Where's Mitt Romney's dad when you need him? A $20,000 "loan" could go a long way to solving the immediate financial worries of a number of Santa Barbara businesses trying to make rent; pay their vendors, employees, and bank loans; and find the time to market themselves. The Thomas Fire made December much too lean a month for the county as a whole, and the possibility of low-interest loans or sales tax deferments would do little to help balance sheets already in the red. Most all of the above were part of the conversation at Thursday's forum organized by Women's Economic Ventures, at which business owners told state and local officials directly about the fire's impact.
The word that Santa Barbara's skies are blue again and that the smoke and ash are gone apparently hasn't reached the traveling public. Hotels have been hit particularly hard in paradoxical ways, as cancellations that now extend into January — and July in one case — have added to losses generated by the hoteliers themselves, as many kind-heartedly welcomed fire evacuees for free or at a cut rate all across the county.
December was a cruel month, but their counterparts in Ventura suffered much worse, Julia Mayer of the French Press pointed out immediately. She then spoke with such passion about how her coffee shop's social media posts have supported their fellow retailers that Jesse Torres from the Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development leaned over to ask her to fill him in on just how they did that.