••• The long-discussed Highway 101 pedestrian bridge linking the Eastside and East Beach went before the city council. “The bridge would begin at the intersection of Pitos and Canada streets, rise over Highway 101 and connect at Dwight Murphy Field.” —Noozhawk
••• The spectacular Pepper Hill house built by Bruce Heavin and Lynda Weinman finally got published. (Elle Decor doesn’t strike me as the likeliest outlet for it, but I may have outdated notions about what, if anything, the shelter brands mean anymore.) There are only 15 photos, so we’ll have to wait for the book….
••• Santa Barbara’s new city administrator is Kelly McAdoo: “Since 2016, Ms. McAdoo has served as the City Manager and Chief Executive Officer for the City of Hayward, overseeing a team of over 900 employees.” —from a press release on Edhat
••• Noozhawk recapped some of the issues people have with county supervisor Das Williams, who is running for reelection. This one can’t be mentioned enough: “His advocacy for the county’s cannabis ordinance, and willingness to accept $62,500 from the cannabis industry while the county was crafting the law, has earned him heavy opposition from people who say the Carpinteria Valley reeks of marijuana odor. The actual ordinance has been a financial letdown, generating tax revenues at the low end of county projections.” Wait, are there people who think Carp doesn’t reek?
••• “Santa Barbara Unified Opens Two Schools’ Fields for After-Hours Public Use […] Harding’s Outdoor Play Areas Accessible After School, La Cumbre Junior High Open on Saturdays. […] ‘The only time you get true interagency cooperation is kind of like seeing Bigfoot,’ [mayor Randy] Rowse joked. ‘You better take a picture ’cause you’re not sure it really happened.'” Isn’t that kind of his job? —Independent
••• “Santa Barbara’s Measure A on Construction Contracts is Vague—What Does a Yes Vote Mean?” —Noozhawk
••• Carpinteria “Planning Commission approves Carpinteria Avenue mixed-use development […] Plan for 24-unit commercial and residential project near Ninth Street moves forward.” It’s at 4745 Carpinteria Avenue. —Coastal View News
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There is not enough information to assess the bike and pedestrian crossing yet. A question I have is as it is mentioned to pass over the railroad tracks, would be to provide reasonable security for trains from silly people tossing things at the locomotives or rail cars and the longer term situation that sea level rise has been elsewhere documented as a threat for this area, one longer term solution would be a trestle to raise the rails above threat. I doubt this concept will be high enough, which will limit its lifespan. I am not declaring the current right of way would be underwater constantly, but a number of projects for this coastal area are not doing smart planning. 101 Garden has its underground parking garage entry on the flood plane, raising it a bit could with avoid that error. What I ask for basically is smart long range planning.
The pedestrian crossings at Junipero, Anapamu, and Ortega seem to be fine. Do those have the problems you’re referring to?
My question on the pedestrian bridge is, “Why is it so ugly?” All that money and that’s the best an architect can do?
Carpinteria does not reek of anything but ill will toward a legitimate and successful industry. The group of people who don’t like the odor is very small but very vocal. Many of us actually enjoy what little aroma remains because it represents victory over decades of reefer madness mentality and the evil, counterproductive war on drugs. CARP Growers have been excellent stewards in trying to appease a small group of complainers who, despite their claims, are trying to go back to the bad old days of the drug war. Cannabis isn’t going anywhere and the city would do well to capitalize on it instead of joining in the demonizing. If you live in Gilroy, you’re going to smell garlic, and those farmers aren’t forced to spend millions of dollars in odor abatement systems, thereby making their product that much more profitable. In this instance, it’s long past time to stop fighting the inevitable.
I completely support the legitimacy of cannabis as a crop. But there are times when I drive on Foothill and the odor is so noxious that it makes me feel physically ill. Denying that people have this experience is arguing in bad faith. Understand and respect that there are legitimate concerns, not unique to cannabis. The same can be said about slaughterhouses or chemical factories. It is further undeniable that these odors can (and do) suppress property value.
With these things in mind, let’s recognize that there must be a solution that keeps the cannabis crop in place and does not do outsized harm to the community, and find it together.
Local property values have continued to rise without abatement as the cannabis industry set up shop and started growing. That simply is not an argument.
Rising property values do not prove that a negative contributory factor does not exist. If you cannot understand the idea of magnitude behind vectors I’m wasting my time trying to reason with you.
As a subcontractor for the Heavin/Weinman creation, I felt so fortunate to see the project in process. It’s otherworldly.