The struggles to preserve Santa Barbara’s two most iconic treasures escalated this week, amid legal and political conflicts with a shady off-shore oil outfit and an even shadier developer.

On a new episode of Newsmakers TV, the local journalism gang returns to dissect the latest developments in the consequential conflicts over Sable Offshore’s effort to restart a derelict oil pipeline adjoining Refugio beach, and an appalling proposal to build an eight-story apartment tower behind the Mission.

Nick Welsh breaks down the 4-to-1 vote by the Board of Supervisors that erected a new legal barrier to Sable’s pipeline re-start bid, focusing on a dramatic star turn by North County Supervisor Steve Lavagnino, a longtime booster of the local oil industry, who announced that the company’s stream of rogue and reprobate behavior finally convinced him they need to be stopped.

Christina McDermott reprises her reporting on a new federal lawsuit filed against the state of California and the city of Santa Barbara, the latest litigation from Mission LLC, the mysterious out-of-town developer that seeks to shoehorn a blockbuster highrise behind the Mission without a full environmental review of its health, safety, and ecological impacts on the fragile neighborhood.

And Josh Molina recaps three recent, in-depth conversations, from his “Santa Barbara Talks” podcast, with advocates for clashing positions about cars, ebikes, pedestrians and economic vitality, all stemming from the eternal question: Whither State Street?

Plus: some breaking good news about federal food benefits arriving for the one-in-seven folks in the county who depend on them, as Donald Trump’s government shutdown drags through its second month.

All this and more, right here, right now on Newsmakers TV.

Check out Episode 529 via YouTube below or by clicking through this link. Our podcast is available on Apple, Spotify, or on Soundcloud here. TVSB, Channel 17, airs the show every weeknight at 5 p.m. and at 9 a.m. on weekends. KCSB, 91.9 FM, broadcasts the program at 5:30 p.m. on weekends.

Images: Santa Barbara Mission (Californa Through My Eyes.com); Butterfly Beach (WineCountry.com).

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