Santa Barbara News-Press — Local News for Santa Barbara County

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Mark Philibosian, Santa Barbara Unified School Board hopeful, pushes for higher test scores

Education

Mark Philibosian, Santa Barbara Unified School Board hopeful, pushes for higher test scores

The Area 4 candidate in a two-way race says he’s the right choice to fix the school district’s nearly $10 million budget deficit

by Julianna Lozada • Santa Barbara News-Press October 5, 2026October 5, 2026

Latest News

2.7 magnitude earthquake detected near Goleta

by Aston Smith • Santa Barbara News-Press October 5, 2026October 5, 2026

‘Super El Niño’ hype gets a reality check from forecasters in Santa Barbara County

by Kaitlin Sweeney • Santa Barbara News-Press October 4, 2026October 4, 2026

Politics

Santa Barbara mayoral candidate Wendy Sims-Moten running on a platform of inclusion, care for one another

by Amanda Velasco • Santa Barbara News-Press October 3, 2026October 5, 2026

Latest Stories

Incoming El Niño is so extreme it doesn’t have a scientific name

Incoming El Niño is so extreme it doesn’t have a scientific name

by Nina Dietz • Inside Climate News October 4, 2026October 4, 2026

Solvang city strike update: two new rounds of bargaining, but no end in sight

Solvang city strike update: two new rounds of bargaining, but no end in sight

by Tom Schultz • Santa Barbara News-Press October 2, 2026October 2, 2026

Environmentalists, lawyers, academics praise signing of Gregg Hart’s offshore oil bill into law

Environmentalists, lawyers, academics praise signing of Gregg Hart’s offshore oil bill into law

by Julianna Lozada • Santa Barbara News-Press October 2, 2026October 2, 2026

Santa Barbara County braces for prolonged ‘dangerously hot’ heat wave

Santa Barbara County braces for prolonged ‘dangerously hot’ heat wave

by Aston Smith • Santa Barbara News-Press October 2, 2026October 2, 2026

Other states are rolling out free childcare for all families. Why not California?

Other states are rolling out free childcare for all families. Why not California?

by Carolyn Jones • CalMatters October 2, 2026

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Government

Solvang city strike update: two new rounds of bargaining, but no end in sight

Solvang city strike update: two new rounds of bargaining, but no end in sight

by Tom Schultz • Santa Barbara News-Press October 2, 2026October 2, 2026

Mayoral candidates talk budget, electric bikes, immigration and surveillance at forum

Mayoral candidates talk budget, electric bikes, immigration and surveillance at forum

by Joshua Molina • Santa Barbara News-Press October 1, 2026October 1, 2026

Santa Ynez Notebook: Solvang strike deadlock continues, Buellton advances plans for new downtown core

Santa Ynez Notebook: Solvang strike deadlock continues, Buellton advances plans for new downtown core

by Tom Schultz • Santa Barbara News-Press September 29, 2026September 29, 2026

Education

Mark Philibosian, Santa Barbara Unified School Board hopeful, pushes for higher test scores

Mark Philibosian, Santa Barbara Unified School Board hopeful, pushes for higher test scores

by Julianna Lozada • Santa Barbara News-Press October 5, 2026October 5, 2026

Other states are rolling out free childcare for all families. Why not California?

Other states are rolling out free childcare for all families. Why not California?

by Carolyn Jones • CalMatters October 2, 2026

Experience clashes with new perspectives at Santa Barbara Unified school board candidate debate

Experience clashes with new perspectives at Santa Barbara Unified school board candidate debate

by Julianna Lozada • Santa Barbara News-Press October 1, 2026October 2, 2026

Public Safety

Driver pulled from car in Gaviota Coast rollover crash

Driver pulled from car in Gaviota Coast rollover crash

by Tom Schultz • Santa Barbara News-Press September 28, 2026September 29, 2026

Teen dies after he was found with multiple injuries at Chase Palm Park

Teen dies after he was found with multiple injuries at Chase Palm Park

by Angel Corzo • Santa Barbara News-Press September 25, 2026September 25, 2026

Man who died in Santa Maria Jail was first assaulted in Santa Barbara Jail

Man who died in Santa Maria Jail was first assaulted in Santa Barbara Jail

by Angel Corzo • Santa Barbara News-Press September 25, 2026September 25, 2026

Environment

2.7 magnitude earthquake detected near Goleta

2.7 magnitude earthquake detected near Goleta

by Aston Smith • Santa Barbara News-Press October 5, 2026October 5, 2026

‘Super El Niño’ hype gets a reality check from forecasters in Santa Barbara County

