Favorite Park for Kids?
By an edhat reader
Ok parents, I'm looking for your favorite parks on the South Coast to take little kids.
Which parks do you like most, and why? Looking to keep our little ones entertained by testing out all the parks. Thanks in advance.
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Sep 22, 2022 02:16 PMShoreline park, it's the one least inundated with homeless people. Unfortunately, we have to think of our kids safety around those who are addicted and homeless.
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Sep 22, 2022 04:59 PMWhat exactly do you think is going to happen if you bring your child to the same park a homeless person is at? The fearmongering is so strong with some folks on here...homeless people are just people... You and your child(ren) are in much, much more danger on your drive to the park.
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Sep 22, 2022 06:22 PMOuch, 0 for 4 EDWARD! Kids and other people, even homeless, can exist peacefully in one park :) it's tiresome seeing the constant vilification of homeless folks on here. There's been what, one needle stick scare in a decade at a local park? And zero homeless attacks on children? It's just plain fearmongering. No need to lash out over the internet. Really, what do you think is going to happen if you bring your kid to a park with a homeless person/people in it? I really am curious
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Sep 23, 2022 08:08 AMUnless you count discarded suringes and human feces.
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Sep 23, 2022 08:10 AM"Assume": makes a "ass" out of "u" insults "me".
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Sep 23, 2022 11:05 AM"take your kids to the parks that have human shit smeared on the slides and heroin needles on the ground," Randy Rowse's campaign promise was to make the parks safe.
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Sep 23, 2022 11:06 AMGuys stop being mean to Edward. As a nude model from Slovenia once said, we need to be best and avoid cyberbullying. Internet comments can hurt too. His truck is his personality and safe space, we need to respect that. This aggression will not stand, man.
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Sep 23, 2022 11:14 AMYes you are
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Sep 22, 2022 02:55 PMWe don’t our kids to the parks in the downtown/beach area because there’s too many crackheads that hang out in those areas, just today I was taking my break near the kids park across from the zoo, and saw a bum with his pants down scratching his balls and his whole ass showing and a cops drove past him, looked and did nothing, that’s another problem, when you drive in the industrial area you see all the crack heads smoking meth, shooting up heroin and half dead on fentanyl, and Santa Barbara PD does absolutely nothing about it, I’d say just be very careful with your kids at all parks because you never know if one of these low life piece of shit bums will leave something behind, and god forbid a child picks something up, remember the park on Haley street a kid got poked by a dirty heroin needle, I hope he’s ok now
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Sep 22, 2022 08:59 PMRandy Rowse was supposed to make the parks safe. What happened?
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Sep 26, 2022 05:31 PMMake that thrice.
We don’t our kids to the parks in the downtown/beach area because there’s too many crackheads that hang out in those areas, just today I was taking my break near the kids park across from the zoo, and saw a bum with his pants down scratching his balls and his whole ass showing and a cops drove past him, looked and did nothing, that’s another problem, when you drive in the industrial area you see all the crack heads smoking meth, shooting up heroin and half dead on fentanyl, and Santa Barbara PD does absolutely nothing about it, I’d say just be very careful with your kids at all parks because you never know if one of these low life piece of shit bums will leave something behind, and god forbid a child picks something up, remember the park on Haley street a kid got poked by a dirty heroin needle, I hope he’s ok now
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Sep 22, 2022 03:13 PMHow about Kids' World.
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Sep 22, 2022 04:29 PMIt's been awhile......We loved to take our kids to Hidden Valley Park. They loved to ride their trikes/bikes around the circle.
https://santabarbaraparks.com/parks/hidden-valley-park/
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Sep 22, 2022 05:58 PMHaving had a dog (RIP), I had the opportunity to see parks from the canine perspective, that is as toilets. Now that I have a young grandchild who enjoys parks and playgrounds, I assume everything in a public area is soaked in dog urine. Every vertical surface, post, pole and tree trunk is a target for the males and the females go in the middle of the grassy areas and you can't tell what's there until you sit down.
Dogs are just being dogs and it's the owners who are just as much at fault as the addicts for unsafe and unsanitary playgrounds. Get a leash, jerks!
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Sep 22, 2022 06:55 PMSteven's Park in the San Roque neighborhood. Tucker's Grove in Goleta.
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Sep 22, 2022 07:17 PMHilda Ray Park
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Sep 22, 2022 07:31 PMWillowglen
Or have GT take your kids to Plaza de Vera Cruz Park. The City of SB's first park and currently in a three way tie with Ortega, Pershing Parks for the following best in show amenities:
Best Place to see an addict drop a deuce.
Best Place to see an addict shoot up.
