Provide Input on the Future of De La Guerra Plaza

At the start of this re-imagining process, one that was held when most people could not "attend" via Zoom, Friday mornings, they made sure that all the grass was dead and that the Plaza was unattractive to any but the passed-out homeless who often were there passed-out, natch.

If there is going to be a redesign, it should start fresh, without "water features" and arcades but have as an option simplicity --- and then have 3 or so options, including one with parking retained, submitted to city residents for a vote. Noticeable was that the prime landowner at the south end, the News-Press building owner, had no input into the designs offered. (She was invited but probably not as a co-equal.)

You must of stubbed a toe or two in your travels. I know the feeling. If not done right it can be a nightmare. Maybe call it 18th century repurposed cobble stone. Add a little romance to smooth the surface.

Any attempt to make this a flexible multi-functional space. as suggested - typically fails at everything while becoming one more unsavory transient and grifter magnet. Just like we already learned from the installations the fountains, benches and brick seating "sculptures" on State Street which became grifter magnets. Or the mandated gardens in front of the West Carrillo Street Ralphs market, instantly became a vagrant hangout.

Until the transient-grifters problem are solved, we simply cannot keep adding more "nice things" in this town. Past is prologue. Take the blinders off and stop repeating stupid. Crime Is now up 50% in the surrounding neighborhoods after the city's misguided and counter-productive Rose Garden Motel project went in.

No new activity in DelaGuerra Plaza is going to bring people downtown when downtown itself continues to be the current wreck that it is. Deal with the real; not the wishful thinking that has plagued this town's decision makers for far too long. Static low-maintenance landscaping at minimal costs is the only viable option right now, until State Street itself can be re-vitalized. Reworking the massive Paseo Nuevo space should be priority. Then any Dela Guerra plaza makeover can flow from that.

Best to be done right now is turning it into a large electric bike center and require all city employees and council members use only electric bikes, so they can act out in real time the mandates they want to impose on the rest of us.

100% agree. Great plan. Minus the pavers. Fine with hardscape, but no pavers! Pavers are a scourge on this land! I laugh when I see 6 million dollar houses with pavers. Home Depot Special.

What's presented IS the city staff's vision! None of them are architects or architectural historians. And it was offered to the committee for its approval or disapproval ----- and only in the details, lighting, for instance, not the overall design.

They're probably prowling this board to get ideas. Then will claim it as their own.

Zero--so the whole rest of the city is supposed to subsidize and create a play area for the few people who "live around" the public plaza???? Only those people can participate and create policy on how to spend our money? Nonsense. The survey is clearly loaded to get results that the Bren School social engineers are looking for.

um probably because going to the library has nothing to do with DLG Plaza, same with "attend to business".
read it as it is dude....and remember, the city doesn't revolve around you. the questions were pertinent to "business" around DLG plaza.

I do patronize the Public Market, Byz. I can also patronize food trucks. I don't really eat downtown otherwise, in fact. So nowhere in that part of State St. is losing my business if there is a food truck.

True. I like Rowse but one beef I have with him is his previous treatment of food trucks while on the council. Food trucks are cool.

SB Public Market is your downtown "food truck" equivalent - patronize it. Whatever goes in should not compete with downtown businesses - including a 7 day a week "Farmers Market". City needs to stop destroying downtown brick and motar retail.

Yeah they do Townie..
But have you ever seen a person describe themselves to a sketch-artist?..
They end-up looking like monsters..& that's what I do..I show people
"pictures-of-themselves"..
& they don't like who they see.
Put Stocks in the plaza, & I will go 1st ..like a leader.

Hahaha. People give you so much cr*p on this website but I think you're pretty funny.

Zero: the take away from this is that yours is one of the stores stinking to high heaven of urine. And your sniffer has malfunctioned.

Zero, I am literally on State Street daily on foot or bike and it absolutely smells like urine all the time. Some places like the parking lot stairwells always stank, but I don't remember State Street smelling until a few years ago. With all due respect, perhaps you've lost your sense of smell?

I walk down there sunday mornings and business owners are literally bleaching the streets. Nice that you got a good spot.

hey monkeyboi, i manage a shop on state street. please show me the shop owners that have to wash away urine every morning. sounds like political ramblings from a republicant. So you're saying all homeless people come from Portland? God that's just stupid. period.

yes! I'm with Sac on this....and i don't drink alcohol.

Zero: Lmao oh so manmade climate change doesn’t exist, it’s a “cycle.” I’m glad the peanut gallery’s resident scientist cleared that up for me. I was getting worried after seeing the overwhelming evidence *checks notes* everywhere, and the consensus of climate scientists.

In case you haven't noticed, we've been messing with the cycles.

worst drought in history? My god you people are just weird AF! It's a cycle, part of living here. We are in a La Nina pattern, then it will be El Nino and it will be wet. IT's a cycle that has been going on for hundreds if not thousands of years. It's not a drought when it's part of a repeating cycle.

Dayton was a disaster. Anything he touched should be withdrawn and revised by people without agendas.

Rob Dayton, former transportation chief, and other staff supported it strenuously. No one claimed actual parentage, however. (Santa Barbara is staff-run, with councilmembers and commissioners assigned to the yes, sir, roles.)

Who is behind this poll? Who decided what questions to ask? As anyone who's done polls knows, the designer of the poll structures the questions and, unless there's careful scrutiny, is responsible for the lean and the answers received.

Exactly. Making the DLG plaza a focal point for toddlers is a really weird choice. I hate it.

That would be very cool. European style, except the produce would actually be local. In Europe it's all from the fringes of Spain or Africa.

well babycakes and i never agree...until now. this is the absolute best idea i have heard!!!!