Regarding the Sept. 17 article, “Attention Shifts from Cars to E-Bikes at Santa Barbara Council Meeting,” I watched the meeting on YouTube and took some notes.
At four hours, City Councilwoman Kristen Sneddon made some outrageous statements, in my opinion. She said when she was serving on the State Street Advisory Committee, “80% of the public wants the street to remain closed to cars.”
Shortly thereafter she said, “Over 80% of public comments want it to stay closed,” followed by, “Well over 80% of emails want it to remain closed.”
I did some math, in 2022 the city population was 87,533. 80% of that is about 70,000. I’m at a loss to find her statements believable. Seriously, she thinks 70,000 people want the street to remain closed and only 17,500 want cars to return?
Fifteen minutes later she finished and Councilwoman Meagan Harmon spoke up. Her first words were to say she agreed with everything Sneddon said. OK, fine, now two council members believe this stuff.
Next up was Councilman Mike Jordan, who said this was the best subject matter narrative in his 14 years on the dais. I remember Deborah Schwartz saying the same thing when she and Jordan were on the Planning Commission.
Just a few years ago the SOMO-Funk Zone apartments and condos project was approved on a 7-0 vote. Schwartz, the Planning Commission chairwoman at the time, said it was the best presentation she had ever seen.
Even with 165 written comments, all but two being against the project, the commission unanimously approved it. Thankfully, the owner saw the writing on the wall and sold the land last year.
I think Jordan is under the same delusion now with State Street. He’s in favor of the “flat and flexible” design, which I believe is more like “flat and flooded.” And to mitigate the flooding issues “someone” said it could cost $10 million per block …
Before I get to Councilman Oscar Gutierrez let me say this: When fire Chief Chris Mailes said SBFD had not been consulted by the architects, I hoped that Mayor Randy Rowse would have called the meeting to an end.
What in the world were these guys thinking by drawing up beautiful renderings of the future of State Street, and not factoring in the need of the Fire Department to access the street?
Last, Gutierrez was on a roll, as Josh Molina described in his article. He said he’s been walking the Westside since he’s running for re-election and, in his words, “Everyone wants it closed.”
Really? Everyone?!
If anyone doubts what I’m saying, go to the city’s YouTube channel and see for yourself. Sneddon starts speaking at the 4:00-hour mark and Rowse starts at 5:09 hours. I truly don’t understand why Oscar Gutierrez, Harmon, Jordan and Sneddon don’t embrace the words and thoughts of Rowse.
Oh, I almost forgot, Councilwoman Alejandra Gutierrez was amazing, and I hope she wins her race for re-election.
Dan Seibert
Santa Barbara
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Where is there any evidence that adding car traffic will increase foot traffic for businesses on State Street?
That doesn’t make sense logically. Cars don’t just stop on State and have people walk out and into a business. And we have plenty of parking in the area.
Closing State Street has done more for foot traffic than anything else. If downtown is on life support, it is not because of that.
I would be shocked if a poll of people going in and out of businesses on State Street would indicate the desire to add cars. Why don’t we do that and ask the consumer instead?
Ivan Bercovich
Santa Barbara
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I call “bull crap” on City Councilman Oscar Gutierrez saying he’s spoken to “a majority of business owners and employees on State Street.”
That is categorically untrue. Plus, he couldn’t even guess how many business owners and employees there are on State Street.
Reopen State Street to at least one lane of traffic and get rid of the bikes.
Jerry Montez
Santa Barbara
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With Mayor Randy Rowse and his ilk once again making a push to reopen State Street to vehicular traffic, it’s worth examining their arguments.
We can either have a car-free section of State Street or we can have vibrant retail, but we can’t have both, he says. To put it simply, this is a false binary, and here’s why:
Santa Barbara has created a downtown on State Street that has evolved primarily — not exclusively, but primarily — into “the place that tourists go.” Baja Sharkeez. The Salt Cave. Cali-Forno Pizza.
