Capital Roundup

As part of its mid-year budget review, Santa Barbara city staff
announced some $67 million worth of capital improvements to be
completed this year, with another $157 million currently in the
design process, to be funded over several years. The most
conspicuous projects underway are the five-level Granada
Garage — expected to open the first week of March — and the already
operative covered Sheffield Reservoirs, intended to improve water
quality; the neighborhood-appeasing landscaping around them will be
completed by spring. Less evident improvements include the rubber
sidewalks, permeable concrete, and other alternate construction
materials that have been installed at the base of 19 big-rooted
ficus trees on upper State and Modoc, preserving both trees and
sidewalk. The new, finer-bubble diffusers at the El Estero
Wastewater Treatment Plant, which aerate and transform incoming
waste before it’s shipped to Kern County’s agricultural field, are
being re-evaluated for even greater efficiency. And the diversion
and cleansing of urban runoff at two storm drains — one on Haley
Street and one near the intersection of Hope and State — promise
healthier creeks and oceans.

Projects slated to begin this calendar year include rendering
three more storm drains ocean-friendly; constructing offices and
cost-controlled apartments for downtown workers on the south side
of the Granada Garage, bike lanes through the Mission Street
interchange, and a public restroom on the 900 block of State
Street; widening and rehabilitating Mission Creek between Canon
Perdido and Cabrillo streets; replacing the last of the slippery
clay-tile sidewalks with brick pavers along the 400 and 500 blocks
of State Street; and beautifying Milpas Street with wrought-iron
railings, new bus stops, tree plantings, and more pedestrian
lighting.