Strong Towns SB Makes Case for Permanent Closure of State Street to Cars | Local News

Members of the community organization Strong Towns Santa Barbara say closing State Street in Santa Barbara to vehicles could boost the economy, make the community safer and attract residential development.

“In the short term, we want it to remain car-free,” Sullivan Israel, executive director of Strong Towns SB, said at a public event hosted by the group Tuesday evening. “In the long term, it has to be transit-friendly, a neighborhood center, not just a shopping district.”

The event was attended by about 50 people and featured three speakers: Israel, who talked about how to make streets bike-friendly; Peter Smith, who talked about how closing streets to vehicles helps boost business and the economy; and architect Thomas Sekula.

The speeches were followed by a panel discussion featuring three speakers: environmental activist Dennis Allen and MOVE Executive Director Heather Deutsch.

In fact, they explained that a vehicle-free State Street benefits everyone. Israel, who grew up in Santa Barbara, showed videos and photos of places around the world where major streets are closed to vehicles and people use those spaces for bikes, public transportation and walking.

He showed videos of Jerusalem and how public transportation flows in the middle, and people walk on sidewalks and paseos around it. No matter the design of a place or square, he said, people tend to stick to its edges.

“Some evolutionary biologists say it’s because in our brains we’re still rats and lizards and we don’t want to go out into the open,” he said.

He said everyone learns how to use the space and understands where they need to be.

“Cyclists on State Street, it’s not just, ‘Oh, this is safe,’” Israel said. “It’s not just that people want to ride their bikes here. It’s also that these people are good for the economy. They park their bikes right in front of stores, much closer than you can drive. They come in and buy stuff.”

Smith said there are fewer empty storefronts now than there were before the COVID-19 pandemic, when the street was still open to vehicles. Using data from Hayes Commercial Group, he said the blocks of State Street with the most vacancies are the 400 and 1300 blocks, which allow vehicles.

“This local vacancy rate is not a coincidence, it’s not a surprise, and it’s not just a coincidence,” Smith said. “It’s a predictable economic response to the removal of cars.”

He stated that urban spaces that are easy to walk and safe for pedestrians promote economic growth.

“Instead of people whizzing around in their cars, we have people walking around stores, looking in store windows and seeing restaurants they’ve never tried,” Smith said.

He added that more vehicles on the street means more smell, noise and danger.

Smith said businesses also want State Street closed. In a survey of more than 40 businesses on State Street in downtown Strong Towns SB, he found that 75 percent don’t want vehicles back on State Street.

Tuesday’s event comes as Santa Barbara ponders what to do with State Street.

The city has closed nine blocks during the COVID-19 pandemic. A State Street Master Plan Committee has been formed to develop a long-term plan for the street. Recommendations will go to the City Council later this year.

The closure has sparked a battle between people who want vehicles back on State Street and those who want them permanently removed from the downtown area. The most vocal advocate for reopening the street, from the 500 to 1,200 blocks, is Santa Barbara Mayor Randy Rowse.

The street is now open to bikes and pedestrians and is essentially a thoroughfare for people on bikes, including electric bikes. Most pedestrians have returned to walking on the sidewalks.

Although retail suffered during the shutdown, it has recently rebounded, with vacant storefronts at 12.4%, according to Hayes. That’s down 12.4% from a year ago.

Activists with Strong Towns SB, a branch of the national organization, want Santa Barbara to heed the decision to close the streets and accept a future in the city center without vehicles.

Sekula spoke of creating a “15-minute city,” a place where all the necessary services are within walking distance. The best opportunity to create such a place is where the Paseo Nuevo shopping center is located, he said. He showed photos of Pienza, Italy, “which I think is a great example of a walkable city.”

He added that the buildings have various purposes and can be reached on foot.

“Thanks to successful planning, cars are not needed and you will see very few of them in the city,” Sekula said. “The city works that way. There is an urban moment on every corner.”

The event was held downtown at the Community Environmental Council, 1219 State St. Strong Towns SB plans to host more community events on similar issues.