digital life shapes us into isolated individuals, but we can resist that trend; instead, we can “overinvest in friendships.” In frightening and challenging times, it’s other people we need. Treasure your friends and neighbors every day.

WELCOME MOMENTS OF CONNECTIVITY

As a pastor and former Director of Hospice of Santa Barbara, I have witnessed the ways people face mortality many times. If people have time to reflect, they often go deep within themselves and discover what really matters in life. This frequently becomes a spiritual quest. When people do clarify their deepest beliefs and values, they often experience a sense of inner peace and a new appreciation for both nature and other people. Sitting alone outside in the afternoon, a slight breeze passes, and it feels like a sign of grace. The person who comes to our door to help can seem like an angel. What is true for our individual experiences is also true when we face disasters. When we find our spiritual core, we begin to recognize other people, including strangers, as members of our human family.

BE DETERMINED TO CLAIM YOUR INTEGRITY

In the hours following the rain burst, the debris flow grew as high as 15 feet as it surged down the canyons at speeds up to 20 miles per hour. It consumed everything in its path. Huge sandstone boulders were swept along like ping-pong balls. It uprooted dozens of oak trees and obliterated buildings. The fast-moving wall of mud and debris became a liquid battering ram as it headed toward the sea.

It happened in the darkness of night, so there is hardly any video record of what it looked like. It wasn’t until morning that the extent of the destruction began to be understood.

As it turned out, 23 people died, two were never accounted for, and 163 were hospitalized; more than 100 homes were destroyed and more than 300 were damaged; and Highway 101 was closed for two weeks.

I was Director at La Casa de Maria Retreat and Conference Center at the time. La Casa is on a 26-acre parcel adjacent to San Ysidro Creek and was in the direct path of

Modern industrial culture has assumed it can do whatever it pleases, “taming” nature if nature gets in the way. We build homes wherever we want, consume natural resources as quickly as we please, and assume we’ll find technological fixes for any problem. This arrogance is no longer viable. We must return to a state of mind where we revere and respect the natural forces and ecosystems we are part of and live our lives accordingly.

INVEST IN FRIENDSHIPS AND COMMUNITY

Whether it’s floods, wildfires, or COVID, one of the keys to survival is support found from friends, family, neighbors, and communities. Hundreds of people sent messages of concern and pledges of support to La Casa never had we realized how much the property meant to so many. The “Bucket

Several years ago, I read a piece by a Navy SEAL who helped other vets get through PTSD experiences. He believed we have an option when we face hardship. Do we ask, “How will this affect me?” and passively let circumstances determine who we become? Or do we say, “Facing these challenges, how can I respond in a way that will help me become the person I want to be?” After the debris flow, all of us who loved and served La Casa became determined to see it rebuilt and reopened because we knew how valuable it is. I am now part of a group that is working to make that happen. We hope La Casa will emerge stronger than ever after enduring so much and look forward to sharing our plans when the time is right.

Embracing environmental humility, investing in friendships and community, going deep and reaching for unity, and having the determination to claim our integrity these are the lessons I learned from the Montecito debris flow.

We are well into the climate change era, regularly facing wildfires, floods, and disasters of all kinds, including the COVID pandemic. I believe these four lessons can help us find our way. I look forward to a reawakened La Casa de Maria that will host individuals, families, and groups to engage in

these lessons.

by Steve Jacobsen

STEVE JOCOBSEN PHOTOS

The labyrinth at La Casa de Maria remained untouched by the debris flow, ”which is symbolic of the process we go through in grief, recovery, and discovery,” said Steve Jacobsen.

Abe Powell gives an orientation to members of the Santa Barbara Bucket Brigade early in the recovery process.

Vega

FOOD & DRINK

Return to Historic Form

The bromance that’s brewing between experienced Southern California restaurateur Demetrios “Jimmy” Loizides and veteran Santa Barbara County vintner Steve Clifton may be the most valuable asset in the ongoing quest to bring Vega Vineyard & Farm back to its legendary 19th-century prominence. But it’s far from the only gas fueling the drive to revive this old property alongside Highway 101 just south of Buellton, which was owned and operated by Mosby Winery for nearly five decades.

There’s the rich history of Rancho de la Vega, which

ton is the glue for this endeavor. They relish in the Old World customs — Jimmy in Greece, specifically, and Steve in Italy — that see wine and food as the same. They raise their kids at the same school in Ballard, which is how they met. They love live music, from Jimmy’s heavy metal (he recently flew to North Carolina to see Iron Maiden) to Steve’s ska and punk rock (his first career was as a singer). And they share the lockstep vision and infectious passion for Vega Vineyard that will be needed to earn attention and customers in a wine country with so many established competitors.

“This has been here much longer than any of us,” explained Clifton one sunny afternoon in October, just a couple weeks after the property opened to the public. “It’s being brought back into its glory.”

Their shared skill set is ideal for such an endeavor. Loizides, who purchased the property in April with his wife, Karen, brings hospitality operations to the table. Though Cypriot Greek by heritage, he was raised in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe when it was still Rhodesia, and he came to Southern California at 16 years old, fleeing that country’s revolution.

involves the Cuesta and Cota families, features the 13-room adobe that they built in 1853, and was home to one of the Santa Ynez Valley’s first doctors, known for treating good guys as well as banditos. That lore conveys serious Zorro vibes, at least according to Clifton, referring to Don Diego de la Vega, which is the true identity of the fictional masked man from the romanticized Californio era. “This is the place where that whole thing started,” claimed Clifton, with a smirk.

There are 21 acres of existing grapevines, including what’s believed to be the oldest existent vineyard roots in the county, first planted back in 1966. (Those 1964 vines at Nielson Vineyard in the Santa Maria Valley were recently ripped out.) There’s a bustling kitchen, helmed by Chef Erik Thurman, who’s highlighting produce grown both on-site and at the Loizides home farm nearby. And there’s nothing but room for growth, as the property’s various structures and settings open up countless hospitality possibilities — and the pre-winery ordinance deed came with some of the grandfatheredin permits that may be required to do so.

But the brotherly love between Loizides and Clif-

Mosby called it for the first few years as well — Clifton was happy to put Palmina and all else to rest. “Everything is all about Vega,” said Clifton, explaining that 2020 was the final Palmina vintage.

Clifton’s reinvigorated energy is readily apparent as he shows off his first Vega bottlings, quite possibly the best he’s made in years. There’s tongue-tingling albariño and vermentino, dark-hued rosé and a comforting white blend, regionally classic chardonnay and pinot, and then the array of Italians, including sangiovese, barbera, and nebbiolo. That’s just a few of the 14 wines under the Vega brand, much of which comes from the 16 acres that Clifton has historically leased around Santa Barbara County. As he brings estate grapes like montepulciano back into form, there will be even more to share, amounting to about 3,500 cases annually at full speed.

“I want to show everything that Santa Barbara County can do,” said Clifton, admitting that the region’s ability to grow many different grapes well isn’t always the easiest argument to make. “In one way, it’s confusing,” he said of all the varieties. “In another way, it’s the most exciting thing.”

