Montecito, California

Montecito
—  census-designated place  —
Location in Santa Barbara County and the state of California
Coordinates: 34°26′1″N 119°37′55″W / 34.43361°N 119.63194°W / 34.43361; -119.63194Coordinates: 34°26′1″N 119°37′55″W / 34.43361°N 119.63194°W / 34.43361; -119.63194
Country	United States
State	California
County	Santa Barbara
Government
– N/A
– Senate	Tony Strickland (R)
– Assembly	Pedro Nava (D)
– U. S. Congress	Lois Capps (D)
Area[1]
– Total	9.265 sq mi (23.994 km2)
– Land	9.259 sq mi (23.979 km2)
– Water	0.006 sq mi (0.014 km2)  0.06%
Elevation	180 ft (55 m)
Population (2010)
– Total	8,965
– Density	967.6/sq mi (373.6/km2)
Time zone	PST (UTC-8)
– Summer (DST)	PDT (UTC-7)
ZIP codes	93108, 93150
Area code(s)	805
FIPS code	06-48844
GNIS feature ID	1661052

Montecito is an unincorporated community in Santa Barbara County, California. As a census-designated place, it had a population of 8,965 in 2010. This does not include areas such as Coast Village Road, that, while usually considered part of Montecito, are actually within the city limits of Santa Barbara, located directly to the west. Montecito occupies the eastern portion of the coastal plain south of the Santa Ynez Mountains. Parts of the town are built on the lower foothills of the range. Notable roads spanning Montecito include East Valley Road, Mountain Drive, and Sycamore Canyon Road, all of which form part of State Route 192. In addition, the U.S. 101 freeway runs along the south end of town, connecting it with other cities in Santa Barbara County and the rest of Southern California.

History

The site of present-day Montecito, along with the entire south coast of Santa Barbara County, was inhabited for over 10,000 years by the Chumash Indians. The Spanish arrived in the 18th century, but left the region largely unsettled while they built the Presidio and Mission Santa Barbara farther west.

In the middle of the 19th century the area was known as a haven for bandits and highway robbers, who hid in the oak groves and canyons, preying on traffic on the coastal route between the towns that developed around the missions. By the end of the 1860s the bandit gangs were gone, and Italian settlers arrived. Finding an area reminiscent of Italy, they built farms and gardens similar to those they had left behind in Italy. Around the end of the 19th century, wealthy tourists from the eastern United States began to buy land in the area. It was near enough to Santa Barbara for essential services while still being secluded. Desirable weather and several nearby hot springs offered the promise of comfortable, healthy living, in addition to the availability of affordable land.^[2]

The Montecito Hot Springs Hotel was built near the largest of the springs, in a canyon north of the town center and directly south of Montecito Peak, in Hot Springs Canyon. The hotel burned down in 1920; it was replaced a few years later by the smaller Hot Springs Club.^[3]

The architect George Washington Smith is noted particularly for his residences around Montecito, and for popularizing the Spanish Colonial Revival style in early 20th century America.

In November 2008, 80 Montecito homes were destroyed in the Tea Fire, which also destroyed 130 homes in Santa Barbara.^[4]

Geography

Butterfly Beach, one of only a few south facing beaches in southern California, is located in Montecito, backed by the Coral Casino, Biltmore Hotel, and the Santa Barbara Music Academy.

Montecito is located at 34°26′1″N 119°37′55″W / 34.43361°N 119.63194°W / 34.43361; -119.63194 (34.433687, -119.631845).^[5] According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 9.3 square miles (24 km²), 99.94% of it land and 0.06% of it water.

Demographics

2010

The 2010 United States Census^[6] reported that Montecito had a population of 8,965. The population density was 967.7 people per square mile (373.6/km²). The racial makeup of Montecito was 8,267 (92.2%) White, 55 (0.6%) African American, 38 (0.4%) Native American, 218 (2.4%) Asian, 6 (0.1%) Pacific Islander, 156 (1.7%) from other races, and 225 (2.5%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 605 persons (6.7%).

The Census reported that 8,033 people (89.6% of the population) lived in households, 932 (10.4%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and none were institutionalized.

Of the 3,432 households, 831 (24.2%) had children under the age of 18 living in them; 1,936 (56.4%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 234 (6.8%) had a female householder with no husband present, 93 (2.7%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 110 (3.2%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 36 (1.0%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 941 households (27.4%) were made up of individuals and 527 (15.4%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.34. There were 2,263 families (65.9% of all households); the average family size was 2.79.

The age spread of the population accounts 1,515 people (16.9%) under the age of 18, 1,234 people (13.8%) aged 18 to 24, 1,169 people (13.0%) aged 25 to 44, 2,716 people (30.3%) aged 45 to 64, and 2,331 people (26.0%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 50.0 years. For every 100 females there were 87.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.9 males.

4,238 housing units represented an average density of 457.5 per square mile (176.6/km²), of which 2,522 (73.5%) were owner-occupied, and 910 (26.5%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.4%; the rental vacancy rate was 8.7%. 6,081 people (67.8% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 1,952 people (21.8%) lived in rental housing units.

2000

The census^[7] of 2000 counted 10,000 people, 3,686 households, and 2,454 families residing in the census-designated pace (CDP). The population density was 1,072.3 people per square mile (413.8/km²). There were 4,193 housing units at an average density of 449.6 per square mile (173.5/km²). The racial makeup of the CDP was 94.03% White, 0.48% African American, 0.31% Native American, 1.29% Asian, 0.21% Pacific Islander, 2.14% from other races, and 1.54% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 5.19% of the population.

Out of the total of 3,686 households, 25.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.1% were married couples living together, 7.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.4% were non-families. 27.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.41 and the average family size was 2.85.

The CDP population age distribution was 18.4% under the age of 18, 13.5% from 18 to 24, 16.6% from 25 to 44, 30.0% from 45 to 64, and 21.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 46 years. For every 100 females there were 84.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 82.1 males.

The median income for a household in the CDP was $110,669, and the median income for a family was $130,123. Males had a median income of $81,719 versus $42,182 for females. The per capita income for the CDP was $70,077. About 2.3% of families and 3.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.6% of those under age 18 and 2.2% of those age 65 or over.

Notable architecture

• Lotusland - design and botanic gardens (public tours by appt.)
• El Fureidis - by American architect Bertram Grosvenor Goodhue
• Music Academy of the West
• Casa del Herrero - Spanish Colonial revival home and gardens (public tours by appt.).
• Montecito Inn -built by Charlie Chaplin

Notable current and former residents

Many people in the entertainment industry have chosen Montecito as their primary or secondary residence.^[8]

Troy Aikman Dame Judith Anderson (died 1992) Ross Bagdasarian, Jr. & Janice Karman Billy Baldwin Drew Barrymore Jeff Bridges Carol Burnett Julia Child (died 2004) John Cleese Jimmy Connors Fred Couples

Christopher Cross Kirk Douglas Julia Louis-Dreyfus Michael Douglas Fannie Flagg Bob Gale Sue Grafton Andy Granatelli Tipper Gore [9] Martin Lee Gore Paul Hogan Tab Hunter Bruce Johnston

Kenny Loggins Rob Lowe Steve Martin Dennis Miller Charlie Munger Paul Muni Peter Noone Suzy Parker Chynna Phillips Ivan Reitman T.C. Boyle Jane Russell (died 2011)

Eva Marie Saint John Sanford Lori Saunders Eric Schmidt Ed Snider Timothy Stack Shaun Tomson Joe Walsh Ty Warner Oprah Winfrey Jonathan Winters Thomas Steinbeck

See also

• History of Santa Barbara, California
• Shalawa Meadow, California

Notes

1. ^ U.S. Census
2. ^ Baker, p. 61-62
3. ^ Baker, p. 62
4. ^ County of Santa Barbara News Release 008, November 16, 2008
5. ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2011-02-12. http://www.census.gov/geo/www/gazetteer/gazette.html. Retrieved 2011-04-23. 
6. ^ All data are derived from the United States Census Bureau reports from the 2010 United States Census, and are accessible on-line here. The data on unmarried partnerships and same-sex married couples are from the Census report DEC_10_SF1_PCT15. All other housing and population data are from Census report DEC_10_DP_DPDP1. Both reports are viewable online or downloadable in a zip file containing a comma-delimited data file. The area data, from which densities are calculated, are available on-line here. Percentage totals may not add to 100% due to rounding. The Census Bureau defines families as a household containing one or more people related to the householder by birth, opposite-sex marriage, or adoption. People living in group quarters are tabulated by the Census Bureau as neither owners nor renters. For further details, see the text files accompanying the data files containing the Census reports mentioned above.
7. ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
8. ^ http://www.usatoday.com/life/people/2008-11-14-montecito-fires_N.htm "Fire comes to Montecito, paradise for rich, famous". USA Today. November 14, 2008. Retrieved April 9, 2011
9. ^ Staff writers (April 30, 2010). "Orange Punch: Al Gore's massive carbon footprint". The Orange County Register. http://www.ocregister.com/opinion/gore-246605-http-href.html. Retrieved 25 September 2010. 

References

• Baker, Gayle. Santa Barbara. Harbor Town Histories, Santa Barbara. 2003. ISBN 0-9710984-1-7