Take the Promenade
Those of us who were fortunate to live in Santa Barbara during the 1980s and 1990s fondly remember times spent dining downtown, relaxing with friends, then taking an evening stroll, as a group, down State Street. We would do the crawl: Joe’s, O’Malley’s, Joseppi’s, Zelo, John’s At The Beach, The Ofice and lots of other spots.
To be sure, there were sketchy areas here and there. We made sure to stick together, but without fear, only having fun, relaxing, enjoying the freedom of youth.
Oh, how we took those days for granted. This was our town. This was State Street. The Funk Zone was then nonexistent. We were too young to know that without vigilance, strong civic leadership, and a respect for the storied history of Santa Barbara, our beautiful State Street, like democracy itself, might one day no longer exist.
And lo and behold: the State Street we knew is indeed gone. In its place are empty storefronts, shabby “parklets,” vagrancy, filth, and, yes, even death, in darkened shop doorways.
To be sure, the crowds may be there, in daylight hours, especially during tourism season. But do big plastic barriers, ugly planters, lots of pedestrians in the middle of the street, boarded-up shops, freely zooming bikes, and wooden pallets upon which tables and chairs are shakily mounted reflect the State Street we would once proudly share with out-of-town guests?
Alas, they do not.
Our City Council, in the meantime, has opted to do … nothing. Absolutely nothing. They’ve hit the pause button, stepped back, shrugged, and collectively said, “Meh, hit us up in three years. Maybe we’ll think of something by then.”
To our fellow citizens who describe the State Street “promenade” as “vibrant,” “vital,” “energetic,” “magical,” and “delightful”: I challenge you to conduct an experiment.
Starting out no earlier than 9 p.m., take a walk down all of the closed blocks of the so-named “promenade”.
Parents: make sure to bring your small kids with you.
Record all of the details of your journey either mentally, in writing, or, even better, on video.
Most importantly, make a note of all of the adjectives that describe your evening walk.
Should the descriptors “vibrant,” “vital,” “energetic,” “magical,” and “delightful” not spring to mind, make a note of that, too.
Because back in the day, on a beautiful evening, those words would exactly describe the way State Street made us feel, at 9 p.m. and on into the night.
Bring back State Street, City Council.
Let us all feel those emotions again, not just in the middle of the day, not only at the height of tourist season, but all day, and every day, before it’s too late.