The vacant building that used to be a bank and a church in the heart of Isla Vista will soon take its place as a community center, and residents are encouraged to be part of that visioning process.
The doors of 976 Embarcadero del Mar in the unincorporated community west of UC Santa Barbara will open for a pop-up open house Friday from 4 to 7 p.m., where local graphic artist Ariel Bournes will lead a hands-on design workshop.
It’s the first glimpse in decades at the inside of the 3,000-square-foot space most recently home to St. Athanasius Orthodox Church.
At least two other workshops are planned for early 2016, with a community center on track to open in spring 2017.
The property owned by Santa Barbara County — along with nearby buildings housing the Isla Vista Medical Clinic and a public parking lot — has long been viewed as Isla Vista’s best chance to create its own public gathering space.
After fighting to acquire those buildings when the state dissolved redevelopment agencies, including the Isla Vista RDA, the county has since secured funding and turned part of the clinic into offices.
In June, Third District Supervisor Doreen Farr, whose district represents Isla Vista residents, got other county supervisors to allocate about $480,000 to renovate the old church building.
The county general services department has taken the lead on the project, along with a team of dedicated Isla Vista volunteers.
“Having a community center has been the dream of Isla Vista residents for several decades now,” Farr said.
“So I am very proud to have been able to take a leadership role and assist the community in making this dream a reality.”
Farr appointed locals to a steering committee, which includes UCSB art professor Kim Yasuda.
She’s been involved in several activities to rejuvenate Isla Vista, even writing the grant that made the design workshops possible.
The Santa Barbara Foundation is sponsoring the workshops through its $20,000 grant for an Isla Vista Creative Communities feasibility study, helping to foster arts and culture development in the area. Isla Vista Food Co-op is providing refreshments.
Yasuda also applied for a California Arts Council Creative California Communities grant, securing $43,500 more for an innovative public art initiative involving temporary sculpture installations in spring 2016.
“In a community whose residency is so often turned over, it’s important to create a legacy of cultural opportunity for everyone who makes Isla Vista their home, including students, faculty, families, seniors, businesses and other members of the community,” Santa Barbara Foundation president and CEO Ron Gallo said in a statement about the workshop-sponsoring grant.
“The foundation is thrilled to be part of this in-depth look into making Isla Vista safer and more culturally vibrant for everyone who lives there now and for generations to come.”
Santa Barbara’s Blackbird Architects is in charge of the project and will pull inspiration from Friday’s open house.
A second creative planning process workshop is scheduled for Jan. 22, 2016, with a third led by nonprofit Projects for Public Spaces in late February.
Yasuda welcomed those attending Friday’s event to stick around for IV’s First Friday event that starts at 8 p.m. featuring live music and more.
“It’s really a truly Isla Vista community enterprise,” Yasuda said.
“It’s a building that’s been shuddered for more than a decade. Our goal is to really get as many people in the arts and culture community involved planning, imagining what programs would be there. We’re trying to get the word out.”
— Noozhawk staff writer Gina Potthoff can be reached at gpotthoff@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.
