Open Letter to Santa Barbara City Council:
As a property owner and member of the Downtown Santa Barbara Improvement Association (DSBIA), I am deeply concerned about State Street’s persistent decline, with sales taxes, lease rates, parking revenues, property values, and visitor numbers falling short compared to other city areas. Formed to represent downtown stakeholders, the Improvement Association has gathered data exposing a grim economic reality. Our resolute position is that State Street must balance all interests by restoring car access immediately. This stance will gain momentum as frustration mounts over the delayed State Street Master Plan and the City Council’s lack of urgency. The five-year promenade experiment has proven unsuccessful, and continued inaction is causing enduring damage to our retail businesses and property owners.
A recent research study by Magid, the world’s largest research-based strategy consulting company, reported that 56 percent of the residents of Santa Barbara supported returning State Street to its pre-COVID status while the Master Plan is being finalized, while only 19 percent opposed doing so…