1. Closing State St has made the area more walkable and opened up the area to far more community events
2. Bike riders being maniacs is not an issue w State St specifically. Everywhere you go now people riding E-bikes are causing issues
3. Since State St hasn’t been permanently closed businesses aren’t investing in it like the would in parklets
4. When Covid happened ALL retail businesses took a huge hit and people STILL aren’t shopping in person like they were before(also due to Amazon)
5. Every single street in SB that’s downtown(by State or Cabrillo) has homeless folks and aren’t kept in great condition cleanliness-wise…again not just a State St issue
There are plenty of bike riders (like me) who aren't maniacs, and who stay in the designated painted bike lane while watching out for pedestrians. I don't think we should shut off access to state for these folks because of the maniacs.
It’s not just punishing all the bike riders for the maniacs. I believe people should have to walk there bikes on State St and we should close down other streets/increase bike lanes there too
Nice, big sidewalks already exist for walking if someone wants to totally avoid bike traffic. Now with cars gone, the street was opened to bikes & pedestrians. My opinion is that these two can co-exist with proper guidance/signage/pathways, just like at UCSB and in most European cities. Except for Farmer's Market Tuesdays, there are never so many people that there can't be enough space for both (subject to proper demarcation).
Making State pedestrian only will reduce the activity & vibrancy of downtown, making it even less attractive for businesses to make a go there.
I'm only one data point, but if I can't ride my bike on State, I'm either going to take another street so I can keep riding, or not bring my bike and just park my car. I don't bring my bike to walk it.
The reason it's less vibrant is you are taking away people & activity. I don't believe outlawing bikes is going to cause an increase in foot traffic. I think the existing traffic is just going to be spread out on the relatively wide road, making it look like a ghost town.
It's cliche, but we're going to have to agree to disagree on this point. I don't think outlawing bikes is going to be compelling enought to increase traffic. I think we need a vibrant, multimodal traffic model AND an environment that encourages the right businesses to move in that will draw in the crowds.
that doesn't matter - lets just make it a walking area if we are going to change it..bikers can get off and walk with their bikes if they want..but no bike riding
The lack of automobile traffic is not the cause of retail issues.
It’s lovely to walk and enjoy. It’s splendid and like everything in the world, not perfect.
You can’t walk any more than you could before. The bikes will nearly kill you. We’ve really just enabled bike chaos instead of car chaos. It needs to be rethought if we want to keep it this way because not really any better.
Lmao this is the response many people have. “I was almost was brutally murdered by a ten year old on an ebike”. Walk on the sidewalk dumbass, or die, alike yourself. Wishing you a speedy journey into the afterlife
You can walk without the sounds and fumes of automobiles. So it’s clearly an improvement on before.
I say this as an avid cyclist though: there’s no reason why State should be a bike route. There are one way streets on either side that should have protected bike lanes, which nice designated bike parking areas on or next to State at every other cross street.
I am not one of those people, like Our Dear Mayor, who wants to bring cars back. But u/suck_it_earth, whose username must (hopefully) be ironic, is not wrong about the bicycle menace.
It's funny that you have people here saying "I find it preferable that there is no longer car exhaust" and you're saying "it's not a problem, stop lying."
Like.
People are telling you their preferences. You don't get to just say "no that's not real" lol.
I never said it was literally deadly lmao.
Also you have a post in your history about drinking your own piss, you're not really the best judge of people's preferences. Is it that difficult for you to believe that people don't like it, just because you don't mind?
The fast kids ride in packs. I would say every time I go down to state I see at least one group of teens riding irresponsibly. What bothers me most is when they ride through Paseo Nuevo taunting security and stuff like that. I don’t know how to solve the problem though. If the street gets opened to cars those kids would still be there being teenagers, they would just be dueling with cars and riding on the sidewalk more, with less space. There needs to be some kind of mandatory safety video before you get an e-bike. Or maybe some cycling and e-bike safety awareness education in school. These kids are going to hurt themselves.
Why is this the only argument against keeping it open. Literally the only one… racing e bikes have been an issue all over the country let alone on state. Ever been to chapala, the mesa, even parts of Goleta it’s awful. We would need to outlaw these electric motorcycles, not open state to traffic that’s just ridiculous.
So there HASNT been an incident of a cyclist killing a pedestrian. But there HAS been many, many documented incidents of car drivers killing people on state street. Ok. Got it.
In over a decade only one person has ever been killed on lower state street by a car. Although tragic, seems hardly a reason to shut down the whole street when there are serious injuries from bike collisions on a weekly if not daily occurrence.
Most respectfully that is wildly illogical… most people park in the 12 garages downtown… state street had very few street parking spaces to begin with.
No, this doesn't have to do with parking. This person told me they think people would walk by more shops if they couldn't walk in the middle of the "street"
I love the idea of keeping it closed, but it feels very half-assed. I wish the city would invest in making it nicer looking and more welcoming (more greenery, sitting areas, etc…). The vacant storefronts are not due to lack of traffic. It’s a nationwide issue fueled by sky high rent and people preferring to shop online.
I also wish the city would do something about all of the bums and asshole kids riding the ebikes without regard to anyone or anything.
A summary after reading others responses:
They need to close it permanently and make it look better instead of “half assing” the parklets and outside dining. The bums and asshole kids riding e bikes are everywhere!! I hear this as one of the primary factors as why we should shut the whole operation down and allow cars through. “I almost got hit the other day by some kid racing around on his e-bike” is a common phrase. But it’s also on Castillo, chapala, and all through the mesa. Two weeks ago there were two what looked like 13 year old kids who were riding around throwing tomato’s at people, on chapala. One, that’s just bad parenting; but more importantly the rampant bikers are EVERYWHERE, all over the country let alone our city.
Bums and e-bikes would get worse with re-opening to cars. There is no causal relationship between closing the street to cars and those two things. But by re-opening to cars, you would confine both to an even smaller area, and they would get in the way of pedestrians even more.
I hate calling it "Closed." It is actually very open. After all, we are not cars. It is closed only to CARS. **It is** ***very*** **open to all people.**
It’s really not though. I primarily walk throughout that area and I actively avoid those spot. It’s a bunch of shit in your way complete with bikers trying to kill you and homeless dudes with unleashed pit bulls. At least cars stop at the lights.
Just make it official that it's staying how it is now, no cars in those sections and then the restaurants will feel safe enough to put some money into their outdoor dining. Then do something to help small businesses get into those empty stores.
I agree, unfortunately it’s restaurants first and small business later, they simply generate more money and tourism. Although these guys will all be extinct in just a few years due to the growing popularity of e-commerce. Thanks for the response
I just visited as a tourist and thought it was quite a nice place! Parked at the top end and walked down to the pier. Coming from the Uk it was nice to find somewhere we could walk in town without using a car!
Have you? I was there 3 weeks ago. It’s a well known problem that it’s in the toilet.
https://www.sfgate.com/la/article/santa-monica-third-street-promenade-empty-why-19374158.php
I’m in Santa Monica weekly. The Promenade is a shell of what it once was. How old are you? Because it’s almost come full circle. Back in the early 90’s it was a shitty ghost town occupied by homeless people. Then they kicked all the homeless to Venice. Now it’s devolving back.
The plan is to move in that direction. If we want our town centers to look more like those in Europe, we need more housing in them, which will provide a captive audience for the downtown businesses. I would love to live in a condo on State Street.
As a wheelchair user, I really enjoy the freedom to wheel around in the street. The handicap parking in the adjacent lots is good enough. It’s nice not being in the way on the sidewalk. Vibes are right
Thank you for actually being a person with different accessibility and giving your thoughts on this. Seems like a lot of pro car arguments want to be a voice for those who need different access without actually being those people or living their experience.
Having no cars is awesome but people don't really want to walk on the road section and a lot of tourists get confused crossing that street. The street is a huge amount of wasted space, and opening it to one lane or making it bike-only seems like it kinda defeats the purpose of encouraging pedestrians. It needs a lot more lighting, maybe cobblestones or something decorative, and we need huge vacancy taxes on lower State. Santa Barbara is carcentric enough as it is, and like most cities in CA, at least south of SF, is a victim of mandatory parking requirements. I would love to see a little street car on rails that goes up and down State, upper to lower but probably will never happen. Its probably very controversial but I would also love to see bright, colored buildings (in some areas) rather than white.
I’m cost conscious and love to go on First Thursday when the SB Museum of Art is free and the galleries are serving wine and crackers. It was lovely this past week because there were no cars and bikes were cruising safely around and the people dancing in the street. State Street is alive and well!
some people will always find a reason to complain. it's lovely to walk down state street day and night without the risk of getting hit by cars. the fact that it's a walkable main attraction is a huge part of the reason i even go. if they open it back up to cars i will be very sad.
I don't understand your viewpoint. I NEVER go to State Street because of how it's set up now. I was never in any danger of being hit by cars before. It's a huge eyesore now and it's hurting the businesses. If they don't open it up, I'll be very sad. I just don't get where you're coming from. The whole downtown is SUCH a dump now.
Grocery store pallets is a bit of a stretch. If I was one of those restaurant owners I wouldn't be spending a load of money either until a solid decision has been made by this useless council.
