HOUSING NURSERY
La Sumida Nursery 165 S. Patterson Ave., 964-9944 “People love La Sumida because it has been serving generations; its name is familiar,” said Dee Honer, one of the people who manages this classic nursery for the Sumida family. “And now that all the smaller nurseries have been concentrated into one locale, it somehow seems easier for people to come here,” she said. “Right now, people are here for planting trees and shrubs, though fall vegetables are big, too. What most people don’t know is that we grow a lot of the plants we sell, especially our hanging baskets and roses.” FINALIST
Terra Sol Garden Center
HOME FURNISHINGS STORE
Cost Plus World Market 610 State St., 899-8311 In the absence of a nearby Ikea store, we have the folk-music triumph of Cost Plus. Far more attractive to younger shoppers who are finally out to convert their apartments from orange crates and Isla Vista rescue couches to the first level of respectability, Cost Plus has a surprisingly adventurous combination of modern-looking furniture and classic stuff. You can get a sleek leatherette couch for about $300 or a plump plaid ottoman for about $60. It’s warm décor at easy-toafford prices. And you can pronounce the names. FINALIST
Pottery Barn
REAL ESTATE FIRM
to rig any election at the time. The Santa Barbara boy, whose office looks down on the Alameda Park playground where he hung out as a kid, thinks it helps being so in touch with a town. “And winning this is icing on my cake,” he said. FINALIST
Jon Mahoney
MOVING COMPANY
Movegreen 1 N. Calle César Chávez, Ste. 130, 845-6600 “Absolutely we’re thrilled to win,” said Erik Haney, who thinks the company’s popularity began because of their environmental sensitivity but gets better because Movegreen involves itself in the community. And that includes a charitable golf tournament they host, which Haney was sharpening his cleats for as we spoke. “We’re also moving into a brand-new storage facility at 1 North Calle Real, with 17,000 square feet. We’re very happy the readers voted for us.” FINALIST
Mammoth Moving & Storage
ELECTRONICS STORE
Best Buy 7090 Market Place Dr., Goleta, 571-3999 Some people are good at shopping online. They know what they want, and they know how to navigate the morass of dealers to get a good deal. Then there are the rest of us who like to watch the TV, play with the keyboard, and heft the video camera before plunking down. Best Buy is for us. Oh yeah, and you don’t have to wait for the mailman; you can play with the toys today. FINALIST
Apple Store
Village Properties Many locations Ed Edick and Renee Grubb’s company is as well known around town for its stable of agents — many of them lifelong Santa Barbarians — as it is as a place that goes out of its way to do good in the town they represent for sales. Last year, they turned their eyes on the world of education and started a fund that raises and specifically grants money to classrooms. The company believes in developing and sustaining long-term relationships, and the readers seem to feel they have. FINALIST
Sotheby’s International Realty
REAL ESTATE AGENT
Steve Epstein It was a very good year for Steve Epstein, realtor deluxe. “It just so happens I had a perfect storm. Last June, I reached a milestone of 25 years in the business, and coincidentally, I hit 1,000 closed sales,” he said. To celebrate, Epstein rented the Condor and hired Tom Ball and Kenny Sultan to play. Epstein believes this has something to do with the number of votes he got, though he wasn’t out
ANTIQUE STORE
Antique Alley 706 State St., 962-3944 “It’s entertainment when they come in here,” claimed Antique Alley owner Allan Howard. “It’s a trip down memory lane.” Indeed it is a long swim through nostalgia with almost 20 different merchants setting up artistically festooned cubbies of bric-a-brac, clothing, art pieces, books, records, and tchotchkes that have somehow evaded the dustbin of history and become history itself on parade. There is clearly a trippiness factor. “Even I get completely lost in here,” said Howard. “People ought to know it’s not just classic antiques; there’s a lot of pulp culture, too. We’re breathing air into the dusty world of the antique,” he said. FINALIST
Summerland Antique Collective
HOUSECLEANING SERVICE
Karen’s Kleaning 564-1444 “I don’t know how we won,” said Karen Laurie, owner of the alliterative housecleaning service. “We had a hard year, and we even had to raise our rates, but we’re assuming that the readers voted for us because we work really hard and have always been dedicated to quality. We don’t really have an interest in making a lot of money. Mostly we want to make sure we do the job the best we can. So even if it was a hard year, we’re happy we won.” FINALIST
santa barbara®
Winner
Silvia’s Cleaning Service
PLACE TO BUY CARPET/RUGS
Carpeteria 5610 Hollister Ave., Goleta, 964-3551 This longtime winner of this category is one of our few chains that readers feel annually indebted to. It’s got carpet, hardwood, vinyl, and tile with astoundingly wide selections, great process, credit arrangements, and installation. Philosophers speak of the “ground of being” — this place makes walking in it nicer. FINALIST
Abbey Carpet & Floor
GARDENING/ LANDSCAPING SERVICE
Kitson Landscape Management 5787 Thornwood Dr., Goleta, 681-7010 Gardening has been the family business since 1969, when Brent and Sally Kitson first opened an avocado orchard and gardening service. Today, their daughter Sarah looks over a business that has expanded immensely yet maintained ties with customers for almost four decades. The company
october 17, 2013
THE INDEPENDENt
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