Articles From : Melinda Burns
Outcomes of a Wet Winter
Ring nets are set to go in on Montecito creeks, just as the burn areas are turning green.
Offshore Oil: The Long Goodbye
In the Santa Barbara Channel, the 2020s will be a decade of decommissioning.
Survivors Featured in Montecito Debris Flow Documentary
A local documentary features survivors of last year's January 9th debris flow in Montecito on its first anniversary.
To the Rescue on San Ysidro Creek
Santa Barbara County is seeking up to $25 million with FEMA money to buy land for a new debris basin on the San Ysidro Creek in Montecito.
The Doldrums of Drought
Water managers and Santa Barbara County wrangle over Lake Cachuma's dwindling water supply.
The $120,000 Campaign for Montecito’s Water Future
Wealthy donors bankroll a five-member slate against incumbents in a bid for control over the Montecito Water and Sanitary District boards.
Saving Mountain Dwellers from Wildfire
Will more fuel breaks on San Marcos Pass protect mountain dwellers from wildfire? Melinda Burns investigates.
La Casa de María Needs More Than Devotion
Rebuilding La Casa de María's "sacred space" will require $30 million in donations, directors say.
National Labor Board Wants Wendy McCaw to Pay $2.2 million
Two former Santa Barbara News-Press employees explain how Wendy McCaw mistreated employees and how the Federal government wants her to pay.
Residents Object, but FEMA Recovery Map Will Stand
The new FEMA recovery map for Montecito is designed to help property owners rebuild after the January debris flow, but it almost doubles the size of the flood plain, frustrating homeowners.
The Fire Next Time
How do you save lives and homes when “every acre can and will burn”?
FEMA Recovery Map Gets Green Light
FEMA recovery map for Montecito and Carpinteria Valley gets a green light. It’s not perfect, supes say, but it will help people rebuild more safely.
FEMA Recovery Map Enlarges flood plain in Montecito and Carpinteria
The official rollout of the new Federal Management Agency Recovery map for Montecito got underway Thursday night as residents grilled county officials about the latest hazard designations for their embattled community.
The Menace of San Ysidro Creek
“I would never live here again,” says a survivor who slept through the Jan. 9 debris flow in what's classified as the third deadliest neighborhood.
Dispatches from a Disaster: Part II
What happened on the deadliest section of Montecito Creek?
Dispatches from a Disaster: Part I
UC Santa Barbara scientists scour the creeks of Montecito for fast-vanishing clues to the 1/9 debris flow
Fast-Track Permits for Montecito
The Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors streamlined the permitting rules for Montecito debris flow survivors.
Rebuilding at Ground Zero
“How do you define ‘safe’? How do you define ‘home’?” asks one Montecito property owner who lost everything.
Pushback from Montecito: Not so fast with fast-track rebuilding
On May 15, the county Board of Supervisors will consider amending the county zoning ordinance to streamline and speed the gargantuan task of rebuilding Montecito in the wake of a catastrophic debris flow.
Remapping Montecito, Post-Apocalypse
FEMA is drawing up an interim recovery map of local watersheds to help guide development over the next few years in Montecito and Carpinteria.