Santa Barbara Renews Parklet Program

According to an article in Edhat Santa Barbara, the city council approved a new set of regulations governing parklets, or ‘temporary outdoor business areas,’ located on city land in a 5-2 vote.

The new process comes with a $514 pre-application fee, but locations within the Coastal Zone will be subject to a $5,535 application fee.

“Parklets will be limited to the parking space(s) entirely within the frontage of the business

operating the parklet. If a parking space straddles the line between two businesses, then

it cannot be used for a parklet unless both businesses share the parklet.” Parklets can’t block drainage or other key infrastructure and must be encircled by concrete K-rail.

The two opposing city council members expressed concern, one for the safety of customers, another about the aesthetic value of the K-rails designed to improve safety. Since the start of the pandemic and the growth of parklets in public right-of-way, there have been four vehicle collisions with parklets.