Two events on the same topic could not have been more different. The opulent Granada Theatre hosted a $200-a-head gathering for UC Santa Barbara’s Economic Forecast Project, while across the street at the Community Environmental Council, instead of the smell of money, an aspirational vibe lingered in the bare-raftered space housing a free discussion of how to create a livable downtown.
The tussle would be over cars, however. At the Granada, Caruso did not want to be put on the spot and weigh in on the cars versus bikes and pedestrian controversy in Santa Barbara, but he reluctantly said he thought cars on the street would bring some life back. At the CEC, the room agreed that creating a vibrant downtown was aligned with walkability.
https://www.independent.com/2024/05/13/bringing-life-to-santa-barbaras-downtown-by-growing-homes/
Above is an example of the media malpractice that seems to arise anytime the re-opening of State Street is even hinted at. In an otherwise pretty good news article about the two events the Independent manages to disparage the USCB Economic Forecast (“opulent”) event as smelling of money (double bad) versus the “aspirational vibe” (double-plus good) of the (“bare-raftered space”) CEC meeting.
Is the Indy aware that the building the CEC leases is owned by a large nonprofit family foundation whose commercial real estate holdings, in downtown Santa Barbara and elsewhere, are probably in excess of $100 million. Because of California tax law favoring nonprofits those properties pay virtually zero Property Tax. The CEC itself is well endowed by donations, and it is likely true that the comparable net worths of both audiences was similar. I guess some money smells better, more “aspirational,” than other money does.
Over at Noozhawk, the Indy’s competitor couldn’t even bring itself to mention Rick Caruso’s comments on opening State Street.
The Santa Barbara community is ill served by this Pravda-like coverage. People walking out of the Granada were talking about Caruso’s suggestion that, for downtown to thrive, State Street needed to be re-opened. His reluctance — he even said, “I’ll probably get in trouble” — to directly address the issue, and the reluctance of others, speaks to the ridiculous groupthink that our local media only seems to enforce.
Caruso’s most important comments on State Street were covered by no one. He simply stated an obvious truth — the built scale of State Street does not lend itself to a “pedestrian mall.” At a width of 80-plus feet there is no way to fill the entire space in a way that enhances commerce and the visitor experience.
Funny, someone made the same observation over three years ago in the Indy’s opinion pages. https://www.independent.com/2021/02/18/the-future-of-state-street/
Finally, can someone please explain to Nick Welsh how tiresome his use of the “ad hominem fallacy” is becoming. His attack on UCSB’s Peter Rupert https://www.independent.com/2024/05/16/is-there-a-somewhere-over-the-rainbow-for-santa-barbara/ was out of line. The Poodle’s fact-free and citation-free debunking of Rupert’s presentation was just silly. The waste of a pretty good writer.
Downtown Santa Barbara is dying. It would help if our local media took off their self-imposed blinders.