The parklet at Mizza, an Italian restaurant, recently received a fresh coat of paint, as seen Wednesday on State Street in downtown Santa Barbara.
Some downtown Santa Barbara restaurants have been busy painting their outdoor dining parklets and making other improvements to improve their appearance in order to meet Wednesday’s deadline for implementing the city’s new design requirements.
The design requirements are the latest – and last — set of major requirements for the parklets. The others deal with stormwater runoff and compliance with accessibility requirements set by the Americans with Disabilities Act.
“The major changes to State Street facilities will include painting to match the approved color palette (dark grays, browns, and black); removal of lighting from trees and over sidewalks; removal of visible advertising, signs, logos, etc.; and removal of turf grass,” Sarah Clark, the city’s downtown plaza parking manager, told the News-Press.
Some of the restaurants are doing their best to comply. A newly formed group called Friends of State Street recently pitched in, sending volunteers to paint more than a dozen of the parklets.
Ms. Clark was all for the idea. “We’re glad to see businesses working together to improve the appearance of the Promenade,” she said.
Regarding ADA-required accessibility, the last time Ms. Clark reported to the council on the matter, all parklets on the 500-1200 blocks were compliant, she said.
“Since then, one new one has appeared, and one business made major changes to their facility,” she said. “Both are noncompliant and are still at the initial inspection phase of the enforcement process. When you expand to the 400 and 1300 blocks, there are four non-compliant facilities.”
“We are in the process of inspecting all off-State parklets for compliance with accessibility requirements.”
As for the parklets meeting the city’s stormwater runoff requirements, staff has conducted yet another round of inspections, finding that none of the six parklets that had remained noncompliant the last time had made the necessary adjustments, Ms. Clark said.
“We are in the process of issuing second administrative citations,” she said. Administrative citations carry a $100 fine.
“The second admin citations will specify a final deadline for corrections,” Ms. Clark said. The latest deadline for compliance, she said, “will depend on when the citations are issued, but likely the week of the 23rd (of February).”
Currently, there are approximately 46 parklets downtown from the 400-1300 blocks, Ms. Clark said. “There are two that are only set up sporadically.”
When the outdoor parklets were first allowed, they were considered vital in helping restaurants on lower State Street survive during the COVID-19 pandemic when indoor dining was prohibited.
But along the way, the outdoor dining facilities have drawn more and more flack from critics. Some were upset that they blocked people from seeing into the front windows of their retail neighbors and/or had expanded beyond the restaurant’s exterior.
Others said it was unfair that the restaurants could provide more room for diners without also being compelled to increase the number of restrooms to accommodate them.
Still others said the parklets interfere with people being able to appreciate the downtown’s famed architecture, which has drawn many thousands of visitors to Santa Barbara eager to see “America’s Riviera.”
And one blamed food scraps dropped by parklet diners for attracting increased numbers of rats to the downtown area.
Some went beyond criticizing these unintended ramifications to harping on the appearance and construction of the parklets themselves. Some referred to them simply as “wooden boxes.” One said they looked “as if a whirlwind had blown through a lumberyard and left pieces of wood along State Street.”
Even Mayor Randy Rowse has called them “strange looking” and voiced doubt whether “slapping a coat of paint” on them will make much difference.
And some worry that the city will be drawn into yet another lengthy round of inspections and citations when it comes to enforcing the city’s design requirements, just like it has with the ADA and stormwater requirements, which had Dec. 1 deadlines for compliance. In both cases, it’s taken several efforts by staffers just to bring the numbers of defiant parklets down to a handful.
“People don’t do what we’re asking them to do,” Councilmember Mike Jordan said at a recent council meeting. “It’s like taking them to court.”
That’s one of the reasons why, during the council debate over how much to charge restaurateurs with parklets for the privilege of expanding outside, he said he liked the idea of making them sign a lease agreement.
“If you’re not complying with a license agreement that says you will have ADA, you will have stormwater, you will adhere to the design requirements in your agreement, you will agree to be done,” he said.
Assistant City Attorney Dan Hentschke, however, responded the city has the ability right now to enforce city requirements “and we are using it.
“We give them two quick notices and if the corrections are not made, the order of removal can be issued the next day. And if not, we can go out and remove it (at the business owner’s expense). Their ability to operate (the parklet) will be suspended.’’
“We’ve done it a couple of times,” he said.
Added Ms. Clark, “This has been a challenging but important process, and we appreciate the cooperation of our local businesses.”
email: nhartsteinnewspress@gmail.com