I found the dolcetto most ideal for the setting, which included plates of Stepladder cheeses, roasted heirloom carrots, tomatoes with bleu cheese and balsamic, and wood-fired flatbreads, all presented by general manager Kara Teel, who keeps this complex operation in line. “This fills every single hole that pinot noir should fill, but we don’t have to talk about it,” said Clifton of the dolcetto’s fresh, fruity, and fun but ultimately unpretentious character. Said Loizides, “My favorite is the dolcetto, and I’m not a big drinker.”

BYMATTKETTMANN

He went from busboy to district manager of the then-prominent Mexican restaurant chain Red Onion, and, with his extended family, opened a Long Beach Greek restaurant called George’s Greek Café in 1999. After expanding George’s to two more locations, the Loizides moved to the Santa Ynez Valley almost 12 years ago to raise their family. They decided to buy the Maverick Saloon in 2017 and opened an event space in Solvang called K’Syrah, which turned into Sear Steakhouse during the pandemic. Upon selling the restaurant, the Loizides used the funds to buy the old Mosby Winery, which had been on the market even before pioneer Bill Mosby died at 89 in June 2020.

Clifton, meanwhile, was ready for the next step in his already exemplary winemaking career. He co-founded pinot noir powerhouse brand Brewer-Clifton with Greg Brewer in the 1990s and simultaneously became the darling of the Cal-Ital movement with his brand Palmina, renowned for showcasing Italian grapes like nebbiolo, arneis, and barbera. He launched other personal projects over the years, like La Voix, consulted for numerous wineries, and was equally respected for his culinary skills, sending out recipes with Palmina wine club shipments and cooking at his pickup parties.

When Loizides came to Clifton with the idea to buy Mosby and bring back Vega — which is actually what

We then meandered around the 212acre property, through the massive adobe that’s being remodeled into a vacation rental; onto plazas and through barns perfect for events; past the likely locations of farm stands, glamping sites, hayrides routes, and hiking trails; and up into the vines that overlook 101 and surround a tiny chapel full of stunning stained glass. There’s a petting zoo of sorts, with llamas, pigs, goats, rabbits, crested Polish chickens, and a miniature, though still imposing, Scottish Highland steer. And of course we stopped to check out the farm plot, which was still overflowing with carrots, tomatoes, broccoli, and herbs deep into the fall.

For Loizides, that space between the vines on the hillside and the crops on the flatlands is what he wants Vega to represent, as evidenced on a menu far more extensive than most anywhere else in wine country, with braised short rib, smoked quail, and shrimp kabobs amid smaller plates and salads.

“We don’t want to be a winery that does food or a restaurant that does wine,” said Loizides, who views Vega through a cohesive lens much like it was for his parents’ village in Cyprus, where “everything was together.” That, apparently, can go for people too. Admitted Loizides, “I would have never done this if it weren’t for working with Steve.”

9496 Santa Rosa Rd., Buellton; (805) 688-2415; vegavineyardandfarm.com

FARM TO VINEYARD: Jimmy and Karen Loizides purchased the old Mosby Vineyard last year and are turning it into Vega Vineyard & Farm.

Join Santa Barbara Public Library and the SantaBarbaraIndependent for a Book Club Extravaganza! Hear from SBPL librarians about the new, upcoming Book Club in a Bag sets and get early access to the holds list, learn about the Library’s book club picks for Fiction, Crime, and Romance as well as special book club discussions happening throughout the year. Mix and mingle with other readers, get personalized recommendations for books

book club will love from SBPL librarians, and check out books from the Library on the Go van.

Rhythmic Assertions and Suggestions at Solvang’s Elverhøj Rhythmic Assertions and Suggestions at Solvang’s Elverhøj

horn player improvising atop the foundation laid down by a rhythm section. “Explosive Cadence” manifests its title with morph ing forms, seeming to be coming undone, splattering active new shapes and melodies, figuratively speaking?

Two larger paintings “Quartal” and “Modulation” (another musical cross-reference) find the artist dealing more directly with the art of layering and discovering a painting finding its form. (As Zorthian says in a statement, “the first brushstroke usually becomes the soul of my painting … ”) For these epic-scaled pieces, the painter describes the process of laying the canvas on the studio floor and stepping on it to gain a personal interaction and intimate perspective on the unfolding composition.

At first blush, there might not seem to be much thematic or stylistic resonance between painter Seyburn Zorthian and sculptor Aristides Demetrios, currently featured in a two-person exhibition at Solvang’s Elverhøj Museum of History and Art. Zorthian, a respected veteran of the Santa Barbara County art scene, creates post-abstract expressionist canvases with an exuberant spirit. Demetrios, who lived in Solvang and Montecito before passing away in 2021, deals with tidier, expressive pieces in shimmering bronze, often informed by architectural or anatomical themes.

Differences aside, the pair does make for compatible gallery mates, and the show’s apt title Rhythm + Movement gives us an easy way into appreciating the connection. Both artists deal with implied visual rhythms, sometimes with musical analogies

humming in the background.

For Zorthian, whose range of seminal influences includes the gestural impetus of Japanese calligraphy and jazz, the musical cross-talk is at the fore, especially in pieces with such music-centric titles as “Free Jazz, Bitonality” and her watercolor/gouache piece “Salsa Rhythm.” Musical parallels have been intrinsically linked to art, especially in painting involving degrees of abstraction, from Wassily Kandinsky to Stuart Davis and movements including abstract expressionism and minimalism. Zorthian falls right into sync with the time-honored music-art symbiosis.

In her painting simply named “Improvisation,” a dark hatched background is the base over which bright-colored gestures and freewheeling arabesques swirl on the surface. One can easily make an analogy to the figure-on-ground correlation of a

One of the intrigues of seeing this relatively smaller range of Demetrios’s work, compared to his grand brass fountains at the Monterey Bay Aquarium and his bronze fountain “Mentors,” at Santa Barbara City College, is an intimacy factor. “Between the Lines” is built from radiating spines and arcing lines set at angles, vaguely suggesting fluidity and flight. The subject is more apparent in “Head over Heels,” in which a lithe female figure is perched in an improbable one-hand stand. It projects a freespirited notion, through which, yes, both rhythm and motion play key roles.

—Josef Woodard

Rhythm + Movement is on view at Elverhøj Museum of History and Art (1624 Elverhoy Wy., Solvang) through January 22. For more information and museum hours, visit elverhoj .org.

ABSTRACT X AT SANTA BARBARA TENNIS CLUB

The Abstract 10 an ever-evolving group of artists who specialize in using the visual vocabulary of form, color, shape, and line to go beyond representational art have a new show on view at Santa Barbara Tennis Club from January 7 through March 1, with an artists’ reception on Friday, January 13, from 4:30-6 p.m.

Artists in this vibrant group include Lee Anne Dollison, whose current work reflects her alarm at the deteriorating state of our planet; Karen Frishman, who uses unique shapes and color combinations to create dynamic abstract art; and Jane Gottlieb, whose colorful combinations of painting, photography, and collage were featured on the cover of the Independent last month. Hepzibah Micheals’s abstract paintings embody “a visual synthesis of stored memory,” according to her artist statement, while Sharon Morrow’s assemblage work reflects her interest in old and unique materials and ephemera.