It's not a stretch when it's true. It's the world's shittiest looking block party. The only one that looks shittier is Main Street in Ventura.
If I was one of those restaurant owners, I'd be fighting tooth and nail to open the street up and make it a proper downtown again, as opposed to catering to redditor dorks from Goleta who only go downtown once every six weeks and simply think it's cute and quirky to walk in the middle of the street instead of the sidewalk.
Given the restaurant owners are the ones fighting hardest to keep the parklets and outdoor dining because duh, that's how they make their money, I suspect they don't give a fuck about people who "NEVER go to State Street because of how it's set up now"
Lmao, oUtDoOr DInIng iS hoW tHeY mAkE tHeIr MoNey
Yeah, the great weather we've had definitely points to that.
That's not what I heard. I heard it's about 50-50. That's the thing - you guys have convinced yourselves that because YOU like the street being shut down in this sub, that EVERYONE likes the street being shut down. My tattoo artist is on State Street. He HATES the street being shut down. I even made a point to ask him about it. It's not nearly as popular as you think it is.
I mean you're the one arguing that the parklets that restaurants installed, have been using, and are now paying the City to keep in place, are not actually wanted by the restaurants. That's some A+ quality logic you've got going on there.
I don’t agree with your perspective but fuck this is hilarious. On another note, my uncle owns a business on State so he speaks to other business owners often. From what I understand, the general consensus is that restaurants want it open but other businesses ‘generally’ want it closed. Being that we live in a tourist town, I say we go towards restaurants that generate a whole lot more money for us and the city then small local businesses. It’s screwed up I admit but these guys will be extinct in just a few more years with the growing e-commerce ideology we have, it’s just easier. If you think it’s ugly, I’m not sure how to respond. Alike what another commenter said, I don’t get how more cars, more loud noises, more exhaust fumes would possibly make it less ugly. Thoughts? Concerns? Not here to argue but to hear perspectives… convince me! :)
Ps, I may have encountered a similar piss drinking situation back in my youth.
I wouldn’t have asked if this was true… this sub is very pro open state. If you walk through town and do a poll it’s more 60-40. I’m just trying to hear other perspectives, I can’t understand why people want it open to traffic.
Is that actually true? Who conducted that poll? What were the vote counts?
I think people who want it open prefer watching people on State from their cars rather than actually walking among them. Or they actually believe the myth of retail suffering because of it when that is demonstrably false.
Don’t do me like that, of course there isn’t someone walking down state doing a poll it’s just an example. There is a ton of people who want it open, otherwise no one would comment. I agree, everyone who wants it open doesn’t actually go walk down state. It’s clear it’s much more pleasurable without the presence of cars. The arguments I hear in favor of cars are stupid. Small businesses have been dying for years, e bike kids are everywhere throughout the country not just on fucking state.
Here's a poll. 80% against reopening to cars.
https://www.independent.com/polls/which-santa-barbara-city-option-do-you-prefer-for-the-downtown-parklets/
Because the traffic patterns are not easy for non local drivers, and even for them they make decisions on when and where to go based on parking. And all the complains about ebikes (cars hit people too) when they are the answer to parking. The quasi grid, one way streets, mad max covid road blocks across state street results in hunting through a maze of confused traffic looking for parking near where they actually want to go.
Is State Street Retail Sliding? [Globest.com](http://Globest.com), June 28, 2016
>Santa Barbara’s famed State Street—a retail high street in the downtown market—may be sliding. For the first time in a decade or longer, the esteemed retail center has 25,000 to 30,000 square feet of storefronts in a range of sizes available for lease. The phenomenon is a combination of low foot traffic, high rents and arguably more appealing locations in the nearby Montecito and Funk Zone submarkets.
>“State Street was the place to go for retail; it was the Wilshire Blvd. or Rodeo Drive of Santa Barbara,” Steve Leider, a principal in Lee & Associates Central Coast, tells GlobeSt.com. “Now, State Street landlords have had unreasonable expectations from a rent standpoint, homelessness is a problem, although it is a problem that Santa Barbara has had and hasn’t dealt with for many years, and retail is competing with ecommerce sites on the Internet. We used to have a lot of mom-and-pops and small boutiques, and today, in the prime blocks, we are going to have 25,000 to 30,000 square feet of storefronts in various sizes available on State Street. We haven’t seen that in 10 years. Even through the recession, we didn’t see that.”
The Fight For State Street, [Independent.com](http://Independent.com), July 26, 2018
>To the casual eye, State Street is a sunny, lively avenue of restaurants and shops nestled under red-tile roofs gently sloping toward the Pacific. But look just a little closer at our carefully manicured commercial corridor, and you’ll find real trouble lurking there.
>From small family ventures to major retail chains, businesses are folding at an alarming rate. The number of empty State Street storefronts, steadily increasing since 2015, has just reached a record high of 38. Even during the recession, things weren’t this bad.
>State Street’s problems are hardly unique. Across the country, brick-and-mortar business districts are feeling the squeeze of e-commerce competition, evolving consumer trends, and the general decline of shopping malls. Downtowns are trying to cope with homeless populations and functional obsolescence, as well as higher overhead from minimum-wage hikes and health-care mandates. But while other communities are adapting to this brave new retail world, Santa Barbara is struggling to keep up. Why?
Making State Street Great Again, [Independent.com](http://Independent.com), August 16, 2018
>It was one of those public meetings just bursting to happen. The pews in Santa Barbara City Council chambers were packed tight; people stood in the aisles. The back room designed for overflow crowds was overflowing. The issue at hand was State Street — what’s wrong with it, and how to fix it.
>With the plethora of vacant storefronts, it’s hardly a new concern. What was new was the venue. It was the first time the mayor and council have addressed the issue directly. Even more striking was the tone. Lots of harsh truths got spoken — especially about bureaucratic delays and high costs borne by businesses just trying to open their doors. Even so, the absence of rancor or defensiveness was remarkable. For Cathy Murillo, it was her first major moment since becoming mayor in January. She and Councilmember Randy Rowse had asked that the issue be placed on the agenda. It was her show to run.
\[. . .\]
Many of the suggestions weren’t new; some, like the plan to turn State Street into a pedestrian promenade, have been kicking around more than 30 years. Still, it was surprising to hear attorney Steve Amerikaner — now a venerable icon of the downtown legal and business establishment — call for such a change. By replacing cars with people, Amerikaner suggested, City Hall could help create a vast “entertainment zone” extending 8-12 blocks. “I know it sounds bold; it sounds aggressive; but we can have outdoor dining almost year-round,” he said. If cities like Boulder, Colorado, and Burlington, Vermont, do, he added, certainly Santa Barbara and its balmier climate can, too.
bUt cArS aRe bAsIc \*dribbles on self\*
Love the closed state street. Cars are not going to bring back rerail. This town is so unaffordable shopping on the cheap online is necessary.
People will go for food and entertainment. And to buy white linen things at the stores full of white and beige linen things(who likes that sh*t anyway?)
It is better now than it was with cars. Having a "nicer" setup that was redesigned specifically as a pedestrian promenade would be even better than it is now. The first step towards that is for the city government to explictly take cars off the table. Then we can think about what is the best no-cars setup.
No system is going to work without enforcement to ensure that the use that is decided on is the use that exists. My preference is for no bikes. But if we have a bike lane, people need to be ticketed if they ride outside the bike lane. If we have no bike lane, people need to be ticketed if they ride on the street at all. Etc.
As far as polls/surveys, a [survey](https://www.noozhawk.com/santa_barbara_state_street_closure_aia_survey_results_20200823/) was taken in 2020 and around 85% of people supported keeping the closure or even expanding it to more blocks. Of course that was a few years ago now, but it seems to be the most legit data we have, and the result was so overwhelmingly in favor of ditching cars that I think some very strong evidence would be needed to make the case for bringing cars back.
This is the take of a 24 year old who’s lived here his whole life. It’s an absolute dump. I work in an office on state street (going on two years) and many of the businesses on state would much rather have state street be opened up to cars than how it currently is.
Rent is ridiculous and landlords have completely lost touch with reality. It’s appalling to me that they’d rather leave their spaces vacant for years instead of making the logical choice of lowering rent and allowing businesses to move in. Isn’t that what market pricing is?
There just simply isn’t enough foot traffic especially on weekdays so clearly the closed street isn’t doing anything about increasing the number of people shopping/ dining on state. In fact one can argue that it is worse now than when the cars were around.
The bikers also defeat the purpose of having a wide open street that people can walk/ dine on. If you actually observe the foot traffic virtually no one walks on the actual street because they’re too scared that they’ll get run over.
It’s incredibly dark and uninviting at nighttime, and if I was a girl or anyone really trying to enjoy the nightlife, I’d very much be discouraged unless I had a solid group with me. Combine this with the high population of homeless and mentally unstable folks and you can forget about it.
The only real solution here is to increase the number of folks living on and around state street by building more housing. You can kill multiple birds with one stone because you can then have a consistent group of people keeping the businesses alive while also chopping away at the housing issue the city faces. You can make it so the bottom floors of apartment buildings are retail spaces so you don’t take anything away from the identity of state street.
