to the editor: The aerial view of the Old Santa Barbara Mission that accompanies the article about the proposed eight-story housing project at 505 East Los Olivos St. is the perfect illustration of why this project is a terrible idea (“State lawmakers targeted a Santa Barbara development. Then came the consequences.” December 2).
During the Jesusita Fire of 2009, the entire mountain landscape behind the mission went up in flames. Eighty homes and numerous outbuildings were destroyed. People from as far away as Montecito were forced to evacuate along Foothill Road and Mission Canyon Road, which begins at East Los Olivos Street, essentially where the project is proposed. People were also running along Mountain Drive and Alameda Padre Serra. Both begin in front of the proposed project site.
The mission was seriously threatened by this fire and was saved because the erratic 40 to 60 mph winds changed at the last moment.
At meetings and workshops I attended at the time, traffic engineers testified during the 2015 “Mission Canyon Multimodal Improvement Plan” proposal that East Los Olivos Street and Mission Canyon Road cannot be widened. The reason is that this would create a choke point where East Los Olivos Street curves around the mission and becomes a two-lane city street. It is best to keep traffic flowing at a constant pace.
Now, let's imagine at least 250 additional residents of the proposed eight-story project trying to evacuate at the intersection of East Los Olivos Street and Alameda Padre Serra.
Because Los Angeles recently experienced devastating fires in Pasadena and Altadena with conditions similar to those in Santa Barbara, it's easy to imagine how a tragedy could unfold here near the mission. The main theme of the article was the horrendous aesthetic nightmare of a project of this scale that looms over the historic mission. The fire danger is equally horrendous.
Susan Chamberlin, Santa Barbara
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to the editor: Let me challenge some of the statements in this article that downplay the potential impacts of “builder's remedy” projects here in Santa Barbara.
First, while housing here is problematic and wildly expensive, and while there are certainly wealthy enclaves, Santa Barbara is not a strictly upscale community, as food bank lines and other data attest. It would have been nice to see that perspective reflected.
The proposed projects are so poorly located and designed and dangerous that they would never be approved under normal circumstances. In the meantime, the city is moving forward with numerous additional housing projects through proper procedures.
The need for more housing should not allow for the construction of poorly located and designed buildings that would degrade the character of our community. The mission photograph should have included an overlay of the proposed project. That would say more than my words can express.
Michele Harris Padrón, Santa Barbara
