Parks and Rec NewsParks & Recreation

Ash Cleanup Starting at Parks and Rec Locations

Municipal Tennis Center and Arts and Crafts Show Sidewalks First

Now that all Santa Barbara evacuation orders have been listed, we know you’re looking forward to getting back to normal. Getting rid of the Thomas Fire ash is part of that, so we want to let you know that we’re working on a plan to clear Parks and Rec Department locations of ash.

Our Thomas Fire Ash Management Plan for Santa Barbara Parks and Recreation Locations

As we told you earlier, we’re following Santa Barbara County’s Preliminary Ash Management Plan, which you can find in English and Spanish at CountyOfSB.org.

This means, among other things, that we will not being using leaf blowers, we’ll make every effort to not stir the ash up into the air (although some of that is probably unavoidable), and we’ll work to keep the water we use from flowing into storm drains.

Muni Tennis and the Arts and Crafts Show

We will let you know more as soon as we know it, but for now, we’ve already started clearing the ash at the Municipal Tennis Center. We hope to be finished with that on the Pickleball courts and our three lighted tennis courts on Saturday, December 23.

We’re also working hard to get the ash cleared from the sidewalks along Cabrillo Boulevard and Chase Palm Park in time for this Saturday's and Sunday's Santa Barbara Arts and Crafts Show dates, so your last-minute Christmas shopping will be as ash-free as we can possibly make it. 

Helpful Thomas Fire Cleanup Resources

If you're facing the task of cleaning up ash from the Thomas Fire in your own home, further resources are available at CountyOfSB.org. In particular, their page on Thomas Fire Cleanup and Health Resources is a great place to start.