Citizen Group Seeks Lower Mission Canyon Traffic Improvements

Better get on board the automobile and suburban sprawl advocate types historian Mary Louise Days and other cohort superficial historical preservationists Sheila Lodge, Judy Arias, and KdF types. The neophobic can kill lofty dreams of change that can actually improve circulation, peace and comfort and safety of a neighborhood. Funding could be another issue, because we don't pay taxes for maintenance let alone for major changes or upgrades.

But in case no one has told the proponents of this effort the corkage starts in your garage or where ever it is you protect your precious sparkling babies at night. And what will you do about the other Mission Canyon corkage, that giant sea of auto-centric planning and under-represented district West of State Street. You know, where all the under-represented white trash, Mexicans and negroes reside.

And someone needs to take for a walk Randy Rowse and his primarily "great group" of anglo Mesa/Cliff drive gang members over to de la Vina @ Figueroa and also at Canon Perdido where his obstructionist electorate have successfully stalled efforts for that lesser represented neighborhood.

I sincerely do wish the proponents the best in this effort. It is an added benefit that you will probably have the "right" people on your side.

Don would have the tourists that come from hundreds of miles away ride their bicycles to visit the mission. Since these are mostly tourists that come here, how can one plan any other way than "auto-centric"? One should give some thought on the circumstances for the people that use the area when doing the planning for it, rather than just blindly promoting your own agenda without regard for the circumstances of the situation.

Botony
I usually don't agree with your views, but arguing with Don is crazy since its kind of like downtown State st, you have to just not make eye contact or talk to them.
You see Don doesn't have to make rational sense anymore, just knee jerk unhappiness and verbal vomit

Sorry you two but this isn't about me. This is about ignorant council members, their political advocates and incurious Self-serving constituencies.

Council members need to hit the ground running forward. Randy Rowse isn't just shuffling he's lagging way behind, dragging our community down by years of self-interest on the parking garage promoting Downtown Parking Committee.

Certain constituencies, historians and preservationists, their distracting issues and self importance have a place but they have commandeered our processes. They are in conflict with great land-use and transportation planning. In their distractions they have actually damaged many of Santa Barbaras original residential districts while promoting their own autocratic causes.

It may be preferable to have the more thoughtful ordinary Prius driving clan that is just casually overusing our original neighborhood infrastructure. But the car and motorcycle owner and collector clubs are especially detrimental to our environment, our neighborhoods. Rowse ran a campaign on "safety and cleanliness." I think that was code for the rather phobic voting blocks. It is evident once you pay attention for a long period of time.

The spot is one of the main locations of SB history, beauty and tourism, as well as a traffic conduit for residential areas in Mission Canyon and the Riviera. There's a lot going on now, and there's been a lot going on there for hundreds of years. Tourists driving from downtown to the Mission and parking in its giant parking lot are not the problem. It's the convergence of all those old roads beyond the Mission (Mission Canyon, Mission Ridge and APS) right next to Mission Creek, with its historic bridge, Mission ruins, the olive grove, the cemetery filled with Chumash and others, the old reservoir right on the corner--which is still in use--and beyond that the Natural History Museum and Rocky Nook and Rockwood... there's a ton going on, and all of it worth preserving, including the auto traffic flow. I think the roads are actually well done, though signage wants to be improved. But the thing that really doesn't work well is the pedestrian traffic, which can be very heavy, and involves running across the street at various points. It is really hard to walk from the Museum to the Mission, yet this is something residents and tourists often do. I've seen some of what the Museum has proposed for their part of the long-range plan, and I like it. I just hope people realize that, as it is all over Europe and even in the Eastern US where people are used to living among the remnants of the pre-auto era, that is always going to be an area where people just have to deal with it. It's not that bad and it's very pretty.

I live in the area. One of the biggest problems is that people going up Mission Cyn. towards Foothill tailgate and go way too fast. Slow DOWN.

The people who live in the area should have first consideration. Our original street infrastructure of arterial and collector roads, carriers of remote local suburban streets, are burdened with too much traffic that is very often too fast. Speed limits are pushed high by a corporate inspired bureaucratic transportation bible and the fact the policing agencies have diminished patrols even as traffic increases.

The antiquated mold is difficult to break because of the State of California transportation bible. But better designs are possible. Our local environmental review processes can make changes that will actually maintain and improve this "pretty" corridor while even improving the visuals. But don't be blinded by this beauty thing. Functionality is also important and there are problems.

Again the first problem is the superficial constituency that hijacked the Santa Barbaras General Plan Update and installed really stalwart council members by electing Dale Francisco, Randy Rowse, and Hollywood Hotchkiss. They do not have any ideas. They don't entertain change unless it is for their friends. And if you have a real problem, like services, transportation and housing resulting in unsafe, un-neighborly behaviors as the result of the petty and "pretty" preservationists paradigm, you will have difficulties getting representation and solutions installed.

Well said, Nitz.

I live in the area and personally have no problems. Most issues I see are the occasional slow-boat/gawking/lost tourist, cars rolling through stop signs on upper Laguna and Garden, and locals speeding home past the APS intersection up Mission Cyn at the end of the day.

I agree with DonMcDermott about DLV. Maybe we can get some progress there now that Self is gone.

Obviously perspectives spoken from behind the windshield or helmet headed motorbike. Everything is fine until a gawker "gawking", or "locals speeding" or "rolling through stop sign" almost hits precious pieces of metal, rubber and plastic.

That is the problem here and just about everywhere except for a seclusive private lane or suburban cul de sac. So now go for a walk or bicycle ride. Change is tricky but it can be done to improve the area for all. Just keep try to keep CarTans out of the picture. Better to look toward the living and the future with well devised community plans to improve mobility for non-motorized transportation.

You can actually hike and bike from downtown and many parts of the city all the way to the Botanic Gardens. Ride a bike to Rattlesnake. It would be nice to improve conditions through the busy Mission area because it's getting busier even without all this high-density growth stuff. Sometimes gawkers arrive in boatloads. Better to balance the community with some alternatives.