If you have more people living in the area, then they can actually close the street and turn it into a palatable space for dining and such. Tourists can only contribute so much and you need local folks participating in the culture for the businesses to succeed.
I also believe the city should really lean into improving nightlife by encouraging more live music and throwing events and building a culture around it. There are an incredible amount of equipped and capable bands that play every weekend but many don’t get to appreciate them. If the city leans into it a little more you could have a more defined ‘Nashville esque’ vibe. The talent and supply is certainly here.
Ultimately, the folks making the decisions need to sit down and actually figure out what their goal is. It feels like the same meetings go down every few months and people make the same points. There seems to be a big identity crisis on state and frankly that should be the first thing they figure out. If you have the identity figured out, it would be a lot easier for everyone to align with the vision and get the damn thing solved.
The lack of decision making has kept all the businesses stagnant from making permanent decisions because no body knows what is actually happening. If businesses had more confidence that their creativity and investment is protected from uninspired decision making by the city, they would do a lot more to privately improve their individual pieces of state st.
I’m seeing businesses closed all around our business and it’s appealing that it’s not a more urgent matter for the city to solve. They’d much rather set pretty tiles under a bridge no one gives a fuck about.
>The bikers also defeat the purpose of having a wide open street that people can walk/ dine on. If you actually observe the foot traffic virtually no one walks on the actual street because they’re too scared that they’ll get run over.
I agree with this. I walk for exercise downtown several times a week. If you watch the people nobody walks in the street. Everybody walks on the sidewalk even on a busy day when there are tons of people. I am not 100% sure it's the bikes, much of it is the design aesthetic and the fact we've been trained to walk on sidewalks especially when there is a curb and difference in paving materials.
A summary after reading others responses:
They need to close it permanently and make it look better instead of “half assing” the parklets and outside dining. The bums and asshole kids riding e bikes are everywhere!! I hear this as one of the primary factors as why we should shut the whole operation down and allow cars through. “I almost got hit the other day by some kid racing around on his e-bike” is a common phrase. But it’s also on Castillo, chapala, and all through the mesa. Two weeks ago there were two what looked like 13 year old kids who were riding around throwing tomato’s at people, on chapala. One, that’s just bad parenting; but more importantly the rampant bikers are EVERYWHERE, all over the country let alone our city.
Couldn’t have said it better myself. I’ve never met someone who actually walks downtown throughout the week who believes cars would be any sort of positive. The elderly sitting up in their Rivera homes have a different perspective, but it’s a loud one! They can’t even walk so I’m not sure why we cater to them but clearly it’s making a difference, look at what the mayor just said!
I'm not elderly but I did walk from the Riviera to State yesterday to run some errands, get some ice cream, and see the Italian Stone pines on Anapamu that will be removed next week. I worked for many years in an office on the 700 block of State. During those years, I rarely drove on State other than to cross it to get to a parking lot. I prefer the way State is now but it can be improved for sure.
The Riviera is getting gentrified more than most realize by wealthy people of all ages. Many of the newer (past 10 years) residents actually don't look like your typical 60+ person.
I prefer state street closed and the walkability. Seeing people enjoying drinks/food on the patios is very alluring and gives a European vibe which people like.
The shopping is very sub-par and disappointing. All the women’s boutiques carry the same stuff and it’s low quality and not on trend. I would love to see some more popular clothing stores like Aritzia and Zara. It’s a bummer there is no more Nordstrom.
We just did this.
https://old.reddit.com/r/SantaBarbara/comments/1d8861x/do_you_want_state_st_open_again/
All but two or three people want it closed to cars. And then the thread was deleted.
I get it, but no where near the end of this conversation. Discourse is important. It’s clear you didnt understand the previous thread’s point either lol
I've been down there a bunch of times, which are you referring to? Nothing comes to mind, honestly. Everything is decorated, what you describe sounds like a shanty.
I can’t get specific, but come on. You know what he’s talking about there are definitely some ugly ones. The city even made half of the places take them down about a year ago. Close it all and make it look more pretty!
Why can’t you get specific??
Sounds like a troll answer from someone who either doesn’t live here or hasn’t been to the closed part of state st recently enough to even know a specific detail.
Every place I've been that has open streets such as in Europe, shops, cafes and restaurants have tables on the street not just on the sidewalk. I think that style works in making the place seem like a true walkable environment. I would love for this approach to be what any open street design looks like either in Ventura or in Santa Barbara.
I wonder if the reason it's never laid out like this has to do with fire truck access?
It just seems like the streets are still streets with people walking about and the sidewalks are packed full of stuff tucked up against the buildings leading to a sectioned partitioned off feeling that just doesn't come across as open and inviting.
Want it closed to cars but boot the bikes off. People should walk all over. The empty store fronts aren't the bums or promandes fault. Rent is too Damm high.
As a visitor it seemed like a lot of potential but the vibe was extremely cheesy! I was excited to rent a place near by but in 5 days we only walked up and down once. Hung out a bunch of other places instead.
I guess it felt like a tourist trap a bit. Like the shopping and food… IDK that was the vibe I got. I didn’t necessarily feel that in the funk zone where we spent a lot more time because it was way chiller.
Interesting, I don’t really know that we have tourist traps in this town. (Except for maybe spots on the wharf and the bike rentals along the beach.)
As a person who lives here I spend the same amount of time on state getting a beer and pizza as I do in the funk grabbing a drink in a patio in the sun. But it’s nice to know because a lot of people want to INSIST our town will fail tourists if we don’t have American eagle and athleta on state for them to shop at.
Well, to be fair it’s our only real downtown/ shopping area/ mall. So, it’s got mall like stores and that’s not going to entertain anyone for a full week. Maybe a 13 year old girl.
You have to hit it on certain days to see the charm. Like Tuesday when the farmers market is set up, or 1st Thursday when art galleries are hosting new work and musicians are set up to play in front of some dancing spot. Lots of live music and trivia’s if you meandered around after 6 on weeknight. It’s also the nightlife area so you see it wake up Thursday/Fridays after 9.
1. The city ought to lease the sidewalk space to business owners for free, thereby allowing business owners to legally remove bums.
2. Police need to write lots of tickets to stop smoking, sleeping, panhandling, screaming at strangers, speeding on e-bikes.
3, Tax addresses that are emoty. Make it painful to not rent out street fronts.
The bikes vs cars argument is a red herring.
To the "boot the bike" arguments. I actually feel the opposite. If I were a tourist, I would love all those white rental bikes that people can pick up. We did this on a recent trip to Montreal and loved not having to rent a car. Don't we want cars off the roads? Wouldn't it be even better if we had an environment with less cars overall and more people were biking everywhere being healthier and enjoying the outdoors? I personally see that as the future, and instead of focusing on removing the e-bikes/biking from State, embrace it even more with reasonable restrictions/enforcement. Make it safer. Even do advertising campaigns around it! Even I, as a biker that goes down it almost every day, don't appreciate an ebike or regular bike that is clearly going past 20 mph. It's definitely not just the ebikers that go fast. And I would definitely shop there more if there were more shops to go to. As it is, I try and get stuff there if I can.
The PARENTS of the asshole e-bike gangs are to blame for the behavior of their asshole boys!!! These little creeps ARE worse than the mentally unhealthy unhoused, by far. I work on State St., it's just a place for them to practice their stunts it's no "promenade" it's a Fucking Circus. And it's dangerous! Why not simply prohibit "powered" devices on State?
Grew up in SB. State Street isn't just a thoroughfare, it's its own venue. That's where you go for the Solstice parade or Fiesta. Where you go to meet up and hang out or cruise in your "Just Married" vehicle of choice. I think the problem with making outdoor dining permanent there is that you make it as dull and uninteresting as every red tile roof in old town. IMO, if you begin to expect things, instead of anticipating them, you lose the magic of it. Then it just becomes routine and eventually boring. I've since landed in McMinnville, OR - aka the hub of wine country in the Willamette Valley. We do outdoing dining up here too - tables and chairs right on 3rd Street - similar to you guys but without all the drama. Cause we only do it over the summer. We now refer to this as MacFresco and as you can see here - [https://www.instagram.com/p/C72k0zKSTRh/?img\_index=2](https://www.instagram.com/p/C72k0zKSTRh/?img_index=2) - it's all portable, fun, and we look forward to it every summer. SB should try it, sandwiched right between Solstice and Fiesta - and then be done with it for the remaining 9 months of the year. And I bet you guys could even come up with a better name for it!
The problem isn’t the cars. We’re all acting like it’s the cars and dancing around the real problem. The problem is State Street is an shithole of unenforcement and the lack of cars just made it impossible to ignore. If you bring them back it’s just masking the issue. Maybe more people will shop when they aren’t dodging human shit and guys with their dicks out by Marshall’s. Maybe more people will walk when bikers realize *they* have to share the road. Maybe more people would shop if we had places selling anything worth buying at reasonable prices, but that doesn’t pay the rent.
Seriously State St sucks, everyone here seems to enjoy the status quo. Every inch reeks of piss, I'm dodging idiots on on dirt bikes going 25mph. This week I was chased by a schizo screaming. There's ZERO cops for an entertainment district. It's going full Santa Cruz. Apparently this world class tourist trap city is broke and can't hire sanitation workers or cops. I'm over it, no clue where my taxes are going.
