State Street Master Plan still faces an identity crisis going forward
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – The new look to State Street in downtown Santa Barbara may not include the name "street" as often as it is used now.
A Civic Center component has been suggested involving the footprint that includes De la Guerra Plaza and the future look to the Paseo Nuevo Mall.
This came as part of many suggestions in the latest State Street Advisory Committee meeting over nearly four hours of discussion this week.
That included new design ideas with shared and mixed spaces for a stew of ingredients including vehicles, pedestrians, diners, bicyclists, entertainers, historic elements, retail and emergency vehicles.
This meeting was specifically focused on plans for mobility, transportation, and finding ways to share spaces, that, often are not measured the same in each block.
The meeting included the latest concepts from the consultant group MIG, hired by the city to work through ideas citywide on what can happen in this area of downtown Santa Barbara.
Four different concepts were shown and not one size will fit the entire area. That left the group wrestling with what could be done in sections to be the most effective in each area including a Civic Center concept and an Arts District concept.
Historic Landmark Commission Chairman Anthony Grumbine was outspoken about the master plan. He said looking at the previous designs and now the current design he said there "would be a serious negative impact" to the downtown area called the El Pueblo Viejo. He said it was a street design that could be placed in "any town."
"State Street doesn't know what it is," said Grumbine.
Several speakers suggested the planning now which begins at Haley St. also go back a block and include the 400 block starting at Gutierrez St. That area is coming up from the underpass as the "gateway" to downtown. Currently it is not in the design process.
Santa Barbara City Councilmember Kristin Sneddon said the big picture for her started six years ago with concepts about walkways, housing and the historic districts. She said the plan so far is not addressing enough issues for her and is still not a master plan. On the transportation topic she favors a trolley system on tracks that can go back and forth. She also said there needs to be a priority on slowing bike speeds.
As this goes project goes forward, she said she was not in favor of cars returning to State Street in this area, and did not want the door open for future city councils to change that.
