At last week’s Board meeting, there was an Honor Guard, the La Colina HS Jazz Band, and even a bit of soaring keynote rhetoric from Montecito’s own Gwyn Lurie. It was as Supervisor Steve Lavagnino described — a “celebration of democracy” — where Roy Lee took his place on the dais and Supervisor Laura Capps […]
As this week marks the anniversary of the January 9th Debris Flow that killed 23 of our neighbors, friends, and, in my case, my 48-year-old husband, Dave, my 17-year-old son, Jack, and our family dog, I was deeply disheartened by the column entitled Brilliant Thoughts: Bad Grief by Ashleigh Brilliant. Flipping through the Montecito Journal, […]
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[Speech Transcript: Board of Supervisors’ Induction Ceremony, January 7, 2024] Good morning. It’s a true honor to be here today. I still believe that public service, when done right, is one of the loftier things a human being can do. And I have the utmost respect for what all of you here have chosen to […]
My name is Carlos, I was born and raised right here in Montecito. My home has been on a ranch nestled in the middle of East Valley Road, Romero Canyon Road, and Buena Vista drive for as long as I can remember. My mother named me Carlos Romero after the name of the ranch I […]
The year’s end always feels monumental – filled with endings, beginnings, stock-taking, plan-making and desk-clearing to create a clean slate for all the positive developments we hope will come along with our next giant circle around the sun. So, what do we hope 2025 will bring? More importantly, what are we going to do to […]
At noon on January 6, Roy Lee begins his term as Supervisor and while a variety of controversial District 1 issues were recently decided, we still face many challenges. Hoping for something fresh – a real change – is exciting. I, for one, am eager to see how Roy attacks his new role because, as […]
Now that the dust has settled we need to talk about what president-elect Trump should do to better our lives. I’m not talking about making America great again because America is already great, but it could be better. I am not a Trump fan and wish we’d had better candidates from both parties but we […]
As we await our new D1 Supervisor Roy Lee, the County Planning Commission (CPC) has taken what some might argue is an activist approach to certain significant issues facing our County, including the Miramar Project and our Cannabis Ordinance. Allow me to explain: The Montecito Planning Commission lost their oversight of the Miramar based on […]
I’d like to clarify a couple of points regarding my recusal from last Friday’s MPC hearing. I did give an ex parte declaration at the beginning of the meeting as is required. I gave some specific names and also at the end said that I had also spoken with a great many neighbors, especially some […]
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I am asked all the time whom I will vote for, Harris or Trump. My unequivocable answer is that I am not going to vote for president. “What!?” – you may say. “You have a duty as an American citizen whose forebearers fought and died for your right to vote!” Well, I reply, I didn’t […]
It’s hard to break my heart these days. I’ve become so inured to hateful remarks. To bad manners. I know I’m not the only one who feels exhausted by the toxically divisive politics of this moment. The hubris we all bring to every conversation that treads whatsoever into politics. It all feels so depressingly… normal. […]
I’ve lived in Pacific Palisades for 22 years, and lived through Caruso’s redevelopment of our downtown area into a modern shopping mall. He was clever in his approach – buying up and closing down local businesses for years so that when the time came to present his plans, much of our community supported it, because […]
Friday, October 18 was a dark day for those who care about the principles of integrity and fairness in Montecito. This was the day the Montecito Planning Commission utterly failed in its mission to faithfully abide by its legal and ethical obligations in representing our community. Their unfinished hearing amounted to a self-inflicted wound that […]
Mr. Hazard, let’s begin with your 1st point (MJ Vol. 30_40, October 3-10, 2024) that the Rosewood expansion will provide “Workforce Housing for Employees.” Yes, affordable Housing is GREAT but only when it’s available to the community at large, not for self-serving interests taking advantage of a poorly written bill; SB-330. So 26 affordable housing […]