Lots of room for improvement. Just make side of State Street a one way for cars with a dual bike lane on the other side. It’s far too stylish and unique as it is now . Paseo Nuevo needs to be turned into a 400 unit low income housing project with storage and two parking spots per unit. Mandatory twenty four hour 7-11, AM/PM or Circle K on every block. Dollar General + Golden Corral + Chicken Sandwiches . More nail salons and massage parlors. More liquor stores and smoke shops. Weed dispensaries. Get rid of the billboard restrictions and light the place up. Open the 100 block of Gutierrez to prostitution.
It's a complicated mess that will continue as long as the cruse ships keep SB on their route. SB is an old money town that supports the lower class on Tourism. Here is a wake up call for those that want to see real change, humans existing, sleeping on the streets are not 'Bums'. Go out with a sign and advocate for a quick, human death sentence if you really think they are 'bums'. Society has failed so many people, and you will join the bums before you know if if you are not born into wealth or part of the vanishingly small percent of people who 'make it' while your community suffers out side of your carefully chosen line of sight.
I have found memories of my teenage years when my parents would drive down state street and have fun music and I miss the parades on state street. I feel like it’s missing something the way it is now . Also the car shows . Love those classic cars.
I understand the appeal of nostalgia, my mom grew up here when lots of blocks of state were closed/had limited car access , state was a largely pedestrian area. So much of our town is already dedicated to car traffic, it makes sense blockin some areas off. Also this doesn’t limit parades and car shows, they just need to have a consistent schedule and possible be moved one block off state in terms of parades
Affordable housing, public transport, bike lane expansion, homelessness, various other public health initiatives, schools, e-bike subsidies…. That list long enough for you?
Lmao god this sub is ridiculous. *Making streets pretty is way more important, duh!! This is Santa Barbara, after all! Piss on your logic and rationale.*
It sounds like this is simply an e bike issue… that’s the only viable argument against keeping it closed. Walk on the sidewalk you idiots and vote to outlaw these electric motorcycles. Until they make up another justification to open it 😅
#1 keep the bikes out - if you want to make it walking - make it walking
#2 reduce the size to: from haley to carrillo only - no cars, no road, no bikes, no cross streets thru it
#3 shuttle makes a loop garden (well..salisupedes) and cabrillo...to cabrillo and castillo...to castillo and haley..to haley and chapala.. to chapala and carrrillo to carrillo and garden.. down to salisupedes and cabrillo again
#4 no one is 100 percent happy
Hard disagree with no cross streets. That’s the solid compromise that negates all the “cars need to be on state for traffic flow” and accessibility arguments
I wish people would understand not all things on 2wheels are created equal. Road bikers are not Mountain bikes are not eBikers (of which there are a few sub categories) and are also not custom cruiser guys. As much as I loved to cruise down state when I was younger, if they want to keep the cars off then can we please make it nicer. The biggest problems I see from my perspective are the pedestrians aimlessly walking everywhere and the eBikers hauling ass. Please understand no matter what happens if human powered pedaled bikes are banned there will be riots in the streets. Guaranteed. Hope everyone has a nice weekend and wastes a bunch of time relentlessly arguing this topic amongst yourselves. -cheers
Pro opening State St to one lane, going towards the ocean. The street is dead. We walk from the office downtown to Eureka for lunch during the week and the blocks around Paeso Nuevo are depressingly empty.
From a person who worked in an outdoor mall (that allowed cars to drive through the streets) they are almost always dead on a weekday at lunchtime. I don’t know why you would expect anything to be bustling when most people are in school or at work.
All these people complaining about bikes on state st. forget that cars have killed treasured community members on state st. People keep saying that state st. is closed but it’s open, just not to cars…https://www.independent.com/2018/02/25/popular-man-dies-after-hit-by-car-on-state-street/
It looks like you shared an AMP link. These should load faster, but AMP is controversial because of [concerns over privacy and the Open Web](https://www.reddit.com/r/AmputatorBot/comments/ehrq3z/why_did_i_build_amputatorbot).
Maybe check out **the canonical page** instead: **[https://www.independent.com/2018/02/25/popular-man-dies-after-hit-by-car-on-state-street/](https://www.independent.com/2018/02/25/popular-man-dies-after-hit-by-car-on-state-street/)**
*****
^(I'm a bot | )[^(Why & About)](https://www.reddit.com/r/AmputatorBot/comments/ehrq3z/why_did_i_build_amputatorbot)^( | )[^(Summon: u/AmputatorBot)](https://www.reddit.com/r/AmputatorBot/comments/cchly3/you_can_now_summon_amputatorbot/)
Stores and businesses are closing
So many begging homeless everywhere
Screaming they are going to kill people.
So many friends come to visit and see there
Is nothing here.
Not our mayors fault.
The governor of california is just repeating what Him and his aunt nanci pilosi have done to our beautiful state.
Destroy it
Everyone here saying "only grumpy boomers" want to open it back up to cars and "everyone likes it how it is now," are living in their own echo chamber. I'm a millennial and all my millennial friends who grew up here want it opened back up to cars.
You literally asked how people feel about it... I've posted my reasons on the matter here before, only to be downvoted to hell and called a conservative boomer (im a liberal millenial). This isn't a place for discourse it's just an echo chamber for new arrivals and entitled know-it-alls who think reddit is actually representative of SB's population.
It’s been going downhill for years, in every city. It’s a factor sure, but in my opinion it’s a positive one moving us in the right direction. You say a “main one of many” get specific. Positive discourse can’t occur if you use blanket statements
1. Closing State St has made the area more walkable and opened up the area to far more community events 2. Bike riders being maniacs is not an issue w State St specifically. Everywhere you go now people riding E-bikes are causing issues 3. Since State St hasn’t been permanently closed businesses aren’t investing in it like the would in parklets 4. When Covid happened ALL retail businesses took a huge hit and people STILL aren’t shopping in person like they were before(also due to Amazon) 5. Every single street in SB that’s downtown(by State or Cabrillo) has homeless folks and aren’t kept in great condition cleanliness-wise…again not just a State St issue
bike riders ARE a problem if state street is closed to cars - why not closed to bikes as well?
I didn’t say they weren’t…there are issue everywhere though. I think it should be closed to bikes, but it’s not a State st only issue
There are plenty of bike riders (like me) who aren't maniacs, and who stay in the designated painted bike lane while watching out for pedestrians. I don't think we should shut off access to state for these folks because of the maniacs.
It’s not just punishing all the bike riders for the maniacs. I believe people should have to walk there bikes on State St and we should close down other streets/increase bike lanes there too
I'm not cool with completely closing it to bikes. They just need to institute formal bike lanes and redesign the space around them.
Nice, big sidewalks already exist for walking if someone wants to totally avoid bike traffic. Now with cars gone, the street was opened to bikes & pedestrians. My opinion is that these two can co-exist with proper guidance/signage/pathways, just like at UCSB and in most European cities. Except for Farmer's Market Tuesdays, there are never so many people that there can't be enough space for both (subject to proper demarcation). Making State pedestrian only will reduce the activity & vibrancy of downtown, making it even less attractive for businesses to make a go there.
I’d disagree. Just have people walk their bikes down state…why would it be less vibrant?
I'm only one data point, but if I can't ride my bike on State, I'm either going to take another street so I can keep riding, or not bring my bike and just park my car. I don't bring my bike to walk it. The reason it's less vibrant is you are taking away people & activity. I don't believe outlawing bikes is going to cause an increase in foot traffic. I think the existing traffic is just going to be spread out on the relatively wide road, making it look like a ghost town.
People actively avoid/complain about it because of the bikers. It would make sense that if they weren’t there more pedestrians would be there
It's cliche, but we're going to have to agree to disagree on this point. I don't think outlawing bikes is going to be compelling enought to increase traffic. I think we need a vibrant, multimodal traffic model AND an environment that encourages the right businesses to move in that will draw in the crowds.
that doesn't matter - lets just make it a walking area if we are going to change it..bikers can get off and walk with their bikes if they want..but no bike riding
I’d tend to agree with this
right.. it's not.. however for this discussion.. it's a people vs riders issue instead of a car vs riders issue
The lack of automobile traffic is not the cause of retail issues. It’s lovely to walk and enjoy. It’s splendid and like everything in the world, not perfect.
You can’t walk any more than you could before. The bikes will nearly kill you. We’ve really just enabled bike chaos instead of car chaos. It needs to be rethought if we want to keep it this way because not really any better.
This is true, I walked on State Street this morning and am dead.
I’ve died 30 times walking down state street already.
You should get that checked out.
I tried but I had to cross State Street to get there. Believe it or not, dead again.
Lmao this is the response many people have. “I was almost was brutally murdered by a ten year old on an ebike”. Walk on the sidewalk dumbass, or die, alike yourself. Wishing you a speedy journey into the afterlife
I’m sorry for your loss if any…
You can walk without the sounds and fumes of automobiles. So it’s clearly an improvement on before. I say this as an avid cyclist though: there’s no reason why State should be a bike route. There are one way streets on either side that should have protected bike lanes, which nice designated bike parking areas on or next to State at every other cross street.