I’m under 50 and a local. I can tell you that for folks like my friends and me, downtown State Street is basically the last place we think to go if we want to go out. There’s a certain stink of tourist trap to it. A sense of inauthenticity.
This has nothing to do with the ability to drive or not drive on State Street. This has nothing to do with parking or the lack of parking or cost thereof.
State Street has evolved into a place that is simply not very desirable to a large portion of the local population. It’s hitched its wagon to tourism, and we know that from hotel tax income, tourism is down.
As Rowse himself points out in his Sept. 13 commentary, “Reopen State Street Now, Plan Smart Later for Santa Barbara’s Future,” State Street is the “No. 1 visited location in Santa Barbara” — which is the nice way of saying it’s a tourist trap.
Also, the fact that restaurants on balance have benefited from this closure but retail has not, does not help his arguments; quite the opposite.
The people are there, they’re just not interested in retail. Retail has changed, and it has changed permanently.
Other portions of town are recovering better — in my opinion — because they do a better job of catering to both locals and tourists.
Take the Funk Zone. Sure, there are a lot of tourists there, but it’s also the most common destination for everyone I know when they want to go out and eat or get a drink. And it feels cool and authentic, in a way that State Street does not.
But also notice what’s happening on Upper State Street. The Brass Bear opened an outpost, and you can barely get in the parking lot, it’s such a hit. It’s overwhelmingly locals.
Lama Dog and Sama Sama are opening on Upper State this year, and I expect them to do exceedingly well. If La Cumbre Plaza gets redeveloped under the current plan, where there’s supposed to be a very fancy food hall, I expect that to do very well, in the same way that Public Market does good business, despite not being on State Street.
In the absence of meaningful population growth (see the lack of significant new housing for decades) all of this becomes a zero-sum game. Areas of town that were not retail/dining hubs 10-20 years ago have become those now.
There are a finite amounts of dining and shopping dollars out there, and simply filling empty storefronts on State with whoever is willing to sign the lease does not change this fact.
The success of the Funk Zone and Upper State currently comes at the expense of State Street proper. If we want to change that dynamic, we need to put more people — not tourists, but residents — back in the downtown core.
If we do that, I fully expect that State Street will be reborn into something even better than it currently is, but that will take many years.
Schuyler Greenawalt
Santa Barbara
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When I was a kid (middle of the last century), State Street was four lanes of traffic with on-street parking. (I got a ticket for drag racing in a 36-horsepower Volkswagen.)
It was a weekend cruising street from the Blue Onion at State and Valerio streets down to a burger joint just off of State and Cabrillo Boulevard.
Later it was changed to the two lanes with no on-street parking and bike lanes on the side (I rode my bike up and down on many occasions.).
It was still a pleasant drive down State with the pier and ocean in the distance. Seemed to work fine and you could see what stores were available. Getting into available parking garages or on street parking off of State Street was easy.
Now, being an old coot who can no longer bike, seeing the stores and enjoying the view to the ocean is not an option. Walking the length of the closure is also not possible.
I went to the State Street farmers market and, although it was posted that people were required (turns out it was only a suggestion) to walk their bikes, e-bikes and others were not dismounted and in many cases not slowing to a safe speed. No enforcement was in place.
I have ranted before that e-bikes (clearly motorized vehicles) should be appropriately licensed and the riders tested as with any other motorized transport, but I’m guessing pigs will fly before that happens.
I watched this from the sidelines for a bit but decided to leave without purchasing anything because I didn’t want to dodge the bikes in the middle.
Kent Richards
Santa Barbara
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I have written before regarding State Street and spoken at previous City Council meetings over the past 1½ years. I have been a member of COAST for two decades, and I am a card-carrying member of the Bicycle Coalition.
I have been an advocate for alternative transportation, and especially for policies making Santa Barbara a pedestrian-friendly town (most notably, neighborhood schools and walking to school).
