On December 2, the Santa Barbara City Council will consider what may be the most consequential land-use decision of the century: whether to approve a complex 110-page redevelopment agreement for Paseo Nuevo. This proposal would reshape the heart of our downtown — physically, financially, and culturally for decades.
And yet, we are poised to make this decision with a City Council that will soon turn over three seats, without a clear mandate from the community, and without fully addressing the interconnected issues of downtown revitalization, the State Street closure, housing feasibility, and the long-term fiscal health of our city. This is precisely why I believe, firmly and unapologetically, that the future of Paseo Nuevo must be placed on the November 2026 ballot. Let the voters decide.
A City in Transition Deserves a Voice
Santa Barbara is at an inflection point. Over the next year, we will see new leadership, new ideas, and new perspectives join City Council. Decisions of this magnitude — handing over publicly owned land, redefining downtown housing density, and determining the fate of State Street, deserve broad public buy-in, not a rushed approval designed to satisfy an artificial timeline.
Administrator Kelly McAdoo has worked diligently to defend the agreement, but even during her recent interview on Newsmakers, several concerning themes emerged:…