Last Call for the Bottle Shop?

••• I hear that 1200 Coast Village Road, currently site of The Bottle Shop, is in escrow. If it sells, I can’t imagine the building will be preserved.

••• FEMA released an updated Flood Hazard Changes map.

••• “The county just installed a roadside sign on Route 192 coming up from Montecito to Cold Spring Road that says that E. Mountain Drive will be closed from 7/8/24 through 11/15/24,” emailed J. “It doesn’t provide any other details, but road work this long must mean they’re finally going to repair the huge slip-out near El Cielito Road that has forced a hard closure since the winter storms (which has been consistently ignored by pedestrians and cyclists). I think the road has been crumbling even more over the spring. Here are some pictures I took today.” UPDATE: “The big slip-out shown above is on W. Mountain Drive,” says BillF. “That road has been closed from El Cielito to Coyote since the road slid down the hill several months ago. The only progress towards reopening has been to add several barricades near the slide. The road closure for E. Mountain Drive may refer to some other project.” I’ve reached out to the county, but I wonder if it could be for the replacement of the temporary bridge at Cold Springs?

••• A trivia question from D.: “What street in the city of Santa Barbara is named after a horse?” I guessed Equestrian Avenue and was wrong. UPDATE: RJ knew the answer—and named another one for extra credit.

••• Fans of Franceschi House will want to snag a seat for a Pearl Chase Society talk on August 30 by Rick Closson about “decoding the art of Franceschi House.” It’s at the Alhecama Theatre. Call 805-961-3938 to reserve. UPDATE: More info here.

••• “I’m surprised you haven’t written about the project at 1017 Hot Springs Road and the impact it will have on the trail and its users,” emailed M. “The environmental impact is significant and the notion that it is being allowed is simply beyond belief!” I knew nothing about it, so I looked into the matter. The trail is an easement running through private property, and the owner wants to develop it, which is his/her right. To do so, however, a driveway wide enough to satisfy the fire department (which has strict regulations about turnarounds) must be added, so for 500 feet, the trail will be scored pavement. The construction of the driveway will be a big project, so the owner has proposed a bypass trail and a rare closure only when absolutely necessary. And the upshot is that when the work is completed, the “Arizona crossing”—i.e., the part of the trail that becomes a creek after a rain—will be replaced by a bridge. In a perfect world, there’d be no more development up there, but the owner seems to be doing the right things.

••• R. asked about the Sonoma Fit gym long in the works at 530 State (Haley/Cota): “Last time I looked inside the space, it appeared as if nothing has been done for months. Maybe permitting issues?” It certainly could be. I tried calling, emailing, texting, and reaching out via Instagram, and I couldn’t get anyone at the chain to talk. Whether that’s a bad sign, I couldn’t say, but it’s enough to give me pause about giving the company any money up front.

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