Our view: Social distancing could be required for months
Is the Central Coast headed toward a COVID-19 peak or is an April surge in our future? That is the key question amid signs that decisions by state and local governments to reduce social interaction in early March are starting to pay off. At press time the most alarming signals were coming from Santa Barbara Read More →
Few tri-county lenders ready to accept CARES Act loan applications
April 3 was the first day small businesses could apply for new programs under the CARES Act, but last-minute changes meant only a few financial institutions in the Tri-Counties were able to roll out those options on opening day. Through hard work and preparation, Montecito Bank & Trust was able to accept initial applications when Read More →
Tri-county stocks mixed as market falls
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Garufis: Loans available to help businesses survive
By Janet Garufis We have all witnessed first-hand the serious and immediate impacts of the pandemic on local small businesses, our friends, neighbors and ourselves. Many workers have been furloughed or are now unemployed as non-essential businesses close and others learn to operate under restrictions that provide safe social distancing. At Montecito Bank & Trust, Read More →
Tri-county firms offer products in response to COVID-19
Tri-county technologies are being deployed in the fight against the coronavirus response — but getting products in the field is not always easy. That’s put pressure on Central Coast manufacturers, including FLIR, Seek Thermal, Raytheon and Wyatt Technology to keep supply chains intact as tech firms work with skeleton crews and adopt new safety and Read More →
Retail wine sales soar but wineries still suffer revenue slump
Tri-county wine tasting rooms and restaurants likely won’t reopen to visitors soon, but consumers are still buying and drinking wine. The Nielsen Co. reported that wine sales at grocery and drug stores soared 27 percent in the week ending March 14 when compared to both the previous and the year-ago week. Wineries are getting higher Read More →
Demand spikes at tri-county food banks due to COVID-19 layoffs
In the past month, the FoodBank of Santa Barbara County has quadrupled the amount of food it’s distributing to members of the community. Even still, families will line up hours in advance for food distribution, and supplies will be gone within 15 minutes of the first box being passed out. “The scale is different than Read More →
