Goleta is implementing temporary street parking restrictions in neighborhoods near Isla Vista in early April since community leaders expect big crowds during Deltopia despite new restrictions on the event.
The Goleta City Council approved the restrictions on Tuesday for the University 1 and 2 neighborhoods where 4,000 residents live adjacent to Isla Vista and UC Santa Barbara.
Similar restrictions were put in place for past Deltopia and Halloween weekends.
Deltopia, the unsanctioned event where thousands of local and out of town college and high school students party on Del Playa Drive each spring, saw 485 citations and 84 arrests last year.
Another event impact is people parking in nearby neighborhoods to attend the event, according to the city.
The restrictions — from noon on April 3 to 7 a.m. on April 5 — only allow parking in the designated neighborhoods for residents or attendees for authorized Girsh Park activities .
Residents will be required to tape a parking permit to the inside of the vehicle’s driver’s side window during the parking restriction period.
The parking restriction area has boundaries of Cannon Green Drive, Hollister Avenue, Storke Road and Whittier Drive.
However, city staff note the parking restriction dates are still tentative and will be finalized once the actual Deltopia weekend date is known.
The restrictions are ready to be placed on various weekends in April if the event isn’t held on the first weekend of the university’s spring quarter as it traditionally is, according to the city staff report.
Last month, the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors approved rules targeting the event specifically, to the dismay of UC Santa Barbara students.
The board approved a 72-hour noise ordinance, banning any music that could be heard from the property line, during the party weekend.
Additionally, the supervisors expanded the public-nuisance and social-host ordinance to include The Cove apartment complex on 568 Ocean Meadows Lane in Goleta.
For the next Deltopia, law enforcement can immediately shut down a party if certain criminal violations are observed or connected to a gathering, according to Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Raquel Zick.
For example, if law enforcement observe a single instance of rooftop parties, stage diving, throwing objects, accessing bluffs by bypassing safety barriers, charging a cover fee at a residence, or obstructing public roadways, the parties can get immediately shut down, Zick added.
However, Goleta staff expect it will take time for the ordinances to shape the unsanctioned event.
The Isla Vista Community Services District is planning alternative events for the Deltopia weekend.
Organizers envision the event to be filled with music, art, a thrift market, dancing, free food, and a 21-or-older area around Embarcadero Del Norte and Embarcadero Del Mar, south of Pardall Road.