‘Super El Niño’ hype gets a reality check from forecasters in Santa Barbara County

by Kaitlin Sweeney • Santa Barbara News-Press October 4, 2026October 4, 2026

Incoming El Niño is so extreme it doesn’t have a scientific name

Incoming El Niño is so extreme it doesn’t have a scientific name

by Nina Dietz • Inside Climate News October 4, 2026October 4, 2026

See the story

Santa Barbara County, in focus.

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Oct 2

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Santa Barbara City Council voted to rename Calle Cesar Chavez to Limuw Street, honoring the Chumash Native American territory the coastal street sits on with a word that means “in the sea.”

The name changes comes after sexual assault allegations against historic farmworker organizer Cesar Chavez surfaced in March, followed by state-wide calls to erase his name from public works. On May 11, the city held a public meeting and came out with three name suggestions: Calle Si Se Puede, Calle Dolores Huerta and Limuw street. Some also wanted the name Calle Salsipuedes, a call back to the street’s original name from 1851.

City Council member Kristen Sneddon eventually led the motion to move forward with the name Limuw. It was a 6-1 vote, with Mayor Randy Rowse dissenting, offering his support for the name Calle Salsipuedes.

Limuw is also the Chumash name for Santa Cruz Island, the birthplace of the Chumash people in traditional storytelling.

“To look out to the ocean and remind people that as you look straight from across the street, this is Limuw,” said Mia Lopez, founding director at Su’nan Protection, Art & Cultural Education. “This is our island of origin. This is the birthplace of the Chumash people who are still here today.”

Read more at the link in bio.
Story by Sofia Wallace

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Sep 30

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Councilmember Kristen Sneddon calls for rent stabilization to be passed today. She says she's been "played" by the goal posts moving.

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Sep 28

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A white Toyota Corolla hybrid rolled on Highway 101 Monday, after the vehicle veered onto the median five miles south of the Gaviota Tunnel.

A reporter witnessed the northbound car signal briefly for a left turn before entering a left hand turn lane along the coastal stretch. Instead of turning, the vehicle continued straight, careening into the center divider and landing upside down minutes before 1 p.m.

Passersby quickly responded, and a man who appeared to be a first responder wearing an Alan Hancock Fire Academy T-shirt led an effort to pull the single occupant, a woman, from the driver’s side front window after reportedly kicking it in.

Read more at the link in bio.
Story by Tom Schultz

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Sep 26

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The annual Goleta Lemon Festival pie eating contest took place at Girsh Park on Saturday.

Dozens watched as ten contestants sank their teeth into the lemon meringue pies.

Stay tuned for more Goleta Lemon Festival coverage at newspress.com

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Sep 26

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Scenes from the One805Live! benefit concert for first responders in Santa Barbara County. The concert featured The Temptations, The Four Tops, George Thorogood, The Plastic Harpoons and Alan Parsons. Stay tuned for more coverage of this event here and on newspress.com

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Sep 25

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Coming off one of the most intense heat waves of the year, area schools are considering installing air conditioning in its classrooms.

Goleta Union and Santa Barbara Unified board meetings are grappling with the issue amid the sweltering heat.

While teachers complained about how hot their classrooms got, district administrators were left wondering how to prepare for the potential of hotter school days, especially at the beginning of the school year.

At the Goleta Union School District’s board of trustees meeting on Sept. 9, Victoria Aguirre, a first-grade teacher at Hollister Elementary School, said her classrooms reached up to 87 degrees Fahrenheit last week. It was a new high for Aguirre, who’s taught at the district for 10 years.

“Heat waves are more frequent and lasting longer than ever before,” Aguirre said during public comment.

She added that while teaching 20-plus children is hard, “teaching 20-plus children in that heat is even harder.”

Even before the heat wave last week, when regions of Santa Barbara County reached up to 108 degrees, some classrooms in Goleta Union schools were already feeling the heat.