Additional art on view is from Judy Neunuebel, who works primarily in water media, collage, and assemblage; Sarita Reynolds, whose paintings center on using texture, color, and depth; Marcia Rickard, who brings her PhD in medieval art to the

canvas; Wanda Venturelli, who utilizes oils, sumi and India inks, acrylics, and kiln-formed glass in her bold abstractions; and Joyce Wilson, who blends old-world and contemporary technology using the camera as a sketchbook for the art that unfolds. —Leslie Dinaberg

Abstract X is part of the ongoing 2nd Fridays Art @ SBTC series curated by Susan Tibbles, which features new artists every month. The gallery is open daily from 10 a.m.-7 p.m. For more information, visit 2ndfridaysart.com.

The visual impact of textile art creatively combines with an environmental message about non-native plants introduced to Santa Cruz Island over the years in a new exhibit on view at the Santa Barbara Botanic Garden.

Interlopings: Colors in the Warp and Weft of Ecological Entanglements by artists Helén Svensson and Lisa Jevbratt is a process-based, site-specific collaborative art project combining the traditional techniques of wool dyeing, spinning, and weaving with data visualization.

The resulting weavings all use dyes extracted from nonnative plants including fennel (Foeniculum vulgare), sea fig (Carpobrotus chilensis), blue gum (Eucalyptus globulus), and olive (Olea europaea). Also included is a dye produced from an insect that lives on the non-native prickly pear cactus (Opuntia ficus-indica cactus) cochineal (Dactylopius coccus) and is used to produce carmine, a reddish dye that has been valued throughout the centuries.

Even the sheep that the wool and yarns were gleaned from have a historical connection to Santa Cruz Island. The breed, now called Santa Cruz Island sheep, is believed to have been brought to the island in the mid-19th century for wool and meat production. Eventually becoming feral, they caused so much damage to the landscape that they were removed from the island, according to a statement from the Botanic Garden.

“Santa Cruz Island is undergoing an intensive ecological restoration process. The project explores perceptions of ‘invasive species’ and aims to complicate questions regarding who and what belongs on that island and by extension on any island, real or imagined,” said Svensson, a Swedish artist who collaborated with fellow artist Jevbratt, who is also a professor of art at UC Santa Barbara.

“We are investigating the complex and intertwined influence humans have on our ecosystems, and the aesthetic, emotional, magical, and medicinal interrelationships between humans, plants and color,” said Svensson. —LD

Interlopings: Colors in the Warp and Weft of Ecological Entanglements is on view at Santa Barbara Botanic Garden’s Pritzlaff Conservation Center Gallery through March 12. Advance reservations are required for non-Garden members and can be made at sbbotanicgarden.org/visit.

Works by Aristides Demetrios and Seyburn Zorthian comprise the Rhythm + Movement exhibit on view at Elverhøj Museum of History and Art.

JOSEF WOODARD

S.B. BOTANIC GARDEN

These weavings are now on view at Santa Barbara Botanic Garden

“Seed Morphology” by Wanda Venturelli is part of the Abstract X exhibit at Santa Barbara Tennis Club.

COURTESY

SANTA BARBARA INDEPENDENT ’S NICHE NEWSLETTERS

Matt Kettmann’s Full Belly Files serves up multiple courses of food & drink coverage every Friday, delivering tasty nuggets of restaurant, recipe, and refreshment wisdom.

A snapshot view of the best of local culture and fun happenings in the worlds of music, theater, visual art, film, dance, books, lectures, and more from Culture Editor Leslie Dinaberg.

Sarah Sinclair will give you the inside scoop on real estate, going behind the scenes each Sunday to see our region’s casitas, cottages, and castles.

An all-things music and music-adjacent newsletter/column by music/arts journalist-critic Josef Woodard.

A Saturday morning newsletter with Nick Welsh’s award-winning opinion pieces.

A bi-monthly newsletter from the Santa Barbara Independent exclusively for book lovers.

ASTROLOGY

ARIES

(Mar. 21-Apr. 19): “My life was the best omelet you could make with a chainsaw,” observed flamboyant author Thomas McGuane. That’s a witty way to encapsulate his tumultuous destiny. There have been a few moments in 2022 when you might have been tempted to invoke a similar metaphor about your own evolving story. But the good news is that your most recent chainsaw-made omelet is finished and ready to eat. I think you’ll find its taste is savory. And I believe it will nourish you for a long time. (Soon it will be time to start your next omelet, maybe without using the chainsaw this time!)

TAURUS

(Apr. 20-May 20): After meticulous research of 2023’s astrological omens, I have come to a radical conclusion: You should tell the people who care for you that you’d like to be called by new pet names. I think you need to intensify their ability and willingness to view you as a sublime creature worthy of adoration. I don’t necessarily recommend you use old standbys like “cutie,” “honey,” “darling,” or “angel.” I’m more in favor of unique and charismatic versions, something like “Jubilee” or “Zestie” or “Fantasmo” or “Yowie-Wowie.” Have fun coming up with pet names that you are very fond of. The more, the better.

GEMINI

(May 21-June 20): If I could choose some fun and useful projects for you to master in 2023, they would include the following: (1) Be in constant competition with yourself to outdo past accomplishments. But at the same time, be extra compassionate toward yourself. (2) Borrow and steal other people’s good ideas and use them with even better results than they would use them. (3) Acquire an emerald or two, or wear jewelry that features emeralds. (4) Increase your awareness of and appreciation for birds.

(5) Don’t be attracted to folks who aren’t good for you just because they are unusual or interesting. (6) Upgrade your flirting so it’s even more nuanced and amusing, while at the same time you make sure it never violates anyone’s boundaries.

CANCER

(June 21-July 22): When she was young, Carolyn Forché was a conventional poet focused on family and childhood. But she transformed. Relocating to El Salvador during its civil war, she began to write about political trauma. Next, she lived in Lebanon during its civil war. She witnessed firsthand the tribulations of military violence and the imprisonment of activists. Her creative work increasingly illuminated questions of social justice. At age 72, she is now a renowned human rights advocate. In bringing her to your attention, I don’t mean to suggest that you engage in an equally dramatic self-reinvention. But in 2023, I do recommend drawing on her as an inspirational role model. You will have great potential to discover deeper aspects of your life’s purpose and enhance your understanding of how to offer your best gifts.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Are the characters in Carlos Castañeda’s books on shamanism fictional or real? It doesn’t matter to me. I love the wisdom of his alleged teacher, Don Juan Matus. He said, “Look at every path closely and deliberately. Try it as many times as you think necessary. Then ask yourself, and yourself alone, one question. Does this path have a heart? If it does, the path is good; if it doesn’t, it is of no use.” Don Juan’s advice is perfect for you in the coming nine months, Leo. I hope you will tape a copy of his words on your bathroom mirror and read it at least once a week.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Teacher and author Byron Katie claims, “The voice within is what I’m married to. My lover is the place inside me where an honest yes and no come from.” I happen to know that she has also been married for many years to a writer named Stephen Mitchell. So she has no problem being wed to both Mitchell and her inner voice. In accordance with astrological omens, I invite you to propose marriage to your own inner voice. The coming

year will be a fabulous time to deepen your relationship with this crucial source of useful and sacred revelation

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Libran philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche offered advice that is perfect for you in 2023. It’s strenuous. It’s demanding and daunting. If you take it to heart, you will have to perform little miracles you may not yet have the confidence to try. But I have faith in you, Libra. That’s why I don’t hesitate to provide you with Nietzsche’s rant: “No one can build you the bridge on which you, and only you, must cross the river of life. There may be countless trails and bridges and demigods who would gladly carry you across; but only at the price of pawning and forgoing yourself. There is one path in the world that none can walk but you. Where does it lead? Don’t ask, walk!”

