Good morning Santa Barbara! We're back in your inbox this morning to keep you in the loop with what's happening in and around town. Grab a cup of coffee and read on. ☕️️
In today's newsletter:
Also on today's calendar: Prepping Your Garden for El Niño and 9 more events.
Today's riddle: What do you call a belt that is made of watches? 🤔 (Answer below!)
1. DNA Evidence Leads to Sexual Assault Arrest (crimevoice.com) — Santa Barbara County authorities have arrested a Santa Barbara man after DNA evidence linked him to an alleged 2025 kidnapping and rape of a 14-year-old on a local bike path. Detectives say months of investigation and forensic analysis led to an arrest warrant, and the suspect is now being held in county jail on multiple no-bail felony charges.
2. Santa Barbara housing officials survey rents to update federal housing assistance rates (ksby.com) — Santa Barbara's city and county housing authorities are asking renters and landlords to complete a new countywide rent survey that could raise federal assistance levels for local Housing Choice Voucher users. With residents like longtime Santa Barbara renter Abel Contreras feeling squeezed by rising costs, officials hope better data will convince HUD to update Fair Market Rents to match today's market.
3. GROUNDSWELL: Ojai filmmaker's award-winning documentary explores regenerative agriculture (keyt.com) — Santa Barbara residents can catch the award-winning documentary "Groundswell" at its local premiere hosted by the Community Environmental Council, highlighting how regenerative farming could help our region's drought- and fire-stressed agriculture. Filmed partly in nearby Ojai, the movie and CEC programs aim to give local farmers, ranchers, and residents practical ideas for rebuilding soil health and resilience.
4. Realtors meet with Insurance Commissioner Candidate (keyt.com) — Santa Barbara realtors and Montecito residents met with Insurance Commissioner candidate Sen. Ben Allen to discuss how wildfire and mudslide risks are driving up insurance costs and limiting coverage options. Allen, facing fellow Democrat Jane Kim in November, said he wants insurers to reward risk reduction so homeowners here aren't pushed into last-resort FAIR Plan policies.
5. Central Coast's railroad history to be celebrated region wide this weekend (santamariatimes.com) — Rail fans from Santa Barbara County can dive into local railroad history this weekend as the Central Coast Railroad Festival returns across San Luis Obispo and northern Santa Barbara County. With museum exhibits, a guided railway hike, and dozens of model layouts, there are family-friendly activities from Friday through Sunday at multiple nearby venues.
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Ok Santa Barbara! So now you're in the loop about what's happening today. Thanks for reading, and see you in your inbox next time! Oh -- and if you like what you're reading, invite a friend to Patch AM!
-- The Patch AM Team
P.S. The answer to today's riddle: A waist of time. (Thank you Martin L. for sending it in!)
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