Read more at newspress.com
Story by Julianna Lozada
Video by Aston Smith

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Sep 24

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Rep. Salud Carbajal, D-Santa Barbara, showed up in Solvang on Wednesday to support Solvang employees who are on strike. He called Mayor Dave Brown first to alert him. "I am here in solidarity with the employees," Carbajal said. See story later tonight at Newspress.com and linkin.bio. Reporting and video by Tom Schultz.

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Sep 22

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Republican Candidate for California Governor Steve Hilton visited the Fuel Depot on Storke Road in Goleta and sponsored $3/gal gas for 150 customers.

While Hilton didn’t directly pay for the customers gas, his campaign covered the deficit for the Fuel Depot’s discounted gas offer.

Hilton is planning to do more of these events around California.

Video: Aston Smith
Read more by Joshua Molina at the link in bio.
#Goleta

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Sep 21

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Danish flags fluttered above downtown Solvang as folk dancers in traditional dress moved through the streets, parade floats rolled past crowds lining the sidewalks and visitors stood in a line stretching down the block for plates of powdered-sugar-dusted æbleskiver.

The second day of Solvang’s 89th Danish Days, a three-day celebration of the city’s Danish heritage, filled downtown with food, music, dancing and festivities since Friday.

Saturday brought one of the weekend’s biggest draws: the Danish Days Parade, which wound through downtown with floats, horses, musicians and dancers before festivities continued into the evening.

Read more at the link in bio.
Story by Kaitlin Sweeney

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Sep 19

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Did you know California ran out of license plate numbers? The current license plate combination has been in place in the 1980s but recently reached its last possible combination. Now the DMV is reversing the order and a new license plate combination is being distributed. This new sequence will last for about 40 years.

California drivers do not need to make any changes and all old license plates are completely valid. The new sequence has been rolled out and you may start to see them on the road.

There are still about 100,000 license plates in the current sequence to be distributed.

Video by Aston Smith

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Sep 17

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WATCH: Elected official mutters expletive during Santa Barbara City Council meeting discussing ALPR’s

Read more about the meeting at the link in bio.

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Sep 16

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The South Coast Business Action Fund and Santa Barbara Police Officers Association announce their endorsements for Santa Barbara elections.

Voices

Opinion: Social media comments miss the mark in understanding testing gap between Latino and white students

Opinion: Social media comments miss the mark in understanding testing gap between Latino and white students

by Joshua Molina • Santa Barbara News-Press October 5, 2026October 5, 2026

Randy Rowse: This election, put Santa Barbara’s financial health first

Randy Rowse: This election, put Santa Barbara’s financial health first

by Randy Rowse, Santa Barbara Mayor October 4, 2026October 4, 2026

Dr. Hilda Maldonado: San Marcos blackface incident demands accountability and a community response

Dr. Hilda Maldonado: San Marcos blackface incident demands accountability and a community response

by Dr. Hilda Maldonado, Superintendent SBUSD September 30, 2026September 30, 2026

Opinion: City should take agile, phased approach for successful rent stabilization rollout

Opinion: City should take agile, phased approach for successful rent stabilization rollout

by Jenna Berg, Ph.D. September 29, 2026September 29, 2026

Opinion: What years of volunteering have taught me about access to vision care

Opinion: What years of volunteering have taught me about access to vision care

by Dr. Rupert Chowins September 27, 2026September 27, 2026

Opinion: Rethinking equity in math, from access to mastery

Opinion: Rethinking equity in math, from access to mastery

by Vicki Ben-Yaacov September 24, 2026September 24, 2026

Announcements

The Theatre Group at SBCC presents CLUE, to run Oct. 7-24 at the Garvin Theatre.

The Theatre Group at SBCC presents CLUE, to run Oct. 7-24 at the Garvin Theatre.

by Pamela Lasker, The Theatre Group at SBCC September 28, 2026September 29, 2026

California Nature Art Museum presents “Terra Firma”, works from the permanent collection

California Nature Art Museum presents “Terra Firma”, works from the permanent collection

by Jessica Tade, California Nature Art Museum September 28, 2026September 29, 2026

Lompoc Chalks returns Oct. 2-4 with 40 artists, live entertainment, and new “Meet the Artists” kick-off

Lompoc Chalks returns Oct. 2-4 with 40 artists, live entertainment, and new “Meet the Artists” kick-off

by Megan DeCicco, Lompoc Theatre Project September 26, 2026September 27, 2026

Downtown Santa Barbara Assn. to host ribbon cutting for grand opening of Jess Conti Leather Goods

Downtown Santa Barbara Assn. to host ribbon cutting for grand opening of Jess Conti Leather Goods

by Maria Molina, Downtown Santa Barbara Improvement Association September 25, 2026September 27, 2026

SB County opens applications for Coastal Resources Mitigation Fund grants

SB County opens applications for Coastal Resources Mitigation Fund grants

by Kelsey Gerckens Buttitta, County of Santa Barbara September 25, 2026September 27, 2026

El condado abre la convocatoria para las subvenciones del Fondo de Mitigación de Recursos Costeros

El condado abre la convocatoria para las subvenciones del Fondo de Mitigación de Recursos Costeros

by Kelsey Gerckens Buttitta, County of Santa Barbara September 25, 2026September 27, 2026

Obituaries

Obituary: Rubin “Rube” Boxer

Obituary: Rubin “Rube” Boxer

by Ken Boxer September 27, 2026September 27, 2026

Obituary: Carlie Ruthana Cosentino

Obituary: Carlie Ruthana Cosentino

by Jennifer Parks, McDermott-Crockett Mortuary September 22, 2026September 23, 2026

Obituary: Clifford A. Hopson

Obituary: Clifford A. Hopson

by Erin Johnson September 14, 2026September 14, 2026

Obituary: Sara Rudeen

Obituary: Sara Rudeen

by Anna Rudeen September 10, 2026September 10, 2026

Obituary: Harold Thomas Hamm

Obituary: Harold Thomas Hamm

by Kris Kristen September 1, 2026September 1, 2026

Obituary: Carol Anderson

Obituary: Carol Anderson

by Leslie Cornejo August 31, 2026September 1, 2026

Obituary: Bradley “Brad” Reed Lawrence

Obituary: Bradley “Brad” Reed Lawrence

by Ashley V. Wood August 24, 2026August 24, 2026

Obituary: Robert “Tully” Ramsaur Jr.

Obituary: Robert “Tully” Ramsaur Jr.

by Family of Robert “Tully” Ramsaur Jr. August 12, 2026August 12, 2026

Obituary: Carmine Santandrea

Obituary: Carmine Santandrea

by Edward Santandrea July 27, 2026August 1, 2026

More News

Candidates talk character as war chests grow in race for Fifth District Santa Barbara County supervisor

Politics

Candidates talk character as war chests grow in race for Fifth District Santa Barbara County supervisor

by Tom Schultz • Santa Barbara News-Press October 2, 2026October 2, 2026

Chumash history honored in Calle Cesar Chavez name change to Limuw Street

Community

Chumash history honored in Calle Cesar Chavez name change to Limuw Street

by Sofia Wallace • Santa Barbara News-Press October 1, 2026October 1, 2026

Newsom signs bill supporting local journalism, giving tax breaks to news organizations

Politics

Newsom signs bill supporting local journalism, giving tax breaks to news organizations

by Chris Woodyard • Santa Barbara News-Press October 1, 2026October 1, 2026

Rent stabilization ordinance passes, but Sneddon takes stand against Santamaria over ‘goal posts moving’

Housing

Rent stabilization ordinance passes, but Sneddon takes stand against Santamaria over ‘goal posts moving’

by Joshua Molina • Santa Barbara News-Press September 30, 2026September 30, 2026

Danish Olympic medalist sports Santa Barbara company’s breathing aid strip on and off the ice

Sports

Danish Olympic medalist sports Santa Barbara company’s breathing aid strip on and off the ice

by Angel Corzo • Santa Barbara News-Press September 30, 2026October 2, 2026

Transit agencies promote new Amtrak Surfliner service to commuters at Santa Barbara train station event

Transit agencies promote new Amtrak Surfliner service to commuters at Santa Barbara train station event

by Sofia Wallace • Santa Barbara News-Press September 30, 2026September 30, 2026

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