A Chilly Reception for the Biltmore’s Family Pool Complex

••• The Montecito Board of Architectural Review denied the Biltmore “preliminary approval to renovate guest rooms, guest services, add a new pool complex, and back-of-house facilities.” Ty Warner Hotels and Resorts plans to appeal. (I understand that the denial came at the Biltmore’s request, likely because it didn’t want to make MBAR’s modifications to the pool.) —Noozhawk

••• “Members of the California Coastal Commission reluctantly granted conditional concurrence for SpaceX to boost the number of launches at Vandenberg Space Force Base to 36 annually, but the panel sought beefed up monitoring and other measures. […] The commissioners unanimously approved the staff’s recommendation that included seven conditions relating to environmental impacts. However, U.S. Space Force representatives rejected three of the conditions [….] At the end of his statement, [Col. Dorian Hatcher] said he and other base representatives would not answer any questions, irking commissioners who viewed it as intentional disrespect.” For whom does he think he works, if not the public? Moreover, “the military expects to return within months to consider a SpaceX request to conduct 50 launches a year from the base.” —Noozhawk

••• “Beach Grooming in Santa Barbara Draws Line in the Sand […] Tractors on the Beach Raise Some Residents’ Eyebrows, but City Insists It’s Not Ruining the Wrack.” —Independent

••• Noozhawk and the Independent look at who’s running for the Santa Barbara city council: “This is the first year Santa Barbara City Council seats will be contested during a presidential election,” points out Noozhawk, so turnout should be much higher.

••• Goleta History did a deep dive on the streets around Santa Barbara Airport that were named “in honor of Santa Barbara airmen who gave their lives during World War II.” The post includes a photo of two new signs that only include the men’s last names—Cook Place instead of Cecil Cook Place. I hope this doesn’t happen elsewhere, because something gets lost in the shortening.

••• “The Lobero team took their [expansion] idea to the Historic Landmarks Commission on Wednesday for a pre-application review. The feedback was mixed, with members saying they agreed with the Lobero’s need to expand to improve the experience for guests, but they raised questions about whether the proposed addition was appropriate for the historic building.” —Noozhawk

••• “Residential condominium homeowners are included in the assessment of a Community Benefit Improvement District recently approved for downtown Santa Barbara […] The city during its hearing exempted downtown residential homeowners, but the condo owners got lost in the shuffle. […] City officials say any change to the approved Community Benefit Improvement District must wait until next year.” —Noozhawk

••• After 30 years in the role, “UC Santa Barbara Chancellor Henry Yang will be stepping down at the end of the upcoming school year.” —Noozhawk

••• “After Months of Repairs, Refugio State Beach Finally Reopens.” —Noozhawk

••• There are folks who want to turn the former U.S. Bank building at State and Carrillo into “an enclosed adjunct of the Santa Barbara Farmers’ Market.” I’m all for finding interesting uses for the large buildings on State Street, but any market would need a place for trucks to unload stuff. Also, the farmers’ market is charming, in good part, because it’s outside. —Independent

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