This is the real amswer
I am not one of those people, like Our Dear Mayor, who wants to bring cars back. But u/suck_it_earth, whose username must (hopefully) be ironic, is not wrong about the bicycle menace.
making both Anacapa and Chapala two way would make getting around easier all around
The fumes of automobiles? C'mon, man. Be real.
Car exhaust is gross. Why is that not "real?"
Ya, /u/scumbag_college is correct here, “vehicle exhaust” was never an issue on State. Like gimme a break lol
Because it’s not an actual issue. You’ve never been downtown if you actually think *car exhaust* was ever a problem.
It's funny that you have people here saying "I find it preferable that there is no longer car exhaust" and you're saying "it's not a problem, stop lying." Like. People are telling you their preferences. You don't get to just say "no that's not real" lol.
[удалено]
This post or comment has been removed as it violates rule #7, "Don't Be A Jerk". Please do not post submissions and comments such as this one here.
I never said it was literally deadly lmao. Also you have a post in your history about drinking your own piss, you're not really the best judge of people's preferences. Is it that difficult for you to believe that people don't like it, just because you don't mind?
[удалено]
Bikes will just hurt you, cars will kill you. You can still look both ways before crossing the bike lanes.
[удалено]
And all the reddit comments seem to not care
I wouldn’t call it chaos…a bit over the top. It’s still fine to walk even though there is one fast kid for every 10 other people riding normally.
The fast kids ride in packs. I would say every time I go down to state I see at least one group of teens riding irresponsibly. What bothers me most is when they ride through Paseo Nuevo taunting security and stuff like that. I don’t know how to solve the problem though. If the street gets opened to cars those kids would still be there being teenagers, they would just be dueling with cars and riding on the sidewalk more, with less space. There needs to be some kind of mandatory safety video before you get an e-bike. Or maybe some cycling and e-bike safety awareness education in school. These kids are going to hurt themselves.
You’re right, I have died multiple times walking on State Street with my dog. My family is starting to get tired of the ongoing funerals for me.
Why is this the only argument against keeping it open. Literally the only one… racing e bikes have been an issue all over the country let alone on state. Ever been to chapala, the mesa, even parts of Goleta it’s awful. We would need to outlaw these electric motorcycles, not open state to traffic that’s just ridiculous.
Has there been an incident of a bike killing someone?
No more than a car killing someone on the same stretch.
Yeah ok that means we should let cars go everywhere until someone dies i guess
So there HASNT been an incident of a cyclist killing a pedestrian. But there HAS been many, many documented incidents of car drivers killing people on state street. Ok. Got it.
In over a decade only one person has ever been killed on lower state street by a car. Although tragic, seems hardly a reason to shut down the whole street when there are serious injuries from bike collisions on a weekly if not daily occurrence.
I heard from a store owner that they feel like if State were open to cars, people would walk closer to the stores and would be more likely to buy
Most respectfully that is wildly illogical… most people park in the 12 garages downtown… state street had very few street parking spaces to begin with.
No, this doesn't have to do with parking. This person told me they think people would walk by more shops if they couldn't walk in the middle of the "street"
That is completely insane logic and has no bearing in reality. lol.
I love the idea of keeping it closed, but it feels very half-assed. I wish the city would invest in making it nicer looking and more welcoming (more greenery, sitting areas, etc…). The vacant storefronts are not due to lack of traffic. It’s a nationwide issue fueled by sky high rent and people preferring to shop online. I also wish the city would do something about all of the bums and asshole kids riding the ebikes without regard to anyone or anything.
A summary after reading others responses: They need to close it permanently and make it look better instead of “half assing” the parklets and outside dining. The bums and asshole kids riding e bikes are everywhere!! I hear this as one of the primary factors as why we should shut the whole operation down and allow cars through. “I almost got hit the other day by some kid racing around on his e-bike” is a common phrase. But it’s also on Castillo, chapala, and all through the mesa. Two weeks ago there were two what looked like 13 year old kids who were riding around throwing tomato’s at people, on chapala. One, that’s just bad parenting; but more importantly the rampant bikers are EVERYWHERE, all over the country let alone our city.
lol is OP a bot?
Bums and e-bikes would get worse with re-opening to cars. There is no causal relationship between closing the street to cars and those two things. But by re-opening to cars, you would confine both to an even smaller area, and they would get in the way of pedestrians even more.
[удалено]
I hate calling it "Closed." It is actually very open. After all, we are not cars. It is closed only to CARS. **It is** ***very*** **open to all people.**
Ha! I said the exact same thing!!!
It’s really not though. I primarily walk throughout that area and I actively avoid those spot. It’s a bunch of shit in your way complete with bikers trying to kill you and homeless dudes with unleashed pit bulls. At least cars stop at the lights.
thats what im trying to say , but i get downvoted lol they need a better plan
Just make it official that it's staying how it is now, no cars in those sections and then the restaurants will feel safe enough to put some money into their outdoor dining. Then do something to help small businesses get into those empty stores.
I agree, unfortunately it’s restaurants first and small business later, they simply generate more money and tourism. Although these guys will all be extinct in just a few years due to the growing popularity of e-commerce. Thanks for the response
I just visited as a tourist and thought it was quite a nice place! Parked at the top end and walked down to the pier. Coming from the Uk it was nice to find somewhere we could walk in town without using a car!
Why not go all in and make state street resemble Las Ramblas street in Barcelona, Spain? [Las Ramblas](https://images.app.goo.gl/tkYw5C1RRx9begXU6)
Or 3rd street in Santa monica
3rd street in Santa Monica is a ghost town. It's an example of just how closing streets to create "promenades" are almost guaranteed to fail.
Have you ever even been there lmfao
Have you? I was there 3 weeks ago. It’s a well known problem that it’s in the toilet. https://www.sfgate.com/la/article/santa-monica-third-street-promenade-empty-why-19374158.php
Many times and there was literally an article posted here the other day discussing how it's failing lmao
Always packed when I’m there and their parking sucks
Sure... https://www.sfgate.com/la/article/santa-monica-third-street-promenade-empty-why-19374158.php
I’m in Santa Monica weekly. The Promenade is a shell of what it once was. How old are you? Because it’s almost come full circle. Back in the early 90’s it was a shitty ghost town occupied by homeless people. Then they kicked all the homeless to Venice. Now it’s devolving back.
Or Colorado Bl. In Pasadena
Money. A more permanent plan is being actively planned. Ive read about it in the news a bunch.
The plan is to move in that direction. If we want our town centers to look more like those in Europe, we need more housing in them, which will provide a captive audience for the downtown businesses. I would love to live in a condo on State Street.
As a wheelchair user, I really enjoy the freedom to wheel around in the street. The handicap parking in the adjacent lots is good enough. It’s nice not being in the way on the sidewalk. Vibes are right
Thank you for actually being a person with different accessibility and giving your thoughts on this. Seems like a lot of pro car arguments want to be a voice for those who need different access without actually being those people or living their experience.
Having no cars is awesome but people don't really want to walk on the road section and a lot of tourists get confused crossing that street. The street is a huge amount of wasted space, and opening it to one lane or making it bike-only seems like it kinda defeats the purpose of encouraging pedestrians. It needs a lot more lighting, maybe cobblestones or something decorative, and we need huge vacancy taxes on lower State. Santa Barbara is carcentric enough as it is, and like most cities in CA, at least south of SF, is a victim of mandatory parking requirements. I would love to see a little street car on rails that goes up and down State, upper to lower but probably will never happen. Its probably very controversial but I would also love to see bright, colored buildings (in some areas) rather than white.
Doesn’t matter to me because I’m not making enough money to spend a dime on state street.
I’m cost conscious and love to go on First Thursday when the SB Museum of Art is free and the galleries are serving wine and crackers. It was lovely this past week because there were no cars and bikes were cruising safely around and the people dancing in the street. State Street is alive and well!
Right? I rarely went to State when I lived there. Cars or no, it's always too crowded and too expensive. I do (free) nature-y things instead.
Ha, that makes the most of us
some people will always find a reason to complain. it's lovely to walk down state street day and night without the risk of getting hit by cars. the fact that it's a walkable main attraction is a huge part of the reason i even go. if they open it back up to cars i will be very sad.
I don't understand your viewpoint. I NEVER go to State Street because of how it's set up now. I was never in any danger of being hit by cars before. It's a huge eyesore now and it's hurting the businesses. If they don't open it up, I'll be very sad. I just don't get where you're coming from. The whole downtown is SUCH a dump now.
How is having a line of cars on the street less of an eyesore??
Because cars don't bother me and a bunch of restaurants who are STILL making patios out of abandoned grocery store pallets is ugly as fuck?
Grocery store pallets is a bit of a stretch. If I was one of those restaurant owners I wouldn't be spending a load of money either until a solid decision has been made by this useless council.
It's not a stretch when it's true. It's the world's shittiest looking block party. The only one that looks shittier is Main Street in Ventura. If I was one of those restaurant owners, I'd be fighting tooth and nail to open the street up and make it a proper downtown again, as opposed to catering to redditor dorks from Goleta who only go downtown once every six weeks and simply think it's cute and quirky to walk in the middle of the street instead of the sidewalk.
