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T U E SDAY, JA N UA RY 2 4 , 2 023
Master plan for State Street Santa Barbara City Council to receive progress report today on efforts
KENNETH SONG / NEWS-PRESS
Rebecca Brand, pictured above, says a transient forcibly seized her cell phone because she was calling 9-1-1 to report a window she saw shattered on Christmas Eve at Rudy’s restaurant on upper State Street in Santa Barbara.
No pleas entered during arraignment
Transient robbery case continued until next month
By NEIL HARTSTEIN NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
By NEIL HARTSTEIN NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
The case of a transient charged with using force and fear to seize a cell phone from a woman who saw a rock shatter the front window of Rudy’s restaurant on Christmas Eve was continued Monday until next month. The defendant, Nelly Gackowska, 60, had been scheduled to be arraigned for a second time on charges of second-degree robbery and grand theft from a person, both felonies. She could receive a maximum sentence of five years in prison if convicted. Ms. Gackowska previously pleaded not guilty. But after a judge found the charges against her to be true at a preliminary hearing and ruled that her case could proceed to trial, she was granted a second opportunity at another arraignment to choose between pleading guilty or not guilty. Ms. Gackowska represented herself at her preliminary hearing, but a public defender was appointed Monday to represent her at her new arraignment, which was continued to Feb. 27, prosecutors said. Rebecca Brand, the witness to the rock breaking the Please see ROBBERY on A4
REBECCA BRAND PHOTO
Rebecca Brand took this photo of Nelly Gackowska, 60, who has been charged with second-degree robbery and grand theft from a person.
KENNETH SONG / NEWS-PRESS
“Given the existing concentration of retail (50% more retail per capita on State Street than retail per capita regionally), State Street has opportunities for growing experiential-based activities, mixed use and food and beverage businesses,” according to the city of Santa Barbara staff.
By NEIL HARTSTEIN NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
The Santa Barbara City Council today will receive a progress report for the State Street “Create State” Master Plan — a long-term plan for downtown Santa Barbara that focuses on the creation of public space designed for people rather than vehicles. The council will meet in its chambers, 735 Anacapa St., starting at 2 p.m. The Create State Master Plan prioritizes pedestrians and the public realms to benefit residents, visitors and the local economy through the creation of a designated public space, according to staff. The project area includes Anacapa to Chapala streets and State Street from Sola Street to the Highway 101 underpass. The final product for the Create State project will include a preferred conceptual design concept and implementation plan that the city will use to construct the downtown capital improvement project. The Create State project remains on schedule for completion of the Master Plan between December 2023 and February 2024, staff said. Staff’s report today will highlight the work undertaken over the last six months, including existing conditions analysis, the various opportunities for public engagement, and the next steps to determine a design concept and implementation plan for State Street and the downtown area. Major work over the last six months associated with Create State (the State Street Master Plan) has included analyzing existing economic, transportation, utility and land use conditions downtown; confirming the community’s vision for the project area; developing a project website that more than 5,200 people have visited; releasing a community survey that more than 5,500
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The four alleged gang associates arrested Thursday in connection with last month’s fatal shooting of an innocent bystander on Stearns Wharf have been charged with murder, Santa Barbara County District Attorney John Savrnoch announced Monday. The defendants — Jiram Jhunue Tenorio Ramon, Ricardo Tomas Jauregui-Moreno Jr., Christopher Dave Miranda and James Lee Rosborough, all Santa Barbara residents — were charged in a four-count felony complaint in connection with the murder of Robert Dion Gutierrez that occurred as a result of the Dec. 9 shooting on Stearns Wharf, Please see MURDER on A4
Monterey Park shooting leaves 11 people dead By DAVE MASON NEWS-PRESS MANAGING EDITOR
KENNETH SONG / NEWS-PRESS
Bicyclists travel down lower State Street, which has been closed to vehicular traffic since May 2020.
people have viewed and 4,000 people have taken; and engaging more than 1,500 people during inperson outreach events. The Create State team is analyzing economic trends, mobility patterns and land uses in downtown Santa Barbara to determine what considerations should be made in the conceptual design, what opportunities exist for redevelopment, what is economically viable, and what infrastructure to consider in a future design. The team conducted existing conditions analysis “because staff wants to ensure that the designs we put forward for the community to react to are realistic and achievable given constraints in the right-of-way. “The block structures in downtown Santa Barbara allow for a unique pedestrian experience and the potential for further variation along the street
frontage, with over 20 doorways on each block and a concentration of multi-story buildings along the 700–900 blocks of State Street,” staff said. “Given the existing concentration of retail (50% more retail per capita on State Street than retail per capita regionally), State Street has opportunities for growing experiential-based activities, mixed use and food and beverage businesses.” Staff said State Street sales tax data show that restaurants generate the most revenue and that food services and drinking establishments have recovered from their low numbers during the 2019–2020 pandemic. Additional economic analysis is being conducted, including case studies related to retail retention and expansion. Interconnected market support between retail and other uses, office space and business and employment trends
by industry and location are also being studied. “These analyses will help determine the economic feasibility of the future conceptual design and proposed closure location,” staff said. “A future design will also need to consider utilities, including water, sewer, traffic signal and conduits, fiber optic and stormwater infrastructure. “Initial transportation data shows that the State Street closure created a safer environment than prepandemic conditions due to the reduced number and severity of accidents,” staff said. Collision analysis indicates that before the State Street closure, between October 2018 and April 2020, there were 17 total collisions along State Street, with a maximum of six crashes at Please see STATE on A3
The death toll increased to 11 Monday in the aftermath of the mass shooting during a Lunar New Year celebration last weekend in Monterey Park. The 11th victim, whose name wasn’t released, died at LAC+USC Medical Center. Three of the victims were identified as My Nhan, 65; Lilan Lie, 63; and Alvaro Valentino, 68, the Los Angeles County medical examiner-coroner said Monday. Another nine people were injured in what was the nation’s fifth mass killing this month. The shooting Saturday night at Star Ballroom Dance Studio was the deadliest attack since the May 24 shooting that left 21 people dead at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas. The suspect, Huu Can Tran, 72, of Hemet, died from a selfinflicted gunshot wound, according to Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna. Mr. Tran was inside a white van as a SWAT team closed in on him, Sheriff Luna said. About a half-hour after the Monterey Park shooting, Mr. Tran walked into the Lai Lai Ballroom in nearby Alhambra, but Brandon Tsay, 26, of San Marino seized Mr. Tran’s weapon before he could start shooting. At that point, Mr. Tran reportedly ran away. Please see shooting on a4
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Four charged in wharf murder case
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