One of the most beautiful aspects of Santa Barbara is its grid and sidewalks, which are so perfect for pedestrians and for children walking to school.
I am so sad that State Street is still such an ugly mess. Our original State Street was such a beautiful design, leading directly to Stearns Wharf with a world-class view of the ocean.
Such a destination for tourists to cruise our beautiful city by foot or by car, such a lovely visual shot straight down State Street from Victoria Street to the sea, and a such a nice place to shop.
What was done during the COVID-19 pandemic was reasonable to rescue restaurants during a crisis, but the crisis is over. Put our beautiful State Street back together, please.
Give us back the Fiesta parade on State Street, please. The right-of-way was designed for the public, not for a few privileged businesses at the expense of everyone else. Look to Coast Village Road as the model.
My husband and I ate dinner this summer at one of the nicest restaurants in Santa Barbara, next to the Arlington Theatre.
Walking to and from, I looked down State Street toward the ocean. What I saw was ugliness and chaos. Giant barricades in the street with DO NOT ENTER signs. Beautiful State Street is now a memory.
Stop throwing good money after bad. I’m sick of the rude cyclists on their e-bikes speeding and endangering pedestrians or meandering around the right-of-way like it’s their private playground.
Restore State Street for limited outdoor dining on the sidewalk, parades, pedestrian safety, the elderly, and restore the inherent aesthetic beauty of the original street.
I support Cass Ensberg’s excellent design.
Alice Post
Santa Barbara
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Full-throttle e-bikes may run on a battery, but they are in effect motorized vehicles. So if cars are not permitted on State Street, why are e-bikes?
And please save the lecture about “a few bad actors” when every day, my car is passed on streets near the Santa Barbara Mission all the day downtown by kids (and adults) with unfastened helmets or none at all.
The city has striped, blocked, planted, re-striped, approved and unapproved parklets on our most famous commercial paseo to no avail. The City Council has heard from local architects and overpaid, out-of-town consultants with various designs.
But all along, locals have been asking to return State Street to cars. It’s the one thing they haven’t tried.
I’m not saying it will bring companies that have given up on leasing because of “door-delivered” online purchases and work-from-home employees, but it will offer an opportunity to assess the actual impact rather than fantasizing about it.
Loretta Redd
Santa Barbara
• • •
It has saddened me to read that such reasonable minds as Mayor Randy Rowse and Council members Eric Friedman and Alejandra Gutierrez had no sway over the anti-vehicle proponents on the council.
In response to Councilman Oscar Gutierrez, I walked State Street before he was born, and upon return was overwhelmed with mournful grief at what has become of this once vibrant scene.
I advocate that the city as a whole vote on a simple mandate by the PEOPLE themselves. That means that Santa Barbara needs to talk this through in open forums and use their collective power of the franchise to determine State Street’s destiny.
There are places that vehicles have no business; El Paseo is a fine example and its use is within its design.
State Street was made for vehicles, and merchants depend on the access that the old State Street provided.
Brian Massey
Sonoita, Arizona
• • •
Regarding architect Cass Ensberg’s Sept. 13 letter to the editor, after all the money spent on outside consultants and time on commissions, it puzzles me why we don’t adopt her solution. Her plan is elegant, simple and addresses most community concerns.
Joanne Schoenfeld
Santa Barbara
• • •
I was sorry to see the word “ghastly” used with respect to the case of the mother accused of attempting to smother her baby in Noozhawk publisher Bill Macfadyen’s Sept. 13 column.
This was prejudicial and unnecessary. Apart from anything else, all the facts are not in yet and postpartum mental illness may be involved.
Susan Shields
Santa Barbara
• • •
Regarding Santa Barbara County Supervisor Joan Hartmann’s Sept. 19 commentary, “The Unintended Consequences of Illicit Roadside Food Vending,” like she says, it’s not safe, heathy, regulated or monitored.