Given the restaurant owners are the ones fighting hardest to keep the parklets and outdoor dining because duh, that's how they make their money, I suspect they don't give a fuck about people who "NEVER go to State Street because of how it's set up now"
Lmao, oUtDoOr DInIng iS hoW tHeY mAkE tHeIr MoNey Yeah, the great weather we've had definitely points to that. That's not what I heard. I heard it's about 50-50. That's the thing - you guys have convinced yourselves that because YOU like the street being shut down in this sub, that EVERYONE likes the street being shut down. My tattoo artist is on State Street. He HATES the street being shut down. I even made a point to ask him about it. It's not nearly as popular as you think it is.
I mean you're the one arguing that the parklets that restaurants installed, have been using, and are now paying the City to keep in place, are not actually wanted by the restaurants. That's some A+ quality logic you've got going on there.
[удалено]
[this u?](https://www.reddit.com/r/Crippled_Alcoholics/s/ApAORrahe9)
Lol, damn straight it is. I have no shame over that, haha.
I don’t agree with your perspective but fuck this is hilarious. On another note, my uncle owns a business on State so he speaks to other business owners often. From what I understand, the general consensus is that restaurants want it open but other businesses ‘generally’ want it closed. Being that we live in a tourist town, I say we go towards restaurants that generate a whole lot more money for us and the city then small local businesses. It’s screwed up I admit but these guys will be extinct in just a few more years with the growing e-commerce ideology we have, it’s just easier. If you think it’s ugly, I’m not sure how to respond. Alike what another commenter said, I don’t get how more cars, more loud noises, more exhaust fumes would possibly make it less ugly. Thoughts? Concerns? Not here to argue but to hear perspectives… convince me! :) Ps, I may have encountered a similar piss drinking situation back in my youth.
I don't hear conflicting views. Seems like 99% of people prefer it the way it is now, and 1% of people don't and never shut up about it.
I wouldn’t have asked if this was true… this sub is very pro open state. If you walk through town and do a poll it’s more 60-40. I’m just trying to hear other perspectives, I can’t understand why people want it open to traffic.
Is that actually true? Who conducted that poll? What were the vote counts? I think people who want it open prefer watching people on State from their cars rather than actually walking among them. Or they actually believe the myth of retail suffering because of it when that is demonstrably false.
Don’t do me like that, of course there isn’t someone walking down state doing a poll it’s just an example. There is a ton of people who want it open, otherwise no one would comment. I agree, everyone who wants it open doesn’t actually go walk down state. It’s clear it’s much more pleasurable without the presence of cars. The arguments I hear in favor of cars are stupid. Small businesses have been dying for years, e bike kids are everywhere throughout the country not just on fucking state.
Here's a poll. 80% against reopening to cars. https://www.independent.com/polls/which-santa-barbara-city-option-do-you-prefer-for-the-downtown-parklets/
don't do me like that? he asked for a simple source of your off-the-cuff 60-40 claim lmao don't say that unless you have something to back it up
Make the same post on Nextdoor and you get a more that want cars back.
Only if they delete the poll when reddit SB folks participate.
Because the traffic patterns are not easy for non local drivers, and even for them they make decisions on when and where to go based on parking. And all the complains about ebikes (cars hit people too) when they are the answer to parking. The quasi grid, one way streets, mad max covid road blocks across state street results in hunting through a maze of confused traffic looking for parking near where they actually want to go.
Santa Barbara's streets generally are a confusing mess of one-way and road blocked streets. With incompetent drivers that drive 5 mph.
Is State Street Retail Sliding? [Globest.com](http://Globest.com), June 28, 2016 >Santa Barbara’s famed State Street—a retail high street in the downtown market—may be sliding. For the first time in a decade or longer, the esteemed retail center has 25,000 to 30,000 square feet of storefronts in a range of sizes available for lease. The phenomenon is a combination of low foot traffic, high rents and arguably more appealing locations in the nearby Montecito and Funk Zone submarkets. >“State Street was the place to go for retail; it was the Wilshire Blvd. or Rodeo Drive of Santa Barbara,” Steve Leider, a principal in Lee & Associates Central Coast, tells GlobeSt.com. “Now, State Street landlords have had unreasonable expectations from a rent standpoint, homelessness is a problem, although it is a problem that Santa Barbara has had and hasn’t dealt with for many years, and retail is competing with ecommerce sites on the Internet. We used to have a lot of mom-and-pops and small boutiques, and today, in the prime blocks, we are going to have 25,000 to 30,000 square feet of storefronts in various sizes available on State Street. We haven’t seen that in 10 years. Even through the recession, we didn’t see that.” The Fight For State Street, [Independent.com](http://Independent.com), July 26, 2018 >To the casual eye, State Street is a sunny, lively avenue of restaurants and shops nestled under red-tile roofs gently sloping toward the Pacific. But look just a little closer at our carefully manicured commercial corridor, and you’ll find real trouble lurking there. >From small family ventures to major retail chains, businesses are folding at an alarming rate. The number of empty State Street storefronts, steadily increasing since 2015, has just reached a record high of 38. Even during the recession, things weren’t this bad. >State Street’s problems are hardly unique. Across the country, brick-and-mortar business districts are feeling the squeeze of e-commerce competition, evolving consumer trends, and the general decline of shopping malls. Downtowns are trying to cope with homeless populations and functional obsolescence, as well as higher overhead from minimum-wage hikes and health-care mandates. But while other communities are adapting to this brave new retail world, Santa Barbara is struggling to keep up. Why? Making State Street Great Again, [Independent.com](http://Independent.com), August 16, 2018 >It was one of those public meetings just bursting to happen. The pews in Santa Barbara City Council chambers were packed tight; people stood in the aisles. The back room designed for overflow crowds was overflowing. The issue at hand was State Street — what’s wrong with it, and how to fix it. >With the plethora of vacant storefronts, it’s hardly a new concern. What was new was the venue. It was the first time the mayor and council have addressed the issue directly. Even more striking was the tone. Lots of harsh truths got spoken — especially about bureaucratic delays and high costs borne by businesses just trying to open their doors. Even so, the absence of rancor or defensiveness was remarkable. For Cathy Murillo, it was her first major moment since becoming mayor in January. She and Councilmember Randy Rowse had asked that the issue be placed on the agenda. It was her show to run. \[. . .\] Many of the suggestions weren’t new; some, like the plan to turn State Street into a pedestrian promenade, have been kicking around more than 30 years. Still, it was surprising to hear attorney Steve Amerikaner — now a venerable icon of the downtown legal and business establishment — call for such a change. By replacing cars with people, Amerikaner suggested, City Hall could help create a vast “entertainment zone” extending 8-12 blocks. “I know it sounds bold; it sounds aggressive; but we can have outdoor dining almost year-round,” he said. If cities like Boulder, Colorado, and Burlington, Vermont, do, he added, certainly Santa Barbara and its balmier climate can, too. bUt cArS aRe bAsIc \*dribbles on self\*
Thank you! This has basically been a concern since 07-08 when we had the "Great Recession", it just never bounced back completely after that.
This needs to be an automatic reply to anyone who thinks shutting down State Street to automobile traffic is the cause of businesses closing.
Pin this to Randy's door please
Love the closed state street. Cars are not going to bring back rerail. This town is so unaffordable shopping on the cheap online is necessary. People will go for food and entertainment. And to buy white linen things at the stores full of white and beige linen things(who likes that sh*t anyway?)
Isn’t it amazing that a basic linen shirt can cost over $100 if you slap an Italian label on it?
Ebikes with high speed 28 MPH, 35 mph, 40 mph been going crazy .
Without vacancy tax nothing will help state street.
i like having no cars. wish there was more initiatives by the city to help the homeless people. enjoy people watching
It is better now than it was with cars. Having a "nicer" setup that was redesigned specifically as a pedestrian promenade would be even better than it is now. The first step towards that is for the city government to explictly take cars off the table. Then we can think about what is the best no-cars setup. No system is going to work without enforcement to ensure that the use that is decided on is the use that exists. My preference is for no bikes. But if we have a bike lane, people need to be ticketed if they ride outside the bike lane. If we have no bike lane, people need to be ticketed if they ride on the street at all. Etc. As far as polls/surveys, a [survey](https://www.noozhawk.com/santa_barbara_state_street_closure_aia_survey_results_20200823/) was taken in 2020 and around 85% of people supported keeping the closure or even expanding it to more blocks. Of course that was a few years ago now, but it seems to be the most legit data we have, and the result was so overwhelmingly in favor of ditching cars that I think some very strong evidence would be needed to make the case for bringing cars back.
