Every action has a consequence, and the Santa Barbara City Council is facing just that as a referendum attempts to repeal years of work to reimagine the downtown State Street core. 

Pending the State Street Master Plan being put on a ballot, the council voted 5-1-1 on Tuesday to extend a temporary order keeping State Street closed to vehicles while a referendum petition challenging the Sept. 1 approval of the State Street Master Plan is reviewed.

Mayor Randy Rowse voted against and Councilman Eric Friedman abstained from the vote in protest, arguing that the city could have pursued interim options to compromise with businesses that wanted the street reopened. 

“My abstention is a protest in the fact that we didn’t do what we needed to do when we had the chance,” Friedman said. 

Councilwoman Meagan Harmon argued that extending the closure is about preserving the current condition of the street until voters can make their voice heard.

As her term on the council comes to an end, Harmon reflected on what she called a failure to find a path that people could live with and save all the legal issues and referendums. 

“The reason that I feel it’s a failure, truly, is because of all the time we are losing to actually implement something that is generational, something that is truly reflective of what this community needs,” Harmon said. “I was guilty of it. I didn’t want to compromise one inch from the vision I had.”

The State Street referendum petition was submitted with 8,700 signatures. Organizers needed only 5,483.

The council is also considering extending the temporary rent freeze pending a separate referendum challenging the October approval of the rent-stabilization ordinance. That item was set for Tuesday’s agenda but was moved to Nov. 17.

If signatures for both referendums are separately certified, the council will either have to repeal the respective permanent ordinances or send them to the ballot.

The council also can’t adopt similar ordinances after repeal or voter rejection within one year, according to the city.

Reopening the street to vehicles by Dec. 31 would cost the city $670,280 in the interim and another $868,000 for pavement treatment and permanent restriping.

If the street is reopened before the end of the year and closed again, it would cost the city more than $1.13 million because of the work that would need to be done, according to Tess Harris, the State Street master planner.

Restaurants and businesses also would need to remove their parklets and outdoor facilities at their own expense to reopen the street.

Councilman Mike Jordan put it frankly: “All the choices suck.”

He said the city had been pushed into a corner with the only option to defend itself, rather than have meaningful conversations with those feeling unheard.

Eight blocks of State Street have been closed to vehicles since May 2020. The council has extended that closure over the years to encourage primary pedestrian use.

The Committee to Reopen State Street was behind the referendum petition targeting the City Council’s 6-1 approval of the State Street Master Plan.

The petition and the committee are backed by Jim Knell, the president of SIMA, a private real estate firm.

If the referendum signatures are approved, staff has recommended holding a special election in the first half of 2027, according to the city staff report.

The petition process has been controversial, with opponents alleging that gatherers got signatures by misleading residents about what they were signing. 

Larry Behrendt with Indivisible Santa Barbara said the signatures were gathered in an “aggressive” way, and many people didn’t understand what they were signing. He also supported the idea to continue the closure until the referendum moves forward.

“I’m tired of seeing this city bullied by wealthy landowners who’ve had every opportunity to participate in the process, same as us, but are using the threat of referendum and litigation to try to force the city’s hand,” Behrendt said.

However, supporters of the referendum argued that the city should listen to the more than 8,000 people who signed the petition and get the street moving again. 

“The real crisis is the economic damage this closure continues to inflict,” said Colleen Macey, owner of Santa Barbara Interiors and an organizer with the State Street Business Alliance.

Macey went on to claim that foot traffic has gone down and sales tax on State Street also has declined while neighboring open streets have had an increase in sales tax.

She also noted an increase in vacancies, and said small businesses are losing tens of thousands of transactions.

The State Street Master Plan redesigns the 300 to 1300 blocks with expanded 30-foot-wide sidewalks on both sides and two 10-foot travel lanes in the center of the street. 

Retractable bollards at intersections could allow vehicles at certain hours, including delivery vehicles. The street could also be completely closed to vehicles for events at other times.

As of September, the city has estimated the project to cost $9 million per block. It could take six years to get it done at a current price tag of $96 million.

The city is pursuing grants but had not developed a funding plan as of October.

If the Santa Barbara County Elections Office certifies all of the signatures, city staff will return at a later date with plans for a special election.