The worst kept secret in Santa Barbara is a group of politicians and business owners scheming for the immediate removal of downtown Santa Barbara's parklets. That is a terrible idea.
The closing of State Street to vehicle traffic and adding the parklets have brought energy to the city not seen in years — in fact, it helps distract from the record number of vacancies on State Street. I own a business downtown (without a parklet), and I can directly attest to the fact not only has it helped most businesses, it may have saved State Street from a business disaster.
An open State Street has been widely hailed by locals and tourists — and literally everyone I know — as the best new change to the city in quite some time.