It’s Always Sunny in San Roque

Having been born and raised in Santa Barbara and lived in many neighborhoods in my hometown, I can tell you that we do have varied weather from one part of town to the next. Micro-climate zones exist in Santa Barbara and the most extreme difference is usually between the Mesa, where my family lives and San Roque where almost all of our friends who don’t live on the Mesa reside.

How can I tell you might ask? Well it is all very scientific, we invite San Roque friends over for dinner or to play and they show up in shorts and tank tops only to ask to borrow fleeces and Ugg boots since the weather changed that much in their 10-minute drive across town.

Another way is when I get ready in the mornings and look out the window at the total fog bank and hear the fog horn honking away, I then dress accordingly in warmer clothes and layers. Then as I head down Carrillo hill and by the time I hit Chino Street, the sun is out and there isn’t a cloud in the sky and the first layer of clothing is shed!

We used to live on the Westside, on Mountain Avenue right under the hills leading up to the Mesa. In the mornings we would have to squeegee off our car windows- because of course we didn’t park in a garage. I mean, come on, what Santa Barbaran parks in a garage? This part of the Westside has its own little riparian zone with moss growing on the North side and lots of moisture in the mornings.

This topic of conversation comes up for me a lot in my work world. As I am taking buyers on tours around Santa Barbara to discuss the various neighborhoods, we always talk about weather. Some are prone to depression and choose to live in the always sunnier areas of San Roque and Mission Canyon. Others want to be cooler and outside all the time and within a very short distance to the beach, so we explore the Mesa. For some proximity to their work locations and great schools lead them out to Goleta. Others from harsher climates just laugh that we discuss weather at all and ask why we don’t have screens on our windows. We pay the big bucks not to have bugs in Santa Barbara.

One of the many aspects that I love about Santa Barbara is how eclectic our houses are and the unique traits of the various neighborhoods. I also love when I discover a street that I have never been on before, professional thrill! Feel free to reach out and ask me for a tour to explore the various neighborhoods and see which ones suit your needs for the future.