SCORPIO

(Oct. 23-Nov. 21): How might you transform the effects of the limitations you’ve been dealing with? What could you do to make it work in your favor as 2023 unfolds? I encourage you to think about these questions with daring and audacity. The more moxie you summon, the greater your luck will be in making the magic happen. Here’s another riddle to wrestle with: What surrender or sacrifice could you initiate that might lead in unforeseen ways to a plucky breakthrough? I have a sense that’s what will transpire as you weave your way through the coming months in quest of surprising opportunities.

SAGITTARIUS

(Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Sagittarian singer Tina Turner confided, “My greatest beauty secret is being happy with myself.” I hope you will experiment with that formula in 2023. I believe the coming months will potentially be a time when you will be happier with yourself than you have ever been before more at peace with your unique destiny, more accepting of your unripe qualities, more in love with your depths, and more committed to treating yourself with utmost care and respect. Therefore, if Tina Turner is accurate, 2023 will also be a year when your beauty will be ascendant.

CAPRICORN

(Dec. 22-Jan. 19): “I’m homesick all the time,” writes author Sarah Addison Allen. “I just don’t know where home is. There’s this promise of happiness out there. I know it. I even feel it sometimes. But it’s like chasing the moon. Just when I think I have it, it disappears into the horizon.” If you have ever felt pangs like hers, Capricorn, I predict they will fade in 2023. That’s because I expect you will clearly identify the feeling of home you want and thereby make it possible to find and create the place, the land, and the community where you will experience a resounding peace and stability.

AQUARIUS

(Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Storyteller Michael Meade tells us, “The ship is always off course. Anybody who sails knows that. Sailing is being off-course and correcting. That gives a sense of what life is about.” I interpret Meade’s words to mean that we are never in a perfect groove heading directly towards our goal. We are constantly deviating from the path we might wish we could follow with unfailing accuracy. That’s not a bug in the system; it’s a feature. And as long as we obsess on the idea that we’re not where we should be, we are distracted from doing our real work. And the real work? The ceaseless corrections. I hope you will regard what I’m saying here as one of your core meditations in 2023, Aquarius.

PISCES

(Feb. 19-Mar. 20): A Chinese proverb tells us, “Great souls have wills. Feeble souls have wishes.” I guess that’s true in an abstract way. But in practical terms, most of us are a mix of both great and feeble. We have a modicum of willpower and a bundle of wishes. In 2023, though, you Pisceans could make dramatic moves to strengthen your willpower as you shed wimpy wishes. In my psychic vision of your destiny, I see you feeding metaphorical iron supplements to your resolve and determination.

Homework: Visualize in intricate detail a breakthrough you would like to experience by July 2023. Newsletter.FreeWillAstrology.com

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Provides a full range of social work services, with emphasis on identifying treatment resources and providing psychosocial interventions (individual, group, crisis) not offered by other campus resources, to assure that students receive optimal benefit from medical and/or psychiatric care. The primary client population to be served is students with significant psychosocial stress, acute and chronic mental illnesses and in need of short and long term social services, including long term counseling and case management support. Reqs: Must be currently registered as a Licensed Clinical Social Worker in the State of California at all times during employment. Master’s degree from an accredited school of social work; or an equivalent combination of education and experience. Three years of post‑master’s experience; or an equivalent combination of education and experience. Notes: Mandated reporting requirements of Child & Dependent Adult Abuse. Must successfully complete and pass the background check and credentialing process before employment and date of hire. To comply with Santa Barbara County Public Health Department Health Officer Order, this position must provide evidence of annual influenza vaccination, or wear a surgical mask while working in patient care areas during the influenza season. Must have a current CA Licensed Clinical Social Worker license at all times during employment. Any HIPAA or FERPA violation is subject to disciplinary action. Full Salary Range: $77,838.05 ‑ $108,967.01/yr. The University of California is an Equal Opportunity/ Affirmative Action Employer, and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law. Apply online at https://jobs.ucsb. edu Open until filled. Job #41572

Independently implements and manages a wide range of complex fee‑supported programs, certificates and workshops mainly in the international education markets. Will take the leadership of UCSB Extension International Programs area, establishing goals and metrics in conjunction with the Senior Program Manager, overseeing budgets, interfacing with UCSB officials, and working with partner institutions; supervises the Program Managers in charge of daily program maintenance. Actively participates in long‑range strategic planning for International Programs including working with the CE and Extension finance staff to develop and oversee program and course budgets, and, in collaboration with Marketing, drafting the strategy for promoting the programs in their portfolio. Reaches out to international agencies, and crafts agreements for future collaboration. Oversees International Program Managers’ work on course and curriculum, as well as their customer service and outreach activities. Serves as the UCSB extension Principal Designated School Official and, in collaboration with the Customer Services and Outreach Supervisor, using in‑depth knowledge of Homeland Security’s Student and Exchange Visitor Program certification requirements, is responsible for training staff who are assigned the roles of UCSB Extension Designated school officials. Oversees and trains staff on PaCE International Program immigration processes and requirements. Works with Customer Service Manager in establishing practices in customer relationship management, with a focus on international students and agencies. Reqs: Bachelor’s Degree in related area or equivalent experience and/or training. 1‑3 years working experience in producing and delivering international programs.

Notes: US Citizenship/Permanent Residency, a Homeland Security and Immigration Advising Requirement. Satisfactory conviction history

NOW HIRING

background check. Salary offers are determined based on final candidate qualifications and experience; the budget for the position; and application of fair, equitable and consistent pay practices at the University. The full salary range for this position is $55,100.00 ‑ $93,500.00/ yr. The budgeted salary range that the University reasonably expects to pay for this position is $64,000.00 ‑ $68,568.00/yr. The University of California is an Equal Opportunity/ Affirmative Action Employer, and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law. Application review begins 1/5/23. Apply online at https://jobs.ucsb.edu Job # 46740

California is an Equal Opportunity/ Affirmative Action Employer, and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law. Apply online at https://jobs. ucsb.edu Application review begins 1/12/2023. Job #46708

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Inside Sales Administrator

The Independent is seeking an inside sales administrator to join its sales team. This role is responsible for prospecting advertising clients, collecting and processing legal notices, classified ads, open house listings, and maintaining and fulfilling our print subscription database. This position will work full time in our downtown Santa Barbara office, ready to greet and assist our readers and customers.

