February 2010

HACIENDA VIEJA PROJECT The appeal on the Hacienda Vieja Project was heard by the Board of Supervisors on 15 February. Unfortunately, we did not prevail. The final vote was 4-1 against the appeal, with Second District Supervisor Susan Rose presenting passionate arguments for this project being the place we “draw the line in the sand”…

Spring Has finally Sprung: The “Ghost of Spring” we have been experiencing as a result of the current drought is gone. It has been replaced by a solid body of delightful vistas and colorful flowers. The very short grasses are now two or three times taller and the brownish appearance of the whole Mesa has…

Bobcat Family: Over the years, anecdotal, and very informal reports of Bobcat sightings have reached the More Mesa Preservation Coalition.  Moreover, we have never received any written or photographic documentation of these reports. However this year, it has become clear that a Bobcat family is frequenting More Mesa.  The mother was first seen in spring,…

In mid afternoon of July 18th a fire broke out on the eastern edge of More Mesa.  Winds were potentially very dangerous. In fact, at first assessment, it appeared it might be difficult to contain the fire, which was spreading in a northwesterly direction.  However, within less than ten minutes, the Santa Barbara County Fire…

Mother Nature Does Her Thing, Even with a Record Breaking Drought In spite of what is shaping up as yet another drought year, More Mesa is green and blooming. In one short walk we spotted Poppies, California Brittlebush, Blue-eyed Grass, Redmaids, Owl’s Clover and Miniature Lupine. Many of these were in profusion and all a…