Best Place to show your kids how Narcan works
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Sep 23, 2022 11:08 AMEdhat You voted for Rowse - he was supposed to make the parks safe. That was a primary campaign promise. Rowse is too busy at ribbon cuttings and martini parties to care about your kids safety. Please stop farming me out as a babysitter and give Randy a call.
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Sep 23, 2022 11:08 AMEdney I mean
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Sep 23, 2022 03:38 PMEdney: Go to Plaza de Vera Cruz and spend like 30 minutes there. It's a good park and I doubt you even go there. I do pretty regularly with my dog or a book and it's relaxing. You should get out of the Fox News bubble and try it sometime.
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Sep 23, 2022 04:19 PMLast time I drove past on Haley there was a guys passed out on the side walk with his pants half down. He looked like he'd nodded off while dropping one. I had no idea my drivers side window was a TV tuned into FOX.
I will say that park is a lot better than it was 10 years ago but if you can't find the addicts, you are not looking. To be fair I've seen overdoses in Upper Orpet on the Riviera, Oak Park down by all the halfway houses Alameda park near the bandstand and along Sola.
Post your phone number and I'll call you instead of 911 next time I see someone who looks overdosed so you can grab your kids and grandkids and visit
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Sep 23, 2022 04:30 PMGT.
You voted for a 20 year clowncar cavalcade of losers and then expect Rowse to fix it all in a year?
PS: You have no idea who I voted for as mayor because I live SB City Limits adjacent. I will tell you that I was happy to vote for Jimmy Carter and happy to vote for Bill Clinton.
That said, remain staggered by your intellect, thanks for the discussion- usually I have to stop by the Lyndon LaRouche table outside the post office for that level of insight
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Sep 23, 2022 06:23 PM" I had no idea my drivers side window was a TV tuned into FOX."
The TV tuned into Fox is inside your head ... it colors how you see the world.
You and your favored party created the economic conditions that resulted in the homeless people you so despise, many of whom come to California from red states. Many are veterans who lack services because the GOP prefers to cut the taxes of corporations and the rich. And there are the mentally ill who were released from mental hospitals by Gov. Reagan without providing the services that were supposed to go with that.
But for right wingers, it's all about feeling superior and blaming people for their circumstances.
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Sep 23, 2022 06:32 PM"You voted for a 20 year clowncar cavalcade of losers and then expect Rowse to fix it all in a year?"
You blame the politicians you don't favor for everything that happens on their watch and excuse the politicians you do favor for everything that happens on their watch. Why? Because you're a fundamentally dishonest person.
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Sep 23, 2022 06:27 PM"You voted for a 20 year clowncar cavalcade of losers"
I don't think GT voted for you or your RW friends.
The fact is that the public servants that you are denigrating are better people than you are in every possible way.
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Sep 23, 2022 07:56 PMGT- "Edney I mean" Super crazy that you don't know what you're talking about...
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Sep 23, 2022 10:58 PMAnd of course the color of your world within your fevered mind is the same as fairy princesses , unicorns and other delusions
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Sep 22, 2022 08:11 PMWillowglen is a nice sleeper. Zero clowns there. Only families and kids.
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Sep 23, 2022 09:36 AMExcept no bathrooms, unless that has changed in the last 13 years. ASK ME HOW I KNOW.
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Sep 23, 2022 07:09 AMLook for neighborhood parks. Hilda Rae on the mesa, Stow Grave in Goleta and there are lots of little hidden parks in neighborhoods all over Goleta. I do not know of as many in SB but these ones are more closely monitored by the neighborhood and less likely to have issues with homeless.
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Sep 23, 2022 07:40 AM“The South Coast” is a large area. Are you asking about theme parks and amusement parks, or playgrounds?
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Sep 23, 2022 03:52 PMI understood it as parks and playgrounds. And the "South Coast" is from Goleta-Carp.
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Sep 23, 2022 07:51 AMRocky Nook Park - giant boulders to climb, natural creek to explore, oak trees to meander under and yes the "required" "safe" tot lot with swings, climbing structure, slides. But nature is what the other parks don't have in the same way. Also near the Old Mission Historical Park and rose garden with lots of lawn and old historical relics to find out about. Getting from one to the other does mean crossing streets. So, just staying in Rocky Nook should give ample imaginative and other play.
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Sep 23, 2022 04:29 PMWas at rocky nook recently and there was trash everywhere and drunk homeless people there all day. It's NO longer my go to sadly.
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Sep 23, 2022 09:42 AMElings Park. Escondido is really cute. Hilda Ray is nice too. There's one is Summerland that I like too. Stow House and Stow grove park. Skofield, but not this time of year (too hot).
