HUT KNOCKDOWN:

One of the more impressive beach huts in recent local memory met
its demise last week when the massive Hammonds Beach driftwood
structure was mysteriously knocked down and flung into the sea.
Though no local agencies are taking credit for the removal, a
spokesperson for the Sheriff’s Department commented that such
monoliths of beach culture are often taken apart by authorities
because they are illegal, unsafe, and “a magnet for criminal
activity.” This year’s incarnation of Hammonds Hut became a staple
on the popular locals’ beach in recent months, serving as a
gathering place for younger surfers after school and as a shady
hangout for beachgoers on sunny afternoons. More than 10 feet tall
with support beams extending as deep as six feet into the sand, the
three-room structure was also an impromptu shrine to the recently
deceased Montecito resident Matt Thomson, the teenage son of former
world champion surfer Shaun Thomson.