SR. CUSTODIAN‑ FACILITIES MANAGEMENT FACILITIES MANAGEMENT

Under the supervision of the Custodial Principal Supervisor, performs a wide variety of cleaning tasks and is responsible for minor maintenance and storage of equipment. Required to comply with the Physical Facilities Safety Program. Reqs: Ability to use and care for janitorial supplies and equipment. Able to observe and use safe working conditions. Ability to understand and apply University and Department policies and procedures to specific situations. Ability to exercise sound judgment in solving problems. Ability to accomplish work within deadlines; may handle more than one project at a time. Able to work effectively in a team environment and needs to receive and follow instruction from supervisors. Notes: Days and hours may vary to meet the operational needs of the department. Maintain a valid CA driver’s license, a clean DMV record and enrollment in the DMV Employee Pull‑Notice Program. Satisfactory criminal history background check. May be required to wear a UCSB‑provided uniform. Days/Hours: Monday ‑ Friday 2:00am ‑ 10:30am. Full Salary Range: $21.36/ hr.‑$27.65 Hiring or Budgeted Range: $21.36‑$24.06/hr. The University of

CALENDAR ASSISTANT

The Independent is hiring a part-time calendar assistant to provide support to the calendar editor in getting The Week section to print by curating events and images and writing descriptions. This position assists in maintaining the online calendar and with special issues and guides such as Wedding, Summer Camp, Fiesta, Halloween, and ‘Tis the Season. The calendar assistant helps maintain and contribute to the sbindependent_events Instagram account.

Calendar Assistant skills and abilities include:

• Writing skills and the ability to follow style guidelines

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• Ability to work on multiple projects and meet deadlines

• Support in daily, weekly, project, and department goals

• Attention to detail, initiative and follow-through Please email resume and/or questions to hr@independent.com

Qualified candidates must have a positive attitude and need to be self-motivated and highly organized with outstanding written and verbal communication skills. Responsibilities include providing excellent customer service (through email, on the phone and inperson), attending weekly sales meetings, and data entry with strong attention to detail. Must also be able to work under pressure in a deadline-driven environment and have a basic understanding of marketing and sales.

Compensation will be hourly + commission. Full-time positions include health, dental, and vision insurance, Section 125 cafeteria plan, 401(k), and vacation program.

Please introduce yourself, reasons for interest, and a brief summary of your qualifications, along with your résumé to hr@independent.com No phone calls, please. EOE m/f/d/v.

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ADMINISTER OF ESTATE NOTICE OF PETITION TO ADMINISTER ESTATE OF: MICHAEL L. WILKIE ALSO KNOWN AS MICHAEL LEIGHTON WILKIE.

NO: 22PR00621

To all heirs, beneficiaries, creditors, contingent creditors, and persons who may otherwise be interested in the will or estate, or both of Michael L. Wilkie also known as Michael Leighton Wilkie.

A PETITION FOR PROBATE has been filed by: Grant Leighton Wilkie in the Superior Court of California, County of Santa Barbara.

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THE PETITION FOR PROBATE requests that (name): Grant Leighton Wilkie be appointed as personal representative to administer the estate of the decedent.

THE PETITION requests the decedent’s will and codicils, if any, be admitted to probate. The will and any codicils are available for examiniation in the file kept by the court.

THE PETITION requests authority to administer the estate under the Independent Administration of Estates Act. (This authority will allow the personal representative to take many actions without obtaining court approval. Before taking certain very important actions, however, the personal representative will be required to give notice to interested persons unless they have waived notice or consented to the proposed action.) The Independent administration authority will be granted unless an interested person files an objection to the petition and shows good cause why the court should not grant the authority.

A HEARING ON THE PETITION WILL BE HELD IN THIS COURT AS FOLLOWS: 02/16/2023 AT 9:00 AM, DEPT. 5, SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA COUNTY OF SANTA BARBARA, located at 1100 Anacapa Street, Santa Barbara, CA 93101. Anacapa Division. Anacapa Courthouse.

IF YOU OBJECT to the granting of the petition, you should appear at the hearing and state your objections or file written objections with the court before the hearing. Your appearance may be in person or by your attorney. IF YOU ARE A CREDITOR OR A CONTINGENT CREDITOR OF THE DECEDENT, you must file your claim with the court and mail a copy to the personal representative appointed by the court within the later of either (1) four months from the date of first issuance of letters to a general personal representative, as defined in section 58 (b) of the California Probate Code, or (2) 60 days from the date of mailing or personal delivery to you of a notice under section 9052 of the California Probate Code.

OTHER CALIFORNIA STATUTES AND LEGAL AUTHORITY MAY AFFECT YOUR RIGHTS AS A CREDITOR. YOU MAY WANT TO CONSULT WITH AN ATTORNEY KNOWLEDGEABLE IN CALIFORNIA LAW.

YOU MAY EXAMINE the file kept by the court. If you are a person interested in the estate, you may file with the court a Request for Special Notice (form DE‑154) of the filing of an inventory and appraisal of estate assets or of any petition or account as provided in Probate Code Section 1250. A Request for Special notice form is available from the court clerk.

Attorney for Petitioner: Laurelle M. Gutierrez, Esq., 415 Mission Street Suite 5600, San Francisco, CA 94105 (628) 218‑3883. Published January 5, 12, 19, 2023.

ELECTRONICALLY FILED Superior Court of California, County of Santa Barbara, Darrel E. Parker, Executive Officer, 12/20/2022 by April Garcia, Deputy.

FBN ABANDONMENT

STATEMENT OF ABANDONMENT OF USE OF FICTITIOUS BUSINESS

NAME

The following Fictitious Business Name is being abandoned: GALILEO COACHING, 121 Via Alicia Santa Barbara, CA 93108. The original statement for use of this Fictitious Business Name was filed 7/29/2019 in the County of Santa Barbara. Original File no. FBN2019‑0001822. The persons or entities abandoning use of this name are as follows: Executive to Executive Inc .(same address). The business is conducted as a corporation. SIGNED BY KATHRYN M. DOWNING, PRESIDENT. This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on 12/06/22, FBN2022‑0002930, E47. I hereby certify that this is a correct copy of the original statement on file in the Office of the County Clerk, Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL). Published: December 15, 22, 29, January 5, 2023.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT The following person

(s) is/are doing business as: REFUGIO PATIENT ADVOCACY, 1190 North Refugio Road, Santa Ynez, CA 93460; Ken W. Partch (same address). This business is conducted by an individual. SIGNED BY KEN PARTCH, ADVOCATE. Filed with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on December 15, 2022. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk, Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL). FBN Number: 2022‑0003035 E30. Published: December 22, 29, January 5, 12, 2023.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT The following person (s) is/are doing business as: TRYON GRAPHICS, 1 San Marcos Trout Club, Santa Barbara, CA 93105; Taylor W Cocciolone (same address).This business is conducted by an individual. SIGNED BY TAYLOR COCCIOLONE. Filed with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on December 13, 2022. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk, Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL). FBN Number: 2022‑0003005 E30. Published: December 22, 29, January 5, 12, 2023.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT The following person(s) is/are doing business as: ISLA VISTA FOOD CO‑OP, 6575 Seville Road, Isla Vista, CA 93117; Isla Vista Food Cooperative (same address). This business is conducted by a corporation.