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Sep 23, 2022 11:14 AMGirsh Park in Goleta is great for any number of activities, sports, etc. For natural beauty and shaded areas, go with Bella Vista Open Space, Haskell's beach, Shoreline Park, to name a few.
Don't be scared off by the ridiculous claims that all the parks are smeared in feces, etc. Yes, downtown you will see homeless people, but they usually keep to them selves. Safest, cleanest parks though are in Goleta and San Roque area.
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Sep 23, 2022 08:02 PM+1
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Sep 23, 2022 08:03 PMSince ED won't take my money...
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Sep 23, 2022 08:09 PMEdhat has principles.
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Sep 23, 2022 08:12 PM8:09- Good one!
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Sep 23, 2022 11:17 AMAlways fun to take a stroll around Lake Los Carneros and feed the ducks.
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Sep 23, 2022 04:00 PMPlease don't feed the ducks.
Really.
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Sep 23, 2022 06:33 PM"and feed the ducks"
Oy. You and Babycakes. Not a good model of behavior -- don't do it.
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Sep 23, 2022 11:37 AMLet me just say what I should have said in the first place, We take our kids to our neighborhood park almost everyday, it’s on willowglen it’s a really nice park
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Sep 23, 2022 11:51 AMAlice Keck Park is wonderful for kids of all ages. They discourage feeding the ducks and turtles, but.....we bring along a few "nibbles" for the birdies/turts to munch on (do not feed them chips, popcorn, or anything with a bunch of preservatives like Pop Tarts, Fruit Loops, and so on). Someone mentioned two parks we completely avoid due to the out-of-control coyote problem: Steven's Creek Park and Tucker's Grove. Both of these parks also have had numerous sightings of mountain lions, which should make anyone (child and adult) nervous. We saw one less than a year ago sneaking up on something, but did not stick around to find out what. For those seeking parks in urban areas, the further away from the nearest place that sells booze, the fewer problem visitors you'll encounter has been my experience (here, and elsewhere).
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Sep 23, 2022 05:59 PM"They discourage feeding the ducks and turtles"
With good reason.
"but.....we bring along a few "nibbles" for the birdies/turts to munch on"
Of course you do.
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Sep 24, 2022 08:53 AMMarcelK: Feeding or not feeding the ducks at Alice Keck Park does not detract from the fact that it is probably the best place to bring your kids for an enjoyable time without some of the safety issues encountered at other parks. You are correct, feeding the ducks and turtles is completely discouraged for good reason. Some folks do not understand that it's quite unhealthy to toss out Ritz crackers, donut pieces, fried chips, beef jerky, cotton candy, etc. What the ducks/turtles refuse to eat sinks to the bottom and rots. We only provide them with organic, salt- and gluten-free items that they gobble up with joy (at least to me it seems like they are joyful). Like anything, moderation is the key, so you don't want to go there and dump out buckets filled with unhealthy or inedible nibbles. If you can afford it, you can buy Purina duck food pellets, which do not harm anything. By the way, the pellets are best served on dry soil or lawn.
So, yeah, Alice Keck Park gets my vote every time for the best place to bring kids for an outing.
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Sep 24, 2022 04:43 PMBABYCAKES, what you are doing is selfish and shouldn't be encouraged in any form. You are doing it to entertain yourself, not to benefit the wildlife. What happens if everyone starts doing this, not just you? Nothing good for the ducks, that's for sure! Please stop, or at the VERY least, don't encourage others by trumpeting your self-serving behavior.
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Sep 24, 2022 05:01 PMSacJon: I think that my comment was quite clear:
1. Alice Keck Park is, in my opinion, one the best parks to take children of all ages (babies to those who are 100-years old or more years old).
2. "... feeding the ducks and turtles is completely discouraged for good reason. Some folks do not understand that it's quite unhealthy to toss out Ritz crackers, donut pieces, fried chips, beef jerky, cotton candy, etc."
3. Read #1 and #2.
Additional points:
- I discourage anyone and everyone from feeding the ducks, birds, turtles, fish and everything else at Alice Keck Park.
- IF you are going to feed the wildlife, don't feed them garbage...go with the duck pellets.
- People do a lot of things that are not healthy or wise, but they are going to do those things irregardless of being told and knowing differently. So, they might as well know the best way to proceed with said bad behavior.
....that's basically it, so remember kids, don't feed the animals like the signs say.
You have to admit, it was and is still a good day to head to Alice Keck for a quick viz.
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Sep 23, 2022 01:27 PMNo, there are no bathrooms at Willowglen, and that’s why people aren’t camping there all day so they can have access to a bathroom. It’s too bad, but it’s the reality.
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