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Resident urges Santa Barbara to create a Department of Historic Preservation to protect trees, curbs and other nonbuilding resources
Summary
At the Oct. 8 Historic Landmarks Commission meeting, resident Sherry Ray urged the city to broaden protections for nonbuilding historic resources — notably trees and stone curbs — and proposed creating a department dedicated to historic preservation beyond architecture.
Sherry Ray urged the Historic Landmarks Commission on Oct. 8 to broaden local preservation efforts to include nonbuilding resources and to establish a department of historic preservation.
Ray told the commission the city’s recent loss of a stand of Italian stone pines showed current protections focus primarily on buildings and left other historic resources "completely unprotected." She said, "Historic interpretation could be visually vastly improved and community members should be informed that they can how they can do their part." She argued responsibility should not fall to a single architectural historian and said, "It needs to be a department to protect our historic heritage beyond architecture."
Ray also cited cultural authority and public sentiment, quoting Charles Fletcher Lummis: "Do not let selfish men or greedy interests skin Santa Barbara of her romance." She said Santa Barbara was "carefully planned and protected" historically and asked the city to prioritize education and protection of trees, stone curbs, altar rails, hitching posts and other elements that contribute to the city’s sense of place and economy.
The commission did not take formal action on Ray’s request at the meeting. Her remarks were made during the general public comment period and were entered into the record for commissioners and staff to consider in future preservation or policy work. The commission later discussed a separate agenda item on minutes and then a training on cultural landscapes; Ray’s plea did not generate a motion or vote.