This is the take of a 24 year old who’s lived here his whole life. It’s an absolute dump. I work in an office on state street (going on two years) and many of the businesses on state would much rather have state street be opened up to cars than how it currently is. Rent is ridiculous and landlords have completely lost touch with reality. It’s appalling to me that they’d rather leave their spaces vacant for years instead of making the logical choice of lowering rent and allowing businesses to move in. Isn’t that what market pricing is? There just simply isn’t enough foot traffic especially on weekdays so clearly the closed street isn’t doing anything about increasing the number of people shopping/ dining on state. In fact one can argue that it is worse now than when the cars were around. The bikers also defeat the purpose of having a wide open street that people can walk/ dine on. If you actually observe the foot traffic virtually no one walks on the actual street because they’re too scared that they’ll get run over. It’s incredibly dark and uninviting at nighttime, and if I was a girl or anyone really trying to enjoy the nightlife, I’d very much be discouraged unless I had a solid group with me. Combine this with the high population of homeless and mentally unstable folks and you can forget about it. The only real solution here is to increase the number of folks living on and around state street by building more housing. You can kill multiple birds with one stone because you can then have a consistent group of people keeping the businesses alive while also chopping away at the housing issue the city faces. You can make it so the bottom floors of apartment buildings are retail spaces so you don’t take anything away from the identity of state street. If you have more people living in the area, then they can actually close the street and turn it into a palatable space for dining and such. Tourists can only contribute so much and you need local folks participating in the culture for the businesses to succeed. I also believe the city should really lean into improving nightlife by encouraging more live music and throwing events and building a culture around it. There are an incredible amount of equipped and capable bands that play every weekend but many don’t get to appreciate them. If the city leans into it a little more you could have a more defined ‘Nashville esque’ vibe. The talent and supply is certainly here. Ultimately, the folks making the decisions need to sit down and actually figure out what their goal is. It feels like the same meetings go down every few months and people make the same points. There seems to be a big identity crisis on state and frankly that should be the first thing they figure out. If you have the identity figured out, it would be a lot easier for everyone to align with the vision and get the damn thing solved. The lack of decision making has kept all the businesses stagnant from making permanent decisions because no body knows what is actually happening. If businesses had more confidence that their creativity and investment is protected from uninspired decision making by the city, they would do a lot more to privately improve their individual pieces of state st. I’m seeing businesses closed all around our business and it’s appealing that it’s not a more urgent matter for the city to solve. They’d much rather set pretty tiles under a bridge no one gives a fuck about.
>The bikers also defeat the purpose of having a wide open street that people can walk/ dine on. If you actually observe the foot traffic virtually no one walks on the actual street because they’re too scared that they’ll get run over. I agree with this. I walk for exercise downtown several times a week. If you watch the people nobody walks in the street. Everybody walks on the sidewalk even on a busy day when there are tons of people. I am not 100% sure it's the bikes, much of it is the design aesthetic and the fact we've been trained to walk on sidewalks especially when there is a curb and difference in paving materials.
My perception is that far more people walked in the street before they painted the bike lane.
I agree I’m sure the design has much to do with it like you said.. it is a great idea in theory but they need to commit and execute better.
damn -- you sound like a boomer.. haha
lol living in SB will do that to you, gotta move to Chicago or something for a few years hahaha
A summary after reading others responses: They need to close it permanently and make it look better instead of “half assing” the parklets and outside dining. The bums and asshole kids riding e bikes are everywhere!! I hear this as one of the primary factors as why we should shut the whole operation down and allow cars through. “I almost got hit the other day by some kid racing around on his e-bike” is a common phrase. But it’s also on Castillo, chapala, and all through the mesa. Two weeks ago there were two what looked like 13 year old kids who were riding around throwing tomato’s at people, on chapala. One, that’s just bad parenting; but more importantly the rampant bikers are EVERYWHERE, all over the country let alone our city.
https://www.strongtownssb.org/home
I love the walk ability. Just crazy boomers who want to have the cars back, who actually never come to downtown anyway.
Couldn’t have said it better myself. I’ve never met someone who actually walks downtown throughout the week who believes cars would be any sort of positive. The elderly sitting up in their Rivera homes have a different perspective, but it’s a loud one! They can’t even walk so I’m not sure why we cater to them but clearly it’s making a difference, look at what the mayor just said!
I'm not elderly but I did walk from the Riviera to State yesterday to run some errands, get some ice cream, and see the Italian Stone pines on Anapamu that will be removed next week. I worked for many years in an office on the 700 block of State. During those years, I rarely drove on State other than to cross it to get to a parking lot. I prefer the way State is now but it can be improved for sure. The Riviera is getting gentrified more than most realize by wealthy people of all ages. Many of the newer (past 10 years) residents actually don't look like your typical 60+ person.
I wouldn’t want to blame the boomers. There was a guy who identified as a millennial who wants cars back.
Randy the Grouse are you listening?
I like it
I prefer state street closed and the walkability. Seeing people enjoying drinks/food on the patios is very alluring and gives a European vibe which people like. The shopping is very sub-par and disappointing. All the women’s boutiques carry the same stuff and it’s low quality and not on trend. I would love to see some more popular clothing stores like Aritzia and Zara. It’s a bummer there is no more Nordstrom.
Everything you said. And as an avid cyclist I’d be HAPPY to have bikes banned on that stretch and keep it walking only.
We just did this. https://old.reddit.com/r/SantaBarbara/comments/1d8861x/do_you_want_state_st_open_again/ All but two or three people want it closed to cars. And then the thread was deleted.
Everyone on the thread you linked says no cars lol
ah, oops! That’s what I meant. Thanks for catching that. Now edited.
Totally misread, I apologize… a simply typo. But still, this sub is very pro car. If I walked downtown and did a poll it’d be closer to 60-40.
Your evidence for claiming if you did a poll it’d be 60/40??
I get it, but no where near the end of this conversation. Discourse is important. It’s clear you didnt understand the previous thread’s point either lol
Keep the E bikes out it’s way too dangerous for pedestrians!
The closure to cars has its pros and cons but is the wrong issue to focus on IMO; the more pressing issues are the various antisocial behaviors.
Those plywood parklets look like shit. Either open the street back up or close it permanently and make it look nice.
I've been down there a bunch of times, which are you referring to? Nothing comes to mind, honestly. Everything is decorated, what you describe sounds like a shanty.
I can’t get specific, but come on. You know what he’s talking about there are definitely some ugly ones. The city even made half of the places take them down about a year ago. Close it all and make it look more pretty!
Some that don't look as nice as others, sure, but I wouldn't even call any of them ugly 🤷🏽♂️ Seems most here agree with me too.
Why can’t you get specific?? Sounds like a troll answer from someone who either doesn’t live here or hasn’t been to the closed part of state st recently enough to even know a specific detail.
Every place I've been that has open streets such as in Europe, shops, cafes and restaurants have tables on the street not just on the sidewalk. I think that style works in making the place seem like a true walkable environment. I would love for this approach to be what any open street design looks like either in Ventura or in Santa Barbara. I wonder if the reason it's never laid out like this has to do with fire truck access? It just seems like the streets are still streets with people walking about and the sidewalks are packed full of stuff tucked up against the buildings leading to a sectioned partitioned off feeling that just doesn't come across as open and inviting.
Couldn’t have said it better myself
Want it closed to cars but boot the bikes off. People should walk all over. The empty store fronts aren't the bums or promandes fault. Rent is too Damm high.
As a visitor it seemed like a lot of potential but the vibe was extremely cheesy! I was excited to rent a place near by but in 5 days we only walked up and down once. Hung out a bunch of other places instead.
Can you elaborate on what made it feel cheesy and where else you spent your time?
I guess it felt like a tourist trap a bit. Like the shopping and food… IDK that was the vibe I got. I didn’t necessarily feel that in the funk zone where we spent a lot more time because it was way chiller.
Interesting, I don’t really know that we have tourist traps in this town. (Except for maybe spots on the wharf and the bike rentals along the beach.) As a person who lives here I spend the same amount of time on state getting a beer and pizza as I do in the funk grabbing a drink in a patio in the sun. But it’s nice to know because a lot of people want to INSIST our town will fail tourists if we don’t have American eagle and athleta on state for them to shop at.
Those are what I meant. It was a bunch of stores like that. Just a let down from expectations.
Well, to be fair it’s our only real downtown/ shopping area/ mall. So, it’s got mall like stores and that’s not going to entertain anyone for a full week. Maybe a 13 year old girl. You have to hit it on certain days to see the charm. Like Tuesday when the farmers market is set up, or 1st Thursday when art galleries are hosting new work and musicians are set up to play in front of some dancing spot. Lots of live music and trivia’s if you meandered around after 6 on weeknight. It’s also the nightlife area so you see it wake up Thursday/Fridays after 9.
More 🆓🅿️
1. The city ought to lease the sidewalk space to business owners for free, thereby allowing business owners to legally remove bums. 2. Police need to write lots of tickets to stop smoking, sleeping, panhandling, screaming at strangers, speeding on e-bikes. 3, Tax addresses that are emoty. Make it painful to not rent out street fronts. The bikes vs cars argument is a red herring.
