City halts landscape construction at Cajun Kitchen’s new location

The owners of Cajun Kitchen, a popular breakfast and lunch restaurant in Santa Barbara County, must turn in a new development plan for their newest location in Goleta after a tree was removed without a permit.

According to the City of Goleta’s website, any tree trimming or removal on public property must be reported. The restaurant on the intersection of Fairview Avenue and Calle Real is on private property. However the city says the owners of the restaurant already submitted a development plan which included all 3 ficus trees.

“We sent out an inspector to see what’s happening and she placed a stop work notice on the landscaping portion of their project. Unfortunately, one tree was cut down and the other two remain,” said Valerie Kushnerov, Goleta Community Relations Manager.

We reached out to the owner of Cajun Kitchen, but he chose not to respond.

BeAnne Dato, a viewer and longtime Goleta resident, reported the tree removal to the city on Friday. Dato says she lives nearby and has admired the tree trees everyday. She spot crews working to remove the trees when she was across the street.

“I looked over to my beautiful trees and one of them was gone and I noticed the noise was a wood chipper. I just felt sick to my stomach,” said Dato.