You could say that Downtown Santa Barbara and its executive director, Robin Elander, are the glue that hold State Street and Santa Barbara together.

The organization advocates for businesses downtown, and Elander has led the effort since 2020.

“I really do love it,” Elander said. “It’s really a job and a privilege to be able to work with such a diverse cross-section of the community.”

Elander talked about the rebirth of State Street and her organization’s efforts to shape the area into a vibrant downtown on the latest episode of Santa Barbara Talks with Josh Molina.

“The goal is to create a State Street that works for everybody,” Elander said.

The group largely focuses on marketing efforts on behalf of the merchants and restaurants, but Elander has also worked to make the organization a strategic player in the conversation around what happens downtown.

She regularly interacts with planners and elected officials to be a voice for businesses.

“We want every business to be as successful and thriving as possible,” Elander said.

Lately, she has advocated greatly on behalf of restaurants who want outdoor dining.

“The health of outdoor dining is very good, and I think it is something we are going to see downtown for many years to come,” Elander said.

Conversation around bicycles downtown has dominated the discussion. Elander said she supports all modes of transportation that bring people downtown. The separated bike lanes, she said, will help create more safety.

“The merchants really want it to be a safe experience for people to enjoy downtown and not feel threatened by a fast-moving bikes,” Elander said. “They really want bikes to be maintained and operated at safe speeds.”

Elander has also worked to create events to lure people downtown. This week, for example is ShopTEMBER, from Sept. 18 through 24, designed to offer deals to shoppers by mentioning “ShopTEMBER” at check-out.

Elander was hired two weeks before the pandemic forced the closure of State Street to vehicles.

“It’s been a great, but also wild ride,” Elander said. “Working with the community has been a joy, but also a crazy roller coaster ride.”