By Andrew Pridgen
Publication Date: 2026-06-02 11:00:00
A long-awaited housing development for families to be built on the same property as a Google billionaire’s Santa Barbara grocery store was given the green light last week.
Along with its outsize reputation in Santa Barbara for being the go-to purveyor of the area’s best fruits and vegetables, the store’s location is highly sought-after, less than a block away from the ocean and next to the famed Hilton Santa Barbara Beachfront resort.
Now, plans are taking shape to expand Tri County Produce and build much-needed housing on the 2-acre property the market currently occupies.
Last week, the expansion of the business and the housing component took a big step forward when Santa Barbara’s Architectural Board of Review unanimously approved the design for the development.
Santa Barbara faces a housing crisis that is pushing out even wealthier members of the community, and housing-related issues take up much of the city’s attention.
The latest version of the Tri-County…
