Walking Wednesdays with Santa Barbara Walks
October 28 Walking Wednesdays we were joined by Ellen Durham, owner of Santa Barbara Walking Tours as we enjoyed an Everyday Art Walk. We toured some of the public art and art in public spaces around town and learned the history behind them. As Ellen says, “…Everyday Art Walk focuses on unique Artwork surrounding the urban area of Santa Barbara. We call it Everyday Art because you might walk past it everyday and never really notice. Some of it’s in plain sight… and well, some of it is located in the most unexpected and often overlooked places.”
Contact Ellen at www.santabarbarawalkingtours.com for other tours.
Previous Walking Wednesdays:
- September 23 - with Jeff Shelton (architect of El Andaluz, Ablitt’s Tower, Cota Street Studios and more)
- August 26 - with Brian Hofer (including the SB Mission, St Anthony’s & Plaza Rubio)
- July 22 - with Bob Muller (author of Trees of Santa Barbara)
San ysidro path a reality with coast’s help
Under threat of rain, community stakeholders came out Wednesday, December 17th to celebrate the recent Federal Safe Routes to School grant that was announced to build a ½ mile decomposed granite pathway along the west side of San Ysidro Road from Montecito Union School to North Jameson Road. This path has been a collaborative effort from the start, according to many of the event’s speakers, which included County Supervis
or Salud Carbajal, Montecito Union School Superintendent Dick Douglas, Montecito Association President Bill Palladini, and Montecito Trails Foundation President John Venable, who has committed to maintaining the path. Appreciation of the process and the partnerships between many entities, which also included County Public Works staff Matt Dobberteen and Bert Johnson, was echoed by many of those in attendance. As noted by COAST’s Eva Inbar, “the project was based on a remarkable collaboration between many parties” including previous COAST Executive Director Katharine Bechtel who worked on the project.
This path will not only provide a safer place for students on their way to school but as MUS parent and 
project initiator Stephen Murdoch noted, “the path will link pedestrians of every age to Miramar Beach, Upper and Lower Manning Parks, Laguna Blanca Lower School and the shopping area of the Upper Village”.
Supervisor Carbajal was one of several who stressed that we should celebrate the success of the San Ysidro path and use the momentum to move forward in identifying other locations where we can focus our efforts next. COAST’s newest project, Santa Barbara Walks, will be working to improve pedestrian access to schools, parks, community centers and other public places throughout the South Coast.
The event was a great reminder to the community of the positive impacts that are possible when we work together towards a common goal.
Walk/Bike Forum
Santa Barbara Walks recently co-hosted (with the Santa Barbara Bicycle Coalition and the Coalition for Community Wellness) a Walk/Bike Forum with international expert Dr. John Pucher from Rutger’s University. “Car-free John” as he is known by friends and colleagues, gave an informative presentation on the health benefits of walking and cycling as transportation and how these activities are essential for our community’s sustainability. His presentation included a plentitude of examples how other countries have succeeded in encouraging and providing infrastructure and policies that support pedestrians and bicyclists.
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- Helping develop the City of Santa Barbara’s General Plan Update
