Dear Members of the City Council.
Please pass Ordinance No. 1075 to re-open Santa Cruz Ave. to traffic.
My shop overlooks the closed portion of the 800 block of Santa Cruz Ave. I am concerned about the dangers caused by the street closure.
1. Diverted cars uses the back parking lots as the quickest way to get back on to Santa Cruz Ave. Parking lots are dangerous enough without being used as detours.
2. Cars and trucks occasionally will drive the wrong way down the one open lane (either they are unaware, or they are intentionally risking it because it’s just one block.)
3. Bicyclists (often kids) ride down the wrong way down the open lane. Cars turning left from Crane St. could easily crash head-on into bikes coming the wrong way, especially since the barriers block visibility and create confusion.
In addition to safety concerns, the blocking of an entrance to our main shopping street is terrible for business. It causes the loss of parking, exposure, and access.
I appreciate the hope that closing the street to cars would create more vibrancy. But that hope has not come to fruition. We have time lapse video footage – here is a Wednesday in November (before the December Covid surge). Note the lack of activity on the opposite side of the street, where cars are not allowed. This inactivity is the same every day.
Nov. 3, 2020 time-lapse video: https://youtu.be/hQH5Phj0JCI
Please permanently re-open the 800 block of Santa Cruz Ave. The restaurants have nice parklets which are sufficient for outdoor dining and are much better than eating in the middle of the street. There is no need for the danger, frustration, and economic harm caused by roadblocks.
Thank you,
Teresa Beltramo
Teresa’s Antiques
842 Santa Cruz Ave.
