Santa Barbara News-Press

09/05/2026

Chanee and Mel, two white-handed gibbons, have welcomed a baby at the Santa Barbara Zoo. The two primates are the proud parents of a newborn, which arrived in front of zoo visitors. The s*x of the baby is unknown. See story at linkin.bio and newspress.com

09/05/2026

About 240 attended the Santa Barbara News-Press and Newsmakers with JR forum on Thursday. The first debate for the mayor's race for the November election. Thanks to everyone who came out!

An estimated 240 people attended the event sponsored by the Santa Barbara News-Press and co-hosted with Newsmakers with JR’s Jerry Roberts

08/30/2026

Julianna Lozada brings you the top news stories of the week! Subscribe to our newsletter to get all the news first in the morning! visit newspress.com and linkin.bio

08/28/2026

The city of Santa Barbara’s finances survived the Great Recession.

This year, it’s fallen into an even deeper hole.

After draining most of its financial savings—leaving only its emergency disaster relief funds—the city is now exploring new ways to replenish its budget. The finance committee met on Tuesday to discuss potential solutions.

Current policy says the City Council must save 25% of its operating budget as reserve funds, with 10% allocated for contingency reserves and 15% for disaster relief.

However, the city’s actual reserve levels are well below its overall target at around 12%, which amounts to a current $27 million out of the target of around $56 million in savings, explained City Finance Director Keith DeMartini.

See story at linkin.bio and newspress.com
Story by Amanda Velsasco
Photo by Joshua Molina

08/28/2026

In a 2009 interview with “60 Minutes,” the late country singer Dolly Parton explained why being underestimated made her successful.

“A lot of men thought I was as silly as I looked, I guess,” Parton said. “But by the time they think I don’t know what’s going on, I done got the money and gone.”

Parton, the queen of country music who spent her career defying stereotypes and making music that resonated with each passing generation, died Tuesday after a brief battle with cancer. She was 80 years old.

The News-Press spoke with Helen Morales, a local expert and the original "Dollyologist," after Parton passed away, about how the country icon emerged as a force in pop culture and why she continues to resonate with listeners today.

See story at linkin.bio and newspress.com
Story by Julianna Lozada
Photos by AP & Annie Leibovitz/Santa Barbara News-Press archives

08/27/2026

Public records obtained by the Santa Barbara News-Press show that Camp Canine did not have appropriate planning permits for the swimming pool or the overall facility, at the time of Bruce’s death in July. Facility was working with the city to obtain legal permits. Story at linkin.bio and newspress.com

08/24/2026

The Santa Barbara City Council on Tuesday will discuss the termination of its contract with Flock Safety amid national backlash and concerns over privacy vulnerabilities.

Though it won’t be the end of automatic license plate readers in Santa Barbara.

While the city’s contract with Flock Safety has ended, the city will propose a replacement to the cameras from a different company: Verkada.

Verkada, a California based security company, is the expected new provider of the automatic license plate readers. The City Council is set to vote on Tuesday at its 2 p.m. meeting.

City Councilmember Meagan Harmon told the News-Press that she has a “deep discomfort” with surveillance cameras such as Flock Safety ones.

“However, cameras in general have been a hugely important tool in our ability to open and close criminal cases and quite literally solve crimes,” Harmon said. “I’m very glad that the community conversation is happening, there are real costs and consequences with video surveillance but there are also huge benefits.”

She said that the new proposal involving Verkada is an improvement from the Flock Safety cameras.

“Opposed to the Flock contract, which was externally arranged, all of our footage now will be held within our own system. To me that is quite a meaningful difference,” Harmon said.
Story and photos by Aston Smith

08/23/2026

Update 8 p.m.: All evacuation warnings have been lifted as of Saturday 8 p.m., according to Incident Command.

Original story:

A vegetation fire broke out northwest of New Cuyama Saturday morning, burning around 268 acres as of 1:45 p.m.

The fire is on both sides of Highway 166 and could potentially reach 1,000 acres, according to Incident Command. Officials issued evacuation warnings in the New Cuyama area.

Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo County Fire Department units are responding to the fire.

Officials might fully close Highway 166 because of the fire, the Santa Barbara County Fire Department said in a Saturday afternoon X post.

08/21/2026

The Goleta Union School Board is calling on city leaders to block fi***rm retailers from opening near schools and daycare centers.

The board voted 5-0 Wednesday to pass a resolution requiring a minimum of 1,000 feet between gun stores and schools. The decision comes on the heels of Goodland Guns opening next to Here We Grow Learning Center, a preschool and daycare located at 7433 Hollister Ave.

Read more at the link in bio.
Story by Julianna Lozada

08/21/2026

It’s business in the front, cocktails in the back.

The Mullet, a new cocktail bar sharing space and ownership with Lama Dog Tap Room, opened in the Funk Zone on Thursday. Over 100 people attended the soft opening event on Wednesday night for vinyl music with a side of complimentary cocktails.

For Pete Burnham, owner of Lama Dog Tap Room and now The Mullet, analog music is more than just a trend—and it pairs lovely with a cocktail.

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