The City of Goleta's page for the Hollister Avenue Old Town Interim Striping Project is headed with the word "Complete." A few lines lower, the same page calls the layout "a pilot project that will be evaluated for how it serves the needs of Old Town." It also says the data gathered now will shape the design of a later Hollister Avenue Complete Streets Corridor Project once funding becomes available.
Both statements are accurate. The paint went down in October 2024. The decision about what Hollister should look like for good has not been made. And the comparison the City is waiting for has not started yet. Its traffic engineer said staff would keep monitoring conditions after the nearby construction wraps up. As of mid-October 2026, that construction is still underway on both ends of Old Town. Whatever you think of the back-in parking, the street you drive this fall is the version under test. It is not the version being decided.
What the pilot put on the pavement
From Fairview to the Highway 217 end of Old Town, the City lists these changes:
- One vehicle lane in each direction, down from two
- Dedicated bike lanes
- A non-traversable painted median
- Back-in angled 90-minute parking along the north side
- Parallel 90-minute parking along the south side
The 90-minute limit is enforced. Project Connect's FAQ says the time limits "allow for enforcement of parking codes" and are meant to turn spaces over for Old Town visitors. That matters if you have been parking overnight on Hollister out of habit. The City also posted a short video on back-in angled parking for anyone who still hesitates at the curb.
The May scorecard, and its asterisk
On May 5, 2026, the City Council heard a performance update covering late 2024 through early 2026. Noozhawk's report on the meeting set out what contract traffic engineer Derek Rapp presented:
| Measure | Before the restriping | Reported in May 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| On-street parking spaces | 69 | 88 |
| Daily vehicle trips on Hollister | Pre-project baseline | Down by fewer than 2,200 |
| Drivers more than 10 mph over the limit | Pre-project baseline | Cut in half |
| Typical vehicle speeds | Pre-project baseline | Under 30 mph |
| Total collisions | Pre-project baseline | Down |
| Parallel-route traffic | Pre-project baseline | Rose at first, now leveling near pre-project levels |
Rapp attached a condition to the first of those numbers. He said the City expected some traffic reduction "not only potentially due to the striping changes but also due to the construction occurring adjacent at (State Route) 217." He also said he hoped traffic flow would improve once the double roundabouts were finished. On collisions, he said he wanted three to five years of data before "calling it a win." His summary was that it was too soon to declare the project "a complete success."
Some of the drop in traffic may come from drivers avoiding a construction zone. Some may come from the new lane layout. The only way to separate the two is to measure Hollister again once the construction zone is gone.
Two readings of the same few blocks
The people who use the street most are split, and the construction runs through their accounts too.
Councilmember James Kyriaco told the meeting, as Noozhawk reported, "I can now get through Old Town in a couple of minutes. The difference is that you don't have to go 35 mph to do it, you can do it at 25." Kyle Richards, an Old Town resident and former councilmember, said he walks his dog along Hollister and that "it feels calmer and safer to get across the street." Councilwoman Luz Reyes-Martín said she had noticed more people walking around.
Several shop owners gave the same outlet a different picture. At La Tapatia #3, 5764 Hollister, the owner said customers found it hard to back into a space when traffic behind them did not leave room. Ruta Safranavicius of Paperback Alley Used Books and Morgan Kay of Goodland Florist also told Noozhawk they had not seen the rise in foot traffic the report described. Phebe Mansur of CopyRightSB at 5708 Hollister said she planned to run her own bike count from her front window.
KEYT's coverage that week added two more views. At Goleta Barbers, the owner said back-in parking confused customers, and that some told him they could not find a space even when spaces were open. Patricia Guerrera, whose Tru Beauty Lash Academy opened in February 2026, said business was going well, and that her clients had not had trouble with parking because the academy has its own lot.
The concerns come mostly from businesses that rely on quick stops at the curb, and they center on the act of parking. The more favorable accounts come from people on foot, from drivers passing through, and from a business with its own lot. The Goleta Barbers account also dates the trouble to the start of construction, which is one more reason the useful measurement comes after the construction ends.
The Council discussion also looked ahead. Councilman Stuart Kasdin suggested the City find ways to draw more walkers and cyclists, possibly with new businesses like brewhouses or wineries. Reyes-Martín added, "Brewhouses are fun, but I was also thinking about a library or a museum."
Why the verdict waits on Ekwill and the 217 roundabout
Hollister is one piece of a larger set of street changes the City calls Project Connect. The other pieces are still being finished, in this order:
- October 2024. The Hollister Old Town striping is completed.
- July 1, 2026. This was Caltrans' planned completion date for the Highway 217 San Jose Creek Bridge replacement. A Caltrans notice that same day said a two-night paