Village Beat by Kelly Mahan Herrick
Kelly has been editor at large for the Journal since 2007, reporting on news in Montecito and beyond. She is also a licensed realtor with Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices, and is a member of Montecito and Santa Barbara’s top real estate team, Calcagno & Hamilton.
Montecito Village Fourth Roadshow
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ontecito Association’s Village Fourth committee is taking their patriotic show on the road! This Saturday, July 4, over 30 vintage vehicles, firetrucks, and police cars will go on a “socially-distanced” parade throughout Montecito, in an effort to bring patriotic cheer during a pandemic. “It’s going to be really fun, and a parade to remember!” said co-chair Mindy Denson, who is organizing the event with Kathi King and Trish Davis, along with a dedicated committee. With the COVID-19 pandemic still going strong, this Fourth of July will look different than past celebrations: there will be no pancake breakfast at the firehouse, no gathering of thousands of residents on San Ysidro Road to watch the world’s shortest parade from Upper Manning Park to Lower Manning Park, no t-shirts, no BBQ and fair, no Grand Marshal, and no Montecito Cup games. Instead, the parade will begin at Montecito Union School, travel down San Ysidro Road to San Leandro, down Sheffield to North Jameson, down Olive Mill to Channel Drive, past the Music Academy and Cemetery, up Coast Village Road and Olive Mill to Hot Springs, up Sycamore Canyon, turnaround at Montecito Covenant Church, and take Mountain Drive to San Ysidro, ending at MUS. Montecito residents are encouraged to come out and watch the parade while being socially distanced, and cheer on the vintage vehicles. The parade will begin with a flyover of four vintage airplanes, at 11:30 am sharp. The official artwork for the parade was created by 13-year-old Peyton Ring, who freehand drew a 1958 BMW 507 in a patriotic parade; the artwork is on posters that will be displayed during the parade. For residents who do not live on the parade route, park-
Peyton’s artwork features a vintage BMW, the Montecito Association logo, and fireworks
ually wrapped. Cold Spring School is located at 2243 Sycamore Canyon Road.
Helipad Appeal at Board of Supervisors
Peyton Ring is the winner of the children’s art contest for the Village Fourth
ing is available at Lower Manning Park and the Montecito YMCA for those who would like to watch the beginning of the parade from MUS. The crew putting on the event include Denson, King, and Davis, as well as Dana and Andrea Newquist, Conner Rehage, Michael Edwards, Dana Hansen, Nina Terzian, Jean von Wittenberg, Christie Venable, Houghton Hyatt, Cindy Feinberg, Jeff Norman, and Donna Spivak. For more information, see the map on page 21, or visit www.montecitoas sociation.org. If you are looking for a sweet treat before the parade, Cold Spring School is hosting a Bake Sale Caravan at the school’s parking lot, to benefit the Foodbank of Santa Barbara’s summer nutrition program. The program provides over 39,000 nutritious lunches to children in need during the summer. The Bake Sale is from 9 am to noon on Saturday, July 4, and volunteers approaching vehicles will be in masks and gloves. All treats will be individ-
• Available to care for our neighbors, and accepting new patients. • Infection control protocol followed, with all areas sanitized including wait area and exam room. 1483 E. Valley Road, Suite M | 805.969.6090
12 MONTECITO JOURNAL
Next week, on July 7, the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors will hear from Summerland resident Pat Nesbitt, who is appealing a November 7 decision by the Santa Barbara County Planning Commission to deny a permit for a private helicopter pad on his nearly 20-acre property known as Carpinteria Valley Farms. Nesbitt, who admitted last September that he’s been landing helicopters on his property for decades without a permit, originally sought permission for a helistop with two landing zones to be used for personal use and emergency services. He revised the project before a Planning Commission hearing in September, removing the proposed pad on the eastern portion of his property and moving the second pad further west, towards the center of his property on a 10-acre field. The permit would limit the personal use of the helistop to a maximum of two times per week between the hours of 7 am and 7 pm (which was originally proposed as 9 pm), and per the staff report, his helicopters will take the ocean route as opposed to the mountain route in order to avoid any potential disturbance to residences along the mountain route. Frequency of use of the pad for emergency services would be on an as-needed basis. Nesbitt has said publicly that 500650 helicopters fly over our area every year, and that he believes that adding two flights per week would not disturb the peace and quiet of the surrounding neighborhood, especially given the property’s close proximity to Highway 101. He said any helicopters landing on his property would be required to use a flight path over the ocean, across
“It’s Fourth of July weekend, or, as I call it, Exploding Christmas.” -Stephen Colbert
Summerland beach and the freeway, and onto the property. But neighbors in Carpinteria, Summerland, and Montecito disagree, and have staunchly opposed the permit, submitting over one hundred letters to the Planning Commission for their November hearing. Concerns include the helipad’s close proximity to residential homes, nearby horse and bicycle trails, and a nearby environmentally sensitive habitat. A minority of neighbors have given their blessing, including Mr. Nesbitt’s adjacent neighbor, who said horses are not historically spooked by helicopter noise. Many residents have surmised that one of the reasons Nesbitt is seeking proper permitting now is that his property is for sale – the 43,000-sq-ft home has 11 bedrooms and 22 bathrooms, and is currently listed for $55 million – and having a permitted helistop would be appealing to a new buyer. Nesbitt retorts that he would require the future owner of the property to adhere to the flight path above the ocean, writing it in as a deed restriction; land use attorney Marc Chytilo, who is representing several nearby homeowners, maintains that a deed restriction is unenforceable. The Santa Barbara County Planning Commission cited several reasons for denial, including inconsistency with the Summerland Community Plan and the Comprehensive Plan due to the loud, percussive nature of noise caused by helicopter take offs and landings. The Commission also noted the noise caused by helicopters would be detrimental to the surrounding neighborhood, adjacent trails, and nearby monarch butterfly roosting habitats. The Board of Supervisors hearing is scheduled for Tuesday, July 7. Visit www.countyofsb.org/bos for more information.
VILLAGE BEAT Page 434 2 – 9 July 2020
