Agriculture plays an important role in the city’s economy. The Santa Maria area is home to an increasing number of vineyards, wineries and winemakers and is centrally located to both the Santa Ynez and Foxen Canyon areas of Santa Barbara County’s wine country, and San Luis Obispo County’s Edna Valley–Arroyo Grande wine country.
Two of the city’s major retail centers, the Crossroads, completed in 1999, and the historic Enos Ranch site, still under development, are both situated adjacent to the U.S. Route 101/Betteravia Road interchange and feature several prominent big-box stores. The city is also home to the Santa Maria Town Center, the only enclosed shopping mall in Santa Barbara County and the largest on the Central Coast, located at the junction of Broadway and Main Street.
Santa Maria also features the historic Santa Maria Inn, located on South Broadway; originally built in 1917 by Frank McCoy, it is a registered historic landmark and features a wide range of amenities. Several famous guests have stayed at this inn, including Charlie Chaplin, Rudolph Valentino, Bette Davis, Bing Crosby, and Herbert Hoover.
In recent years, other industries have been added to the city’s agricultural and retail mix, including: aerospace; communications; high-tech research and development; energy production; military operations; and manufacturing.
The petroleum industry has long had a large presence in the area, since oil was first discovered at the Orcutt Oil Field in 1902. By 1957, there were 1,775 oil wells in operation in the Santa Maria Valley, producing more than $640 million worth of oil.
[caption id="attachment_203533" align="aligncenter" width="390"] Johannes Brahms in 1889 - New York Public Library - C. Brasch[/caption][responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Female" buttontext="Listen to this Post"]Johannes Brahms was a German composer, pianist, and conductor of the Romantic per...