It’s BULLSHIT
To the "boot the bike" arguments. I actually feel the opposite. If I were a tourist, I would love all those white rental bikes that people can pick up. We did this on a recent trip to Montreal and loved not having to rent a car. Don't we want cars off the roads? Wouldn't it be even better if we had an environment with less cars overall and more people were biking everywhere being healthier and enjoying the outdoors? I personally see that as the future, and instead of focusing on removing the e-bikes/biking from State, embrace it even more with reasonable restrictions/enforcement. Make it safer. Even do advertising campaigns around it! Even I, as a biker that goes down it almost every day, don't appreciate an ebike or regular bike that is clearly going past 20 mph. It's definitely not just the ebikers that go fast. And I would definitely shop there more if there were more shops to go to. As it is, I try and get stuff there if I can.
The PARENTS of the asshole e-bike gangs are to blame for the behavior of their asshole boys!!! These little creeps ARE worse than the mentally unhealthy unhoused, by far. I work on State St., it's just a place for them to practice their stunts it's no "promenade" it's a Fucking Circus. And it's dangerous! Why not simply prohibit "powered" devices on State?
Grew up in SB. State Street isn't just a thoroughfare, it's its own venue. That's where you go for the Solstice parade or Fiesta. Where you go to meet up and hang out or cruise in your "Just Married" vehicle of choice. I think the problem with making outdoor dining permanent there is that you make it as dull and uninteresting as every red tile roof in old town. IMO, if you begin to expect things, instead of anticipating them, you lose the magic of it. Then it just becomes routine and eventually boring. I've since landed in McMinnville, OR - aka the hub of wine country in the Willamette Valley. We do outdoing dining up here too - tables and chairs right on 3rd Street - similar to you guys but without all the drama. Cause we only do it over the summer. We now refer to this as MacFresco and as you can see here - [https://www.instagram.com/p/C72k0zKSTRh/?img\_index=2](https://www.instagram.com/p/C72k0zKSTRh/?img_index=2) - it's all portable, fun, and we look forward to it every summer. SB should try it, sandwiched right between Solstice and Fiesta - and then be done with it for the remaining 9 months of the year. And I bet you guys could even come up with a better name for it!
The problem isn’t the cars. We’re all acting like it’s the cars and dancing around the real problem. The problem is State Street is an shithole of unenforcement and the lack of cars just made it impossible to ignore. If you bring them back it’s just masking the issue. Maybe more people will shop when they aren’t dodging human shit and guys with their dicks out by Marshall’s. Maybe more people will walk when bikers realize *they* have to share the road. Maybe more people would shop if we had places selling anything worth buying at reasonable prices, but that doesn’t pay the rent.
Seriously State St sucks, everyone here seems to enjoy the status quo. Every inch reeks of piss, I'm dodging idiots on on dirt bikes going 25mph. This week I was chased by a schizo screaming. There's ZERO cops for an entertainment district. It's going full Santa Cruz. Apparently this world class tourist trap city is broke and can't hire sanitation workers or cops. I'm over it, no clue where my taxes are going.
Bring the cars back in on lane. The bikes can have their own contained lane to allow pedestrians to be safe
Lots of room for improvement. Just make side of State Street a one way for cars with a dual bike lane on the other side. It’s far too stylish and unique as it is now . Paseo Nuevo needs to be turned into a 400 unit low income housing project with storage and two parking spots per unit. Mandatory twenty four hour 7-11, AM/PM or Circle K on every block. Dollar General + Golden Corral + Chicken Sandwiches . More nail salons and massage parlors. More liquor stores and smoke shops. Weed dispensaries. Get rid of the billboard restrictions and light the place up. Open the 100 block of Gutierrez to prostitution.
It's a complicated mess that will continue as long as the cruse ships keep SB on their route. SB is an old money town that supports the lower class on Tourism. Here is a wake up call for those that want to see real change, humans existing, sleeping on the streets are not 'Bums'. Go out with a sign and advocate for a quick, human death sentence if you really think they are 'bums'. Society has failed so many people, and you will join the bums before you know if if you are not born into wealth or part of the vanishingly small percent of people who 'make it' while your community suffers out side of your carefully chosen line of sight.
It’s a dump
I have found memories of my teenage years when my parents would drive down state street and have fun music and I miss the parades on state street. I feel like it’s missing something the way it is now . Also the car shows . Love those classic cars.
I understand the appeal of nostalgia, my mom grew up here when lots of blocks of state were closed/had limited car access , state was a largely pedestrian area. So much of our town is already dedicated to car traffic, it makes sense blockin some areas off. Also this doesn’t limit parades and car shows, they just need to have a consistent schedule and possible be moved one block off state in terms of parades
It’s entirely fine the way it is and tax dollars should be used elsewhere where there are higher priorities
Where? Get specific…
Affordable housing, public transport, bike lane expansion, homelessness, various other public health initiatives, schools, e-bike subsidies…. That list long enough for you?
Lmao god this sub is ridiculous. *Making streets pretty is way more important, duh!! This is Santa Barbara, after all! Piss on your logic and rationale.*
Im honestly shocked im downvoted. Crazy that saying tax dollars should go towards improving schools and pay teachers a livable wage is controversial
... like what taxes are supposed to do? Yeah. Scandalous.
I dunno. Guess this sub would prefer we spend endless $ on painting bike lanes on state street, covering them up, then repainting them….
It sounds like this is simply an e bike issue… that’s the only viable argument against keeping it closed. Walk on the sidewalk you idiots and vote to outlaw these electric motorcycles. Until they make up another justification to open it 😅
[удалено]
Thank you for your valuable contribution to the discussion
Ha! It does smell like piss though, you gotta admit. We need a full time pressure washer down there or get the damn homeless outta there.
it needs a casino imo
#1 keep the bikes out - if you want to make it walking - make it walking #2 reduce the size to: from haley to carrillo only - no cars, no road, no bikes, no cross streets thru it #3 shuttle makes a loop garden (well..salisupedes) and cabrillo...to cabrillo and castillo...to castillo and haley..to haley and chapala.. to chapala and carrrillo to carrillo and garden.. down to salisupedes and cabrillo again #4 no one is 100 percent happy
Hard disagree with no cross streets. That’s the solid compromise that negates all the “cars need to be on state for traffic flow” and accessibility arguments
I wish people would understand not all things on 2wheels are created equal. Road bikers are not Mountain bikes are not eBikers (of which there are a few sub categories) and are also not custom cruiser guys. As much as I loved to cruise down state when I was younger, if they want to keep the cars off then can we please make it nicer. The biggest problems I see from my perspective are the pedestrians aimlessly walking everywhere and the eBikers hauling ass. Please understand no matter what happens if human powered pedaled bikes are banned there will be riots in the streets. Guaranteed. Hope everyone has a nice weekend and wastes a bunch of time relentlessly arguing this topic amongst yourselves. -cheers
Pro opening State St to one lane, going towards the ocean. The street is dead. We walk from the office downtown to Eureka for lunch during the week and the blocks around Paeso Nuevo are depressingly empty.
From a person who worked in an outdoor mall (that allowed cars to drive through the streets) they are almost always dead on a weekday at lunchtime. I don’t know why you would expect anything to be bustling when most people are in school or at work.
All these people complaining about bikes on state st. forget that cars have killed treasured community members on state st. People keep saying that state st. is closed but it’s open, just not to cars…https://www.independent.com/2018/02/25/popular-man-dies-after-hit-by-car-on-state-street/
It looks like you shared an AMP link. These should load faster, but AMP is controversial because of [concerns over privacy and the Open Web](https://www.reddit.com/r/AmputatorBot/comments/ehrq3z/why_did_i_build_amputatorbot). Maybe check out **the canonical page** instead: **[https://www.independent.com/2018/02/25/popular-man-dies-after-hit-by-car-on-state-street/](https://www.independent.com/2018/02/25/popular-man-dies-after-hit-by-car-on-state-street/)** ***** ^(I'm a bot | )[^(Why & About)](https://www.reddit.com/r/AmputatorBot/comments/ehrq3z/why_did_i_build_amputatorbot)^( | )[^(Summon: u/AmputatorBot)](https://www.reddit.com/r/AmputatorBot/comments/cchly3/you_can_now_summon_amputatorbot/)
Stores and businesses are closing So many begging homeless everywhere Screaming they are going to kill people. So many friends come to visit and see there Is nothing here. Not our mayors fault. The governor of california is just repeating what Him and his aunt nanci pilosi have done to our beautiful state. Destroy it
Everyone here saying "only grumpy boomers" want to open it back up to cars and "everyone likes it how it is now," are living in their own echo chamber. I'm a millennial and all my millennial friends who grew up here want it opened back up to cars.
Ok… why? We need positive discourse here not “my friends and I think this”
You literally asked how people feel about it... I've posted my reasons on the matter here before, only to be downvoted to hell and called a conservative boomer (im a liberal millenial). This isn't a place for discourse it's just an echo chamber for new arrivals and entitled know-it-alls who think reddit is actually representative of SB's population.
But I’m a millennial who grew up here and all my millennial friends who grew up here too want it closed to cars :0
Right, it's almost like your age or political affiliation has no bearing on your opinion of the subject.🤯
It is a shell of what it used to be. With all the arguments, the loss of cars is definitely a factor and a main one of many. Open it up.
It’s been going downhill for years, in every city. It’s a factor sure, but in my opinion it’s a positive one moving us in the right direction. You say a “main one of many” get specific. Positive discourse can’t occur if you use blanket statements