SIGNED BY LISA OGLESBY, PRESIDENT. Filed with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on 12/13/2022. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk, Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL). FBN Number: 2022‑0003001. E30. Published: December 22, 29, January 5, 12, 2023.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT The following person(s) is/ are doing business as: ONYX MONDE BEAUTE, 4928 8th Street, Apt C, Carpinteria, CA 93013; Zaida Catarino Gallardo (same address) This business is conducted by an Individual. SIGNED BY ZAIDA CATARINO GALLARDO, OWNER. Filed in the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on 12/9/2022. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk, Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL). FBN Number: 2022‑0002960. E29. Published: December 22, 29, January 5, 12, 2023.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT

The following person (s) is/are doing business as: STEVE’S TIRE AND AUTO REPAIR, 254 East Highway 246, Buellton, CA 93427; Buellton Garage Inc, 320 Central Ave, Buellton, CA 93427. This business is conducted by a corporation. SIGNED BY JENNIFER HURNBLAD, CFO/ SECRETARY. Filed with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on December 14, 2022. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk, Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL). FBN Number: 2022‑0003025 E30. Published: December 22, 29, January 5, 12, 2023.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: KEN SYMER AUTOMOTIVE, 421 N Nopal St, Santa Barbara, CA 93103; Christian Lozano, 612 Andamar Way, Goleta, CA 93117. This business is conducted by an individual. SIGNED BY CHRISTIAN LOZANO, OWNER. Filed with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on 12/16/2022. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk, Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL). FBN Number: 2022‑0003046. E54. Published: December 22, 29, January 5, 12, 2023.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: WHERE THE BROWS STAY, 130 S Hope Ave, Santa Barbara, CA 93105; Magali Resendiz, 3 Calaveras Ave, Goleta, CA 93117. This business is conducted by an individual.

SIGNED BY MAGALI RESENDIZ. Filed with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on 12/19/2022. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk, Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL).

FBN Number: 2022‑0003050. E35. Published: December 22, 29, January 5, 12, 2023.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT The following person (s) is/are doing business as: SAGE GARDEN CARE, 555 Meadow View Dr, Buellton, CA 93247. Samuel Perez Cardenas (same address). This business is conducted by an individual. SIGNED BY SAMUEL PEREZ CARDENAS, OWNER. Filed with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on 12/19/2022. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk, Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL). FBN Number: 2022‑0003062. E30. Published: December 22, 29, January 5, 12, 2023.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT The following person (s) is/are doing business as: WYLIE MUTT, 1711 Robbins Street, Santa Barbara, CA 93101; Alexandria N Keithley (same address). This business is conducted by an individual. SIGNED BY ALEXANDRIA KEITHLEY, OWNER. Filed with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on December 7, 2022. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk, Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL). FBN Number: 2022‑0002947 E30. Published: January 5, 12, 19, 26, 2023.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT The following person (s) is/are doing business as: Lee and Associates Consulting, 4117 Via Andorra, Apt. B, Santa Barbara, CA 93110; Larry C Lee (same address); Rachel M Lee (same address). This business is conducted by a married couple. SIGNED BY LARRY C LEE. Filed with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on December 21, 2022. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk, Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL). FBN Number: 2022‑0003080 E30. Published: January 5, 12, 19, 26, 2023.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT The following person(s) is/are doing business as: TENACITY OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY, 3518 San Jose Lane; Santa Barbara, CA 93105; Megan E Barry (same address). This business is conducted by an individual. SIGNED BY MEGAN BARRY. Filed with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on December 28, 2022. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk, Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL). FBN Number: 2022‑0003114 E30. Published: January 5, 12, 19, 26, 2023.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT The following person(s) is/are doing business as: WARREN & SELBERT, LLC, 222 East Carrillo Street, Suite 310, Santa Barbara, CA 93101; Accufy Analytics, LLC (same address). This business is conducted by a limited liability company. SIGNED BY ERIC C. SEALE, MANAGER. Filed with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on December 23, 2022. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk, Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL). FBN Number: 2022‑0003100 E30. Published: January 5, 12, 19, 26, 2023.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT The following person(s) is/ are doing business as: R.K.M. BOOKS, 1620 Oramas RD; Santa Barbara, CA 93103; Richard K Moser (same address). This business is conducted by an individual. SIGNED BY RICHARD K MOSER, OWNER. Filed with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on December 16, 2022. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk, Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL).

FBN Number: 2022‑0003042 E49. Published: January 5, 12, 19, 26, 2023.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT The following person(s) is/are doing business as: THE EDDY 137 De La Guerra St, Santa Barbara, CA 93101; 137 E De La Guerra LLC (same address). This business is conducted by a limited liability company. SIGNED BY JENNIFER STEINWURTZEL, OWNER. Filed with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on December 19, 2022. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of

LEGALS (CONT.)

the County Clerk, Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL). FBN Number: 2022‑0003052 E35. Published: January 5, 12, 19, 26, 2023.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: SEAGRAPE WINE COMPANY, 2625 Santa Barbara Avenue, Los Olivos, CA 93441; Vintegrated Solutions LLC (same address). This business is conducted by a limited liability company.

SIGNED BY KAREN STEINWACHS, MEMBER.

Filed with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on December 7, 2022. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk, Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL) by E30. FBN Number: 2022‑0002946. Published: January 5, 12, 19, 26, 2023.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: GREAT WRIT RESEARCH, 228 East Victoria Street, Santa Barbara, CA 93101; Gregory G. Rader, 3714 Friar Lane, Santa Barbara, CA 93105. This business is conducted by an individual. SIGNED BY GREGORY G. RADER, PROPRIETOR. Filed with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on December 9, 2022. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk, Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL) by E30. FBN Number: 2022‑0002969. Published: January 5, 12, 19, 26, 2023.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: BACKPOCKET LIFECOACH COUNSELING SERVICES INC., 5266 Hollister Ave, Ste 210, Santa Barbara, CA 93111; Backpocket Lifecoach Counseling Services Inc. (same address). This business is conducted by a corporation.

SIGNED BY BRANDI DAVIS, OWNER, filed with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on 11/29/2022. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk, Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL). FBN Number: 2022‑0002893. E30.Published: December 15, 22, 29, January 5, 2023.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT

93013; Carrillo Painting and Decorating (same address). This business is conducted by a corporation. SIGNED BY LUIS IBARRA, VICE PRESIDENT. Filed with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on November 15, 2022. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk, Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL) by E30. FBN Number: 2022‑0002793. Published: December 15, 22, 29, January 5, 2023.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT The following person(s) is/ are doing business as: PACIFIC RIVIERA INTERIOR DESIGN, 1015 Diamond Crest Court, Santa Barbara, CA 93110; Judith L Flattery (same address). This business is conducted by an individual.

SIGNED BY JUDITH FLATTERY, OWNER/DESIGNER. Filed with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on 11/29/2022. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk, Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL). FBN Number: 2022‑0002891. E30. Published: December 15, 22, 29, January 5, 2023.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT The following person (s) is/are doing business as: SANA PSYCHOLOGICAL CENTER, 315 Meigs Road, Suite A, #104, Santa Barbara, CA 93109; Denise R Jaimes‑Villanueva (same address). This business is conducted by an individual. SIGNED BY DENISE JAIMES‑VILLANUEVA. Filed with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on 12/09/2022. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk, Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL). FBN Number: 2022‑0002967, E30. Published: December 15, 22, 29, January 5, 2023.

NAME CHANGE

IN THE MATTER OF THE APPLICATION TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME: ZACHARY NILES ZILLES; SHERRY DIANA ZILLES; CASE NUMBER: 22CV04422.

TO: LAILA JULES EILON‑COHEN

THE COURT ORDERS that all persons interested in this matter shall appear before this court at the hearing indicated below to show cause, if any, why the petition for change of name should not be granted. Any person objecting to the name changes described above must file a written objection that includes the reasons for the objection at least two court days before the matter is scheduled to be heard and must appear at the hearing to show cause why the petition should not be granted. If no written objection is timely filed, the court may grant the petition without a hearing.