Why would your legislators approve and, therefore, encourage vendors to sell food to you with safety regulations removed? What’s the upside? I don’t know. But I do know that Hartmann and Santa Barbara Mayor Randy Rowse are standing up for our safety.
- I have not purchased anything from a roadside vendor in many years, because:
It is an eyesore on the corners of our neighborhoods. - There is no regulation ensuring what I am buying is safe to eat.
- It causes traffic problems.
- They are stealing from the nearby business that meets all the state and local requirements.
- Their cooking equipment safety isn’t monitored and could cause fires.
My advice, boosted by Hartmann’s op/ed, is don’t be shy with your emails and letters to Gov. Gavin Newsom.
Bart Bader
Goleta
• • •
I write to endorse Kyle Richards as the most clearly qualified candidate to represent Goleta (Area 2) on the Santa Barbara City College Board of Trustees.
For the past 6½ years I have served as Goleta’s trustee, and I cannot think of anyone more qualified to succeed me.
Richards is exactly the kind of person we need. The COVID-19 pandemic caused a decline in enrollment, the transition to online classes for many courses and the decline in available state funds — all of which have combined to present the college with significant financial challenges.
Richards’ academic background at UC Santa Barbara and eight-year experience as a Goleta city councilman make him the ideal candidate.
Richards has an outstanding record of public service. In addition to his service on the Goleta council, he has served numerous community organizations in Goleta and Santa Barbara County. His experience will allow him to hit the ground running.
He will be a great voice for Goleta on the SBCC Board of Trustees. I urge you to vote for Kyle Richards in the Nov. 5 election.
Robert Miller
Goleta
• • •
As a resident of Santa Barbara’s City Council District 2, I wholeheartedly endorse Councilman Mike Jordan for re-election.
I first encountered Jordan in October 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic. After reading some of his comments in local media about issues facing our unsheltered neighbors, I reached out.
I hoped to talk to him about a project I was working on for actively addressing the very critical issues of homelessness. His response was quick and he suggested we meet for coffee to discuss the matter further.
What I expected to be a brief meeting turned into a three-hour deep dive into community issues. I shared our work on developing Neighborhood Navigation Centers, aimed at providing food, medical and mental health care, and housing assistance to our unhoused neighbors.
Jordan listened intently, asked insightful questions, and committed to learning more about our plan and the underlying issues we needed to address.
This experience highlighted Jordan’s outstanding qualities as a council member:
- Accessibility: Jordan responded quickly to a constituent’s email and made time for an in-depth discussion.
- Genuine engagement: He dedicated three hours to understanding a complex community issue, showing his commitment to informed decision-making.
- Open-mindedness: Jordan approached our ideas with curiosity and a willingness to learn, rather than preconceived notions.
- Follow-through: He didn’t just listen; he committed to further action and became an early supporter of the pilot Navigation Center initiative and has continued his active support as the Navigation Centers expanded and proved successful. He has been an avid supporter of the new FARO Day Center, providing services five days a week.
Beyond this personal interaction, Jordan’s deep roots in our community — he lives in his grandparents’ former home — provide him with a unique, multigenerational perspective of our district’s needs.
Jordan’s practical, collaborative approach and proven ability to navigate complex issues make him the ideal choice to continue serving District 2.
Maureen Ellenberger
Santa Barbara
• • •
Jerri Thiel is competing for re-election to the Lompoc Unified School District board for District 1; she has a credible voting record and has proven to be an able representative for the entire school district.
Recently she was the lone “no” vote on a motion to place the Measure M school bond on the ballot; I asked her why?
She said there may be people on fixed incomes who own homes and she felt that the additional burden of paying for the bond would have an impact on their budgets.
In addition, those who rent homes will undoubtedly see a rent increase to cover the cost the owner of the property will pay.
A vote for Jerri Thiel is for someone who will represent your interests and the future of students in the entire Lompoc Unified School District.
Ron Fink
Lompoc
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