On the night of Dec. 6, 2019, Santa Claus came down State Street on a float sponsored by MarBorg. That year's theme was "A Tropical Holiday," and Heal the Ocean was grand marshal. Its entry was driven by Santa Barbara Hot Rod Limo, and illuminated floats ran from Sola Street down to Cota. The year before, the grand marshals were Santa Barbara County Search and Rescue dogs and their human partners, on the same Sola-to-Cota route, also on a Friday at 6:30 p.m.
There hasn't been a downtown parade since. It returns on Friday, Dec. 4, at 6:30 p.m. as the 68th annual Downtown Santa Barbara Holiday Parade. It will look different. Under the rules from the Downtown Santa Barbara Improvement Association (DSBIA), there will be no floats, no motorized vehicles and no golf carts. Entries can use only human-powered wagons, pushcarts and bicycles, and sound systems have to stay under 50 decibels.
It will also be the first downtown holiday parade to run on State Street since the street gained its dining parklets.
What changed while the parade was gone
Edhat reports that the parade was canceled in 2020 because of COVID-19 and didn't come back after that. During those years, State Street changed. The city closed the downtown blocks to cars and put restaurant parklets and planters in the roadway. Noozhawk notes that the Summer Solstice Parade moved over to Santa Barbara Street as a result.
KEYT reported that the hiatus followed "the pandemic and other concerns," including "logistics with outside dining parklets now in place over several blocks."
The 2026 parade's program has dropped the floats and motorized support entries of 2019 in favor of these four groups:
- Marching bands and drumlines
- Local dance schools and rhythmic gymnasts
- Illuminated walking ensembles and seasonal characters
- Community groups, school groups and cultural nonprofits
The route has changed too. The procession starts in front of the Arlington Theatre, heads down State Street and ends at Ortega Street. In 2018 and 2019 it continued on to Cota.
| 2019 parade | 2026 parade | |
|---|---|---|
| Date | Friday, Dec. 6, 6:30 p.m. | Friday, Dec. 4, 6:30 p.m. |
| Route | State Street, Sola to Cota | Arlington Theatre to Ortega Street |
| Signature entries | Illuminated floats, MarBorg's Santa float, a Hot Rod Limo grand-marshal entry | Marching bands, drumlines, dance troupes, illuminated walking ensembles |
| Vehicles | Motorized entries in the lineup | Motorized vehicles, floats and golf carts prohibited |
| Sound | Not specified | Under 50 decibels |
The 50-decibel limit matters more on a street lined with dining tables. Marching bands and drumlines are still on the program, but any amplified sound from an entry has to stay quiet.
How the city got it back
The decision came during the City Council's budget discussion in June. According to Noozhawk, the council voted unanimously to have staff work with DSBIA to bring the parade back and find $50,000 to fund it. That money could come from community groups or nonprofits as well as from the city. Councilman Eric Friedman told Noozhawk:
"It is important to have the holiday parade back this year for what it will do for downtown, just bring the energy back downtown. The last one was 2019, so it's time we have it."
DSBIA set a larger target. It is raising about $150,000 through sponsorships and community partnerships to cover the cost of producing the parade. Consumer Fire Products, Inc. is the presenting sponsor, Yardi Systems is the major sponsor and Visit Santa Barbara is a parade sponsor. KEYT described Yardi as "new to downtown." Robin Elander, DSBIA's executive director, called the return "an exciting overdue milestone," as the Santa Barbara Independent reported.
Consumer Fire Products' role goes beyond this one night. This is the company's 13th year donating the State Street Christmas tree, which stands on the 1300 block.
According to DSBIA's parade page, city permits limit the number of entries, and spots go first-come, first-served. Group applications and the $275 entry fee were due Nov. 1. Announcer scripts are due Nov. 13, and coordinators get their packets the week of Nov. 16, with check-in times, numbered staging stations and disband instructions. DSBIA is also recruiting volunteers to help with route coordination, staging and greeting through its volunteer list at [email protected].
The State Street it comes back to
The parade is returning while State Street's future is still being decided. In September, the City Council approved a six-year, $96 million State Street master plan. The Santa Barbara News-Press reported that construction is expected to start within 18 months, with wider sidewalks, a central travel corridor and bollards that limit cars at certain times. Since then, Edhat reports, the State Street Business Alliance has gathered enough signatures to qualify a voter referendum against keeping the street closed to cars, a closure that dates back more than six years to the pandemic.
The commercial picture has improved on paper while still showing strain. Edhat's summary of the third-quarter 2026 storefront report says available storefronts fell to a seven-year low. The number of vacant storefronts held at 22, which kept the perceived vacancy rate at 8.84%. In the same quarter, four restaurants closed: Bibi Ji, which had recently moved from the 700 block to the 1200 block; Satellite at 1117 State St.; and Pascucci and Santa Playa Mariscos, both on the 1200 block. Several of the departing operators said too few local customers was a main reason.
Other buildings are getting new uses. The Antique Alley building at 706 State St. sold to a buyer who will occupy it. Clothing designer Wear & Roam leased a retail suite inside Hotel Santa Barbara. The former Brat Haus building at 801 State St. became four ground-floor commercial spaces with three residential units upstairs. State of Mind Café, a coffee shop designed to serve and accommodate the disability community, signed a lease at 918 State St.
The parade returns to that street in December. DSBIA puts the parade's historic crowds at more than 60,000 spectators along the route. Councilman Friedman's case for bringing it back was the people it would draw downtown on a December Friday night.
Building a weekend around Dec. 4
The parade lands in the middle of a busy stretch on the downtown calendar:
- Thursday, Dec. 3, 5 to 8 p.m. DSBIA's 1st Thursday evening the night before the parade.
- Friday, Dec. 4, 6:30 p.m. The parade, from the Arlington Theatre down to Ortega Street.
- Sunday, Dec. 6. The Mujeres Makers Market, listed in Visit Santa Barbara's December guide.
You can fill out the evening a few blocks from the route. The Miracle holiday pop-up at Pearl Social, 131 Anacapa St., Suite B, runs Nov. 13 through Dec. 31. At 15 E. De La Guerra St., Casa de la Guerra's exhibit "Reclaiming Our Stories: Reflecting on the Land" runs through Dec. 20, open Thursday through Sunday from noon to 4 p.m. That covers a Thursday or weekend afternoon around the parade, but not the parade evening itself. Up on upper State, Noozhawk reported in late October that the family-owned Bangkok Thai Cafe had opened at 3613 State St.
Nine days after the downtown parade, the city's 40th annual Parade of Lights runs Sunday, Dec. 13, from 2 to 7:30 p.m. at Santa Barbara Harbor and Stearns Wharf.
If you'd like to talk about the changes ahead on State Street and what they could mean for downtown living, from the master plan to the referendum, Andrea O'Loughlin is happy to walk through it with you. Schedule a 15-minute consultation.
