The Indy Podcast: Welcome to Isla Vista

An April 18 you can eat delicious brunch food and support the journalism fellowship that made Welcome to Isla Vista possible! Gather at the historic Rancho La Patera and Stow House in Goleta from 11:30 AM - 3:30 PM on April 18. Don't forget to buy your tickets online on the Indy's website.

Introducing Breaking Tunes. The Bad Neighbors visited the Independent's news room for a live concert. The Bad Neighbors are featured in Episode 6 of Welcome to Isla Vista. Check it out!The Set List:Seasons (0:00) King of Nothing (4:33) Landlord (9:25) Overdose (12:37)

Development has started again in I.V., as new housing laws make it easier to build. At the same time, property owners are cutting back parts of homes on Del Playa as the cliff erodes and parking is even more tightly impacted. Where is I.V. headed? And what are some ways we can make it a better place to live?

This episode takes us into the quiet community garden, as well as the homes of long-term homeowners. How has Isla Vista changed from the eyes of people who see crops of students graduate each year? What was the impact of a major renovation that displaced dozens of long-term families? How can we look at I.V. from an artist’s perspective? And what’s with that uniquely shaped dome house?

One night in 1970, a fire broke out at the Bank of America. No one yet knows who set it. But it brought both police brutality and political engagement to Isla Vista. Why does I.V. have such a vast network of parks? Why isn’t I.V. a city? And decades later how did tragedy bolster support for the Community Services District, according to its founders? Note: This episode contains discussion of a bomb incident (4:40 - 5:00), police brutality (5:54 - 8:20), rioting (5:54 - 8:20, 23:44 - 24:00), and mass murder (24:20 - 26:13). If you do not want to hear these parts, skip them.

Post-COVID, Isla Vista grew even more expensive, all while housing stayed pretty much the same. What is like living in I.V. now? There’s good, bad, and ugly here. Note, there is discussion of sexual assault, harassment and rape from 17:50 to 18:55. If you do not want to hear this discussion, please skip this part.

 In 1954, Santa Barbara College students traded “the campus with a view” for the “campus in the slough.” Developers built more than 4,000 structures in 10 years, receiving variances and helping pass zoning codes to increase density. What was it like to live there? Student stories start in 1954 and finish in 2016, as that housing stock ages.

How did we get from oak forests to oil schemes and later to student housing? Episode one introduces one of the oldest streets in I.V. and delves into I.V.’s early history and development.