NOTICE OF HEARING:

FEBRUARY 6, 2023, 10:00 AM, DEPT: 5, SANTA BARBARA SUPERIOR COURT HOUSE 1100 Anacapa St., Santa Barbara, CA 93101, Anacapa Division.

A copy of this Order to Show Cause shall be published in the Santa Barbara Independent, a newspaper of general circulation, printed in this county, at least once each week for four successive weeks prior to the date set for hearing on the petition. FILED 12/16/22 in Superior Court of California County of Santa Barbara, Darrel E. Parker, Executive Officer by Baksh, Narzalli, Deputy Clerk. 12/16/22 BY COLLEEN K. STERNE, JUDGE OF THE SUPERIOR COURT. Published December 29, 2022, January 5, 12, 19, 2023.

THE PETITION OF ARGELIA REYNOSO, 58 MAGNOLIA AVENUE, APT. D, GOLETA, CA 93117. ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME. CASE NUMBER 22CV04575.

TO ALL INTERESTED PERSONS: A petition has been filed by the above named Petitioner(s) in Santa Barbara Superior court proposing a change of name(s): FROM: ARGELIA REYNOSO TO: ARGELIA CONTRERAS OSORIA.

shall be published in the Santa Barbara Independent, a newspaper of general circulation, printed in this county, at least once each week for four successive weeks prior to the date set for hearing on the petition. DATED DECEMBER 07, 2022, THOMAS P. ANDERLE, JUDGE OF THE SUPERIOR COURT. Published December 15, 22, 29, 2022 and January 5, 2023.

PUBLIC NOTICES

APCD AIR POLLUTION CONTROL DISTRICT SANTA BARBARA COUNTY

PUBLIC NOTICE

AIR QUALITY REGULATORY MEASURES THAT MAY BE ADOPTED OR AMENDED IN 2023

State law (Health and Safety Code Section 40923) requires the Santa Barbara County Air Pollution Control District (District) to publish a list of regulatory measures scheduled for consideration each year. These regulatory measures, or rules and

regulations, are adopted in order to reduce air pollution in Santa Barbara County. Air quality rules and regulations that may be adopted or amended during 2023 are listed below. Other measures may be proposed for adoption per the criteria specified in Section 40923 of the Health and Safety Code. Before the adoption or amendment of any regulatory measure, the District publishes a notice in a local newspaper and holds a public hearing to accept comments from affected businesses and other interested parties.

THE FOLLOWING RULES ARE TENTATIVELY PROPOSED TO BE ADOPTED OR AMENDED IN 2023:

RULE TITLE 210 Fees 316 Storage and Transfer of Gasoline 333 Control of Emissions from Reciprocating Internal Combustion Engines 358 Stationary Gas Turbines 362 Nitrogen Oxides (NOx) from Miscellaneous Combustion Sources

THE FOLLOWING RULES ARE INCLUDED IN CASE ADOPTION OR

AMENDMENT IS NEEDED DURING 2023:

RULE TITLE 102 Definitions 201 Permits Required 202 Exemptions to Rule 201 211 Technical Reports–Charges For 213 Fees for Registration Programs 312 Open Fires 321 Solvent Cleaning Machines and Solvent Cleaning 323.1 Architectural Coatings 341 Municipal Solid Waste Landfills 351 Surface Coating of Wood Products 401 Agricultural and Prescribed Burning 810 Federal Prevention of Significant Deterioration 901 New Source Performance Standards (NSPS) 1002 Asbestos Removal, Renovation, and Demolition 1303 Part 70 Operating Permits –Permits

If you would like to check on the status of a rule, please visit the

Hybrid

District’s website at WWW.OURAIR. ORG/RULES‑AND‑REGS/. For more information, contact Tim Mitro at (805) 979‑8329.

EXTRA SPACE STORAGE will hold a public auction to sell personal property described below belonging to those individuals listed below at the location indicated: 6640 Discovery Drive, Goleta, CA 93117. January 26, 2023 at 3:30 PM

Jason Johnson Personal items, mainly books. Boxes. Angel Catalan Household items

The auction will be listed and advertised on www.storagetreasures.com. Purchases must be made with cash only and paid at the above referenced facility in order to complete the transaction.

Extra Space Storage may refuse any bid and may rescind any purchase up until the winning bidder takes possession of the personal property.

NOTICE OF CITY COUNCIL PUBLIC HEARING

Public Meeting – Held in Person and via Zoom

January 17, 2023 at 5:30 P.M.

Housing Element 2023-2031

Case

No. 21-0002-GPA

ATTENTION: The meeting will be held in person and via the Zoom platform. The public may also view the meeting on Goleta Channel 19 and/or online at https:///cityofgoleta.org/goletameetings.

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the Goleta City Council will conduct a public hearing to consider adoption of the Housing Element 2023-2031 amendment to the General Plan/Coastal Land Use Plan and to determine that the General Plan amendment is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). The date, time, and location of the City Council public hearing are set forth below. The agenda for the hearing will also be posted on the City website (www.cityofgoleta.org).

HEARING DATE/TIME: Tuesday, January 17, 2023 at 5:30 P.M.

PLACE: Goleta City Hall, 130 Cremona Drive, Goleta, CA, 93117 and Teleconference Meeting; this meeting will be held in person and via Zoom (with detailed instructions for participation included on the posted agenda).

PROJECT LOCATION: The Housing Element 2023-2031 would apply citywide, including all areas of the City within the Coastal Zone.

TO ALL INTERESTED PERSONS: A petition has been filed by the above named Petitioner(s) in Santa Barbara Superior Court proposing a change of name(s)

FROM: ZACHARY NILES ZILLES, GABRIEL ALLEN ZILLES, JOAQUIN HENRY ZILLES, SHERRY DIANA ZILLES

THE COURT ORDERS that all persons interested in this matter shall appear before this court at the hearing indicated below to show cause, if any, why the petition for change of name should not be granted. Any person objecting to the name changes described above must file a written objection that includes the reasons for the objection at least two court days before the matter is scheduled to be heard and must appear at the hearing to show cause why the petition should not be granted. If no written objection is timely filed , the court may grant the petition without a hearing.

SIGNED

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: COMPLEMENTARY ORTHOPEDIC ACUPUNCTURE & SPORTS THERAPY, 5142 Hollister Ave, #237, Santa Barbara, CA 93111; Kenneth E Luke, 4748 Camino Del Rey, Santa Barbara, CA 93110. This business is conducted by an individual.

BY KENNETH LUKE. Filed with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on 12/06/2022. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk, Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL). FBN Number: 2022‑0002936. E30.

Published: December 15, 22, 29, January 5, 2023.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT

TO: ZACHARY NILES HEYWARD, GABRIEL ALLEN HEYWARD, JOAQUIN HENRY HEYWARD, SHERRY DIANA HEYWARD.

THE COURT ORDERS that all persons interested in this matter shall appear before this court at the hearing indicated below to show cause, if any, why the petition for change of name should not be granted. Any person objecting to the name changes described above must file a written objection that includes the reasons for the objection at least two court days before the matter is scheduled to be heard and must appear at the hearing to show cause why the petition should not be granted. If no written objection is timely filed, the court may grant the petition without a hearing.

