Dear Members of the Santa Barbara City Council,
Unfortunately, I cannot attend today’s City Council Meeting to address my concerns about current efforts to go forward with the Master Plan for renovating Ortega Park, that includes the proposed destruction of its historic Chicano/Chumash community murals.
As an art historian who specializes in the history of muralism in the Americas, with a research focus on Chicano/Latino murals, I have spent time studying the mural cluster at Ortega Park within the context of the history of muralism in California, and specifically within the contexts of community engagement, cultural contributions, and their ongoing historical value within the present for the various communities within Santa Barbara. As I wrote to you in an earlier letter for your March 9 meeting, these murals have considerable historic and ongoing significance for a number of Santa Barbara communities, as evidenced by the outpouring of community efforts over the past several months to save and restore these murals while also revitalizing the park facilities for all to enjoy.