Comments by Federico
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Posted on March 29 at 5:57 a.m.
First time I set foot in town, I arrived by Bus alone at this Station to visit my Big Sister, who was living on the Rancho San Julian at the time. I was 10. That was 1967. The fact this company, being as old as it is, obviously aware of their own history, can't work with the City to preserve a historically signifigant building and interior complete with a retro working Diner inside (or at least the signs) opting to simply demolish them is idiotic. The Canary Hotel clientele across the street alone would have supported it. They could have simply moved the signage there to what is another historic building at the Railroad station. However the City has an ordinance against neon signage, equally idiotic given the cultural significance in this case, obviously no one asked. No doubt this will become an In N'Out Burger or Starbucks. Heartbreaking, actually.
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Posted on January 3 at 9:55 p.m.
As a working Commercial Artist first working and living within, (since 1984), the Funk Zone, I'd like to share a couple points ~ as Charming as it may seem for the newer artistes to the community, 'Collaborative'- minded 'Arts-Aware' folk and Concerned Citizens to extol the Virtues of the Funk Zone, those of us Working-Class Artistes in the Neighborhood are well aware of what we have, where we work & live here. Sadly, as someone with over 30 years' time in this area, precisely for its charm & history, would agree with what is literally, thanks to my Dear Friend of over 20 years, Wallace and others like him, the Writing is Indeed on the Wall for this neighborhood. The City of Santa Barbara ultimately controls what becomes of our neighborhoods. Case in Point ~ in your story, the aforementioned Loughhead Brothers, née (Lockheed Aircraft) original hangar/garages were right here in the Funk Zone, a location that most easily could have qualified on the National Register of Historic Places, allowing it Federal Protection, like a National Park. Those garages were unceremoniously leveled with approval by the City for commercial development : http://www.pbs.org/kcet/chasingthesun.... I suspect very few in City government would even know their former location today. Another great building to disappear in the Funk Zone, the beautiful European-style 1920s building at Anacapa & Mason sts., Now home to a vacant lot. Case in Point II ~ a previous generation of longtime Working Class artisans & craftspeople were also evicted from the Zone in 2010 by the City as reported in The Independent : http://www.independent.com/news/2010/.... The Bottom Line ~ adding more wine-sipping, microbrew-swilling big screen football watching SUV driving Tourists & Yuppies-in Training generate much larger income for developers & the City & County of Santa Barbara than us artistes in residence ever will. Witness the transformations of SoHo & Greenwich Village/NYC or closer to home, the $15 Million in County bed tax contingencies given to Miramar Hotel owner ( who lives in LA) Rick Caruso, just for tearing down the old & probably never building a new. I for one don't see the City taking any steps to designate the Funk Zone an 'Arts District', sad as that may be. I doubt the smartest and longest tenured artists & residents in the Zone will be showing up for any High-profile 'Arts Awareness' groups, or the press, and frankly stories like this one, are only putting us on the Endargered Species list down here. Oh, and perhaps where real innovative gallery art in Santa Barbara is concerned, folks like Frank Goss & Co., would have it in their best interest seeking out some real leading edge Santa Barbara artists to show for them, rather than the other way around. Thanks for the story...Cheers, Fred Hill/ FhD ~ Santa Barbara
On Artists on the Edge in the Funk Zone