NOTICE OF HEARING 1/23/2023, 10:00 AM, DEPT 5, SANTA BARBARA SUPERIOR COURT HOUSE 1100 Anacapa St., P.O. Box 21107 Santa Barbara, CA 93121, Anacapa Divison.

PROJECT DESCRIPTION: The Housing Element 2023-2031 includes updates to the policies and programs in the City’s current Housing Element to reflect (1) changes in State law; (2) public, stakeholder, City Council, and Planning Commission input; (3) current City practices; (4) updated program responsible parties and City department name changes; (5) accomplishments since the adoption of the current Housing Element, such as the adoption of Title 17 (Zoning) of the Goleta Municipal Code and adoption of affordable housing fees; (6) updated program activity time periods; (7) improved language to better convey the intent of the policies and programs; and (8) new and revised policies to affirmatively further fair housing and address other housing issues. The accompanying Technical Appendix provides data and analysis required by State law that supports the policies and programs in the Housing Element 2023-2031 and includes the following sections: Housing Needs Assessment; Resources and Opportunities; Constraints; Evaluation of the 2015-2023 Housing Element; Residential Land Inventory; Public Participation Summary; and Fair Housing Assessment.

PREVIOUS HEARING: The City’s Planning Commission considered the Housing Element 2023-2031 at a recommendation hearing on December 12, 2022.

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: 7TH MIND, INC. 5266 Hollister Ave., Suite 320, Santa Barbara, CA 93111; 7th Mind, Inc. (same address).7th Mind Publishing; Brain Aware Training. This business is conducted by a corporation.

A COPY OF THIS ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE shall be published in the Santa Barbara Independent, a newspaper of general circulation, printed in this county, at least once each week for four successive weeks prior to the date set for hearing on the petition. Signed and Dated December 1, 2022 by Colleen K. Sterne, Judge of the Superior Court. Published: December 15, 22, 29 and January 5, 2023.

AMENDED IN THE MATTER OF THE APPLICATION TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME: LEANDER DEAN

Environmental Review: The Housing Element 2023-2031 is exempt from review under CEQA (California Public Resources Code Sections 21000, et seq.), pursuant to State CEQA Guidelines Section 15061(b)(3), the “common sense exemption” covering activities with no possibility of having a significant effect on the environment because the Housing Element 2023-2031 would not approve any development project or other physical change to the environment. Future housing development projects will be subject to CEQA review to the extent required by law, as well as required compliance with numerous existing City plans and regulations, State laws and regulations, and federal laws and regulations that provide environmental protection outside of the CEQA review process (e.g., air quality standards, cultural and historic resources, sensitive biological habitat areas, water supply, and environmental hazards).

SIGNED

BY BRITT ANDREATTA, CEO. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk, Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL) on 11/22/22. FBN Number: 2022‑0002847, E30.

Published: December 15, 22, 29, January 5, 2023.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT

The following person (s) is/are doing business as: GALILEO COACHING, 121 Via Alicia, Santa Barbara, CA 93108. Kathryn M. Downing (same address). This business is conducted by an individual. SIGNED KATHRYN M. DOWNING, PRESIDENT. Filed with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on 12/6/22, 2022. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk, Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL) by E47. FBN Number: 2022‑0002931. Published: December 15, 22, 29, January 5, 2023.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT

The following person(s) is/ are doing business as: EPIC BUILDERS, 916 Linden Avenue, Carpinteria, CA

NOTICE OF HEARING: JANUARY 25, 2023, 10:00 AM, DEPT: 3, SANTA BARBARA SUPERIOR COURT HOUSE 1100 Anacapa St., Santa Barbara, CA 93101, Anacapa Division. A copy of this Order to Show Cause shall be published in the Santa Barbara Independent, a newspaper of general circulation, printed in this county, at least once each week for four successive weeks prior to the date set for hearing on the petition. FILED 12/5/22 in Superior Court of California County of Santa Barbara, Darrel E. Parker, Executive Officer by Baksh, Narzalli, Deputy Clerk. 12/4/22 BY THOMAS P. ANDERLE, JUDGE OF THE SUPERIOR COURT. Published December 22, 29, January 5, 12, 2023.

IN THE MATTER OF THE APPLICATION TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME: RACHEL EILON COHEN AND ZACHARY COHEN EILON. CASE NUMBER: 22CV04900.

TO ALL INTERESTED PERSONS: A petition has been filed by the above named Petitioner(s) in Santa Barbara Superior Court proposing a change of name(s)

FROM: LIBA JULES EILON‑COHEN

LOVE‑ANDEREGG, 1338 Portsuello Avenue, Santa Barbara, CA 93105.

CASE NUMBER: 22CV03635

TO ALL INTERESTED PERSONS: A petition has been filed by the above named Petitioner(s) in Santa Barbara Superior Court proposing a change of name(s) FROM: LEANDER DEAN

LOVE‑ANDEREGG TO: LEANDER DEAN LOVE ANDEREGG. THE COURT ORDERS that all persons interested in this matter shall appear before this court at the hearing indicated below to show cause, if any, why the petition for change of name should not be granted. Any person objecting to the name changes described above must file a written objection that includes the reasons for the objection at least two court days before the matter is scheduled to be heard and must appear at the hearing to show cause why the petition should not be granted. If no written objection is timely filed, the court may grant the petition without a hearing.

NOTICE OF HEARING JANUARY 25, 2023, 10:00 AM, DEPT 3, SANTA BARBARA SUPERIOR COURT HOUSE 1100 Anacapa St., Santa Barbara, CA 93101, Anacapa Division. A copy of this Order to Show Cause

PUBLIC COMMENT: Interested persons are encouraged to provide public comments during the public hearing in person or virtually through the Zoom webinar, by following the instructions listed on the City Council meeting agenda. Written comments may be submitted prior to the hearing by e-mailing the City Clerk at CityClerkgroup@cityofgoleta.org. Written comments will be distributed to Council and published on the City’s Meeting and Agenda page.

FOR PROJECT INFORMATION: For further information on the project, contact Anne Wells, Advance Planning Manager, at (805) 961-7557 or awells@cityofgoleta.org. For inquiries in Spanish, please contact Marcos Martinez at (805) 562-5500 or mmartinez@cityofgoleta.org. Staff reports and documents will be posted approximately 72 hours before the hearing on the City’s website at www.cityofgoleta.org.

SIMULTANEOUS INTERPRETATION. If you require interpretation services for the hearing, please contact the City Clerk’s office at (805) 961-7505 or via email to: cityclerkgroup@cityofgoleta.org at least 48 hours prior to the hearing. Please specify the language for which you require interpretation. Notification at least 48 hours prior to the meeting helps to ensure that reasonable arrangements can be made to provide accessibility to the hearing.

Note: If you challenge the nature of the above action in court, you may be limited to only those issues you or someone else raised at the public hearing described in this notice or in written correspondence delivered to the City on or before the date of the hearing (Government Code Section 65009(b)(2)).

Note: In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, if you need assistance to participate in the hearing, please contact the City Clerk’s Office at (805) 961-7505. Notification at least 48 hours prior to the hearing will enable City staff to make reasonable arrangements.

Publish Date: Santa Barbara Independent, January 5, 2023