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Not sure how much you or anyone on this forum knows about Santa Barbara.
It's about 90 miles north of LA on the coast. In the most common divisions of California, it's considered the "Central Coast"- a region known mostly for its mild climate. It is insulated from Ventura and LA counties to the south by miles of barren coastline- definitely NOT a suburb of LA.
SB is sandwiched in a thin strip of land that contains hwy 101. It's at a bend in the coast, so to its north the Santa Ynez mountains jut up abruptly, and to the south is the pacific ocean (the Santa Barbara channel actually. The horizon is dotted with international shipping, offshore oil rigs, and the Channel Islands (between 10-30 miles offshore)). There is less than 10 miles of land between the mountains and the ocean.
It's a mild Mediterranean-type climate that is reminiscent of the French/Spanish Riviera.
The environmental movement here dates to the disaster of the oil spill in the 1960's, when an offshore platform burst, coating the coast with thick oil. Due to this movement, there is strong anti-growth legislation. This, combined with the ocean and mountains, constrain development. As such, it has very skewed demographics- lots of old rich white people, and then some poor Hispanic communities. Not a lot of middle-class. Oprah and a bunch of other celebrities have mansions here.
15 miles north is a major univeristy, UCSB. Here, in recently incorporate Goleta, there is a beachside college community Isla Vista that contains 17,000 college students in half a square mile. Imagine 17,000 students that are almost all 18-22 living on ocean bluffs, 2 and 3 to a bedroom, and partying in the streets several days a week.
Just in case anyone was interested in what the region is like that the video comes from. It's NOT your typical southern California town by any means.
Mike
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