••• “The City of Santa Barbara is looking to charge people to park downtown on a ‘pay-by-plate’ basis, using a mobile payment app, website or self-serve kiosk, to save the downtown parking budget from financial collapse.” (The Noozhawk article never defines “pay-by-plate”; the phrase appears to mean paid street parking.) The city council “plans to discuss the matter in more detail next Tuesday, before taking a final vote on the budget in June. In addition to the ‘pay-by-plate’ fees, the city wants to drop the free time to park in city garages from 75 minutes to 60 minutes, and charge $2 for every hour after that. City surface parking lots would see only 15 minutes free, and a $1.50 charge for every 30 minutes after that. […] The streets proposed for parking meters are roughly Chapala, De la Vina, Anacapa and Santa Barbara streets, from Gutierrez Street to Arrellaga Street.” If the city can really make paid street parking easy and quick, I can deal with it, but why bother with the 15 free minutes in lots? Good luck getting anything done in that amount of time. UPDATE 4/28: “Pay by Plate means you enter your vehicle license plate number to pay for parking,” explains David. “If you leave the spot before the time expires, there is no remaining ‘free’ time for the next person occupying the spot. The parking payment is associated with your vehicle, not a specific spot. Apps on your phone typically are used to manage your vehicles and payments.”
••• The city’s pilot program to crack down on illegal vacation rentals has been a success. From the Independent: “Since launching in August 2023, the enforcement program has handled 151 cases, and collected more than a half a million dollars [….] In total, there are 57 cases still in progress, while 45 were brought into compliance voluntarily, 18 were determined to be unfounded, and six were found to be outside city limits. Twenty-five cases are currently going through the court system. So far, the city has collected $269,272 from properties in the coastal zone and $233,607 for properties in the inland area.” And the program has spent “only $99,083 out of the $1.175 million budget.” And from Noozhawk: the city council approved an extension of the program.
••• “At an agriculture site along Hollister Avenue and Highway 217 east of Old Town Goleta,” developers hope “to build 1,771 new housing units on their property, with 444 of those designated for below market-rate housing. As it is proposed, The Orchard project would include single-family homes, apartments, studios and live-work units. In addition to the housing, the developers are proposing a child care center, a neighborhood market and several public parks and trails.” —Noozhawk
••• An Edhat reader says two more of the fantastic stone pines on E. Anapamu Street are being removed by the city, and “a city worker said something about nine trees total,” which may or may not include the two that fell in recent months.
••• “A major deal has been announced in efforts to create a new marine sanctuary off the Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo County coastlines. The Northern Chumash Tribal Council and the Morro Bay Offshore Wind leaseholders have jointly endorsed a plan to allow the creation of the Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary, while also allowing wind development.” —KCLU
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NO WIND FARM! Save Port San Luis from blowing up into Port Hueneme!
Thank you Christine. What you say is entirely true…if allowed to proceed, the turbine wind farms will be one of the most destructive developments along our coastlines (inland as well) – we will have ever witnessed in our lifetime.
Nina
I understand the need to remove the stone pines, but I’m heartbroken about it. We’re losing more and more of our big statement trees around town each year and nothing striking is being planted in its place. The large, varied trees have always been part of what makes Santa Barbara feel so special, and established.
Big statement trees are wonderful – when they have enough room around them so that when they mature they don’t cause huge problems. I fully get the sentiment, but perhaps a more appropriate tree should be chosen with an eye towards the future.
Downtown Santa Barbara has way less visitors because of the state of State Street. So make it more difficult and more expensive to park? Budget issues? Take the loss, make it welcoming and easy for residents and tourists to park. They’ll spend more money and the city will get more tax revenue.
Pay by Plate means you enter your vehicle license plate number to pay for parking. If you leave the spot before the time expires, there is no remaining “free” time for the next person occupying the spot. The parking payment is associated with your vehicle, not a specific spot. Apps on your phone typically are used to manage your vehicles and payments.
I’ve used such parking systems in other towns, and they can be quite convenient. You download the app and register your license plate and payment method online, and when you park, it automatically detects where you’re parked via GPS, or you can manually enter the parking spot number. You choose a time, say 1 hour, and you’re on your way. The accompanying app will remind you when your time is almost up and allow you to add more time if needed, all without returning to your car to put in more coins in a meter. Other than the cost, it’s pretty painless.
Sounds horrible. Why discourage people from parking and having a nice walk around town. I think the businesses would like more people. Talk a walk. Do some shopping. Have some lunch, etc…and not worried about how much time is left on a meter. Keep SB the small, quaint town that it was. Don’t turn it into LA.
Part of Santa Barbara’s charm is the free street parking. Even if the City feels it’s necessary, how will they even enforce it as illegal parking seems hardly enforced now.
My brothers and sisters grew up at Seacliff Beach (between Ventura and Santa Barbara). We learned how delicate our beautiful ocean and her shorelines are, and how quickly the balance of nature can be destroyed (as what we witnessed during the massive oil spill years ago). California residents must understand the dangers we are facing if coastal (and inland) turbine wind farms are developed, as they are now planned.
The wind industry says it isn’t killing whales, but it is. New boat traffic is colliding with whales. And high-decibel sonar is separating whale mothers from their calves, sending them into harm’s way. There is also documented concern as to sonar interference related to military national defense functioning within our coastal waters. The installation, ongoing maintenance, and eventual need for replacing obsolete wind turbines (polluting the earth’s landfills) – will all contribute to an environmental disaster. How does establishing a marine sanctuary that destroys marine life make any sense whatsoever? The East Coast has suffered the loss of many whales and dolphins due to coastal wind turbine farms (not to mention the thousands of sea birds destroyed) – there is a movement to stop these developers in those affected areas. The Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (a renewable energy fund that is half- owner of the Martha’s Vineyard’s project) is proposing that project’s turbines will rise 837 feet, almost three times the Statue of Liberty.
The State of California – lead by Governor Newsom is forging ahead with the federal government whereby he has signed a declaration to ACCELERATE the approval and installation of wind turbine farms along our coastlines.
Follow the money…it will always lead us to how and why these horrific collaborations with greedy wind farm developers are gaining momentous power. For a better understanding of the facts underlying turbine wind farms (coastal and inland as well) – be sure to watch Michael Shellenberger’s dynamic documentary – Thrown to the Wind:
https://youtu.be/km78wMHt9d8?si=Je6OXyeu21NIjC8R.
Also, please watch this interview with a representative from one of the east coast fishermen’s association – they see and know first hand how destructive the marine wind turbine farms are to not only the environment, but to the thousands of fisherman whose livelihood and families are affected.
https://video.foxbusiness.com/v/6349684304112
I often recall from reading what Chief Seattle said, “The Earth is our Mother – whatever befalls the earth, befalls the children of the earth.”
Nina Meyer
It is wonderful that the City is actually doing a job within their budget, collecting for the illegal vacation rentals. Let us hope that they can continue that low cost trend collecting those still outstanding and put the remainder of that HUGE budget to good use somewhere else.