Santa Barbara is spending $14 million on park upgrade. Should Chicano murals be preserved?

Art aficionados, activists, artists and community members spoke before the Santa Barbara Historic Landmarks Commission on Feb. 3 and called on the city to preserve 18 murals at Ortega Park.

The city’s Parks & Recreation Department has resisted requests to preserve the murals. Instead, it commissioned a report that suggested that seven of the murals could be “re-created” at the park.

“I hope it is clear to you that what has been presented to you today is an attempt to cover up for the original intent to destroy every piece of historic art in the park,” community activist Mark Alvarado said. “What has been presented to you has not been vetted by the community, the neighborhood advisory council, nor the arts advisory committee.”

The commission, after more than two hours of discussion, opted to “indefinitely continue” the proposal. That will give staff time to do community outreach and consider whether Ortega Park itself should be considered a structure of merit. The vote was 6-1, with Commissioner Ed Lenvik voting no.

It’s the second spill for the Parks & Recreation Department, which abruptly withdrew its plans to discuss the renovation of Ortega Park at the December Planning Commission meeting amid public backlash.

The department first maintained that it was impossible to move the murals, many of which are painted on concrete. Then it said it would be too expensive — as much as $300,000 to move the murals without breaking them.

The murals were painted between 1979 and 2011. They were created by several artists, most of them youths, and later touched up by artist Manuel Unzueta. With names such as “Ninos de Maiz,” “La Playa” and “Campesinos,” they depict Aztec, Mexican and Chicano art. They have long served as the heart of the park.

Plans call for a $14 million upgrade and renovation. The park has long served as the backyard for many Eastside residents. It’s a place where families have gone for birthday parties and celebrations, and to play basketball and soccer.

To move the murals that are painted on concrete, it would cost as much as $4.2 million, according to one city estimate.

Kiernan Graves, a conservator for Ventura-based Site & Studio, found that seven of the murals had historical significance. She and the city stated that since the murals have changed several times over the years, re-creating them would not be out of step with previous actions.

“There has been a significant evolution of the murals over the years,” Graves said, adding that many of the murals were changed for health and safety, restoration, art and education, and education purposes.

Project planner Justin Van Mullem said the buildings on which they are painted are less than 50 years old.

“These murals have changed over time to stay relevant,” Van Mullem said. “The average lifespan is about 15 to 20 years.”

He said moving some of the murals, painted on concrete, which has not been not re-enforced, would be like “moving potato chips.”

Several members of the public spoke in support of preserving all of the murals.

“We believe these murals exceed the threshold for historical and cultural significance,” said Anne Peterson, executive director of the Santa Barbara Trust for Historic Preservation. “The evolution is one of the characteristics that makes them a unique and organic set of community art pieces.”

Holly Barnet Sanchez, a retired professor of Chicano, Latino and modern Latin-American art history at the University of New Mexico, defended the murals.

“These historically significant murals constitute a cluster, a large grouping of related murals, which there are several throughout the state, and are important examples of Chicano art first painted during the Chicano civil rights and arts movement,” Barnett Sanchez said. “I strongly urge you to rescue this cluster in its entirety to fully integrate it into the life of a revitalized park. Current plans will destroy its larger, greater meaning.”

One of the artists, Unzueta, spoke at the meeting. He said that artists painted the murals in 1979 with their own supplies, and no help from the city, and they have emerged as icon features of the Eastside neighborhood. He said the city should do more to save the murals.

“Now is the time to make sure that this part of the community gets all the support,” Unzueta said.

Commissioners, too, said they were disappointed with the report.

“I am kind of appalled that there was even a suggestion of destruction, or a photo file,” Commissioner Michael Drury said. “That is not what we should be considering. A photograph is no substitute for the murals themselves. I think this project needs to be rethought from the ground up.”

He said the Ortega Park restoration has been approached in a backward fashion.

“I think the idea of an expansive park with all these wonderful amenities in it should take second place to these murals, which are part of a cultural community,” Drury said. “I am kind of beside myself.”

Some of the commissioners were reluctant to designate the seven murals as historic because doing so would make it more difficult for an artist to change them later.

“The making of murals like this is a living tradition of art-making, and I am very reluctant to take any action that would interrupt, or stop them, or freeze them, or make it static,” Commissioner Dennis Doordan said. “These murals have evolved since 1979, and I am very wary of doing anything that would stop that process.”

Commissioner Robert Ooley further pushed back on the consultant’s report. He called it “confusing and lacking.”

“There’s a disjointed conversation about the treatment of this artwork,” he said.

Commissioner Steven Hausz said he was “uncomfortable” making a decision for the community regarding the murals, adding that the community needs to have extensive involvement.

“The most important contribution needs to come from the neighborhood that uses this park,” Hausz said.

Noozhawk staff writer Joshua Molina can be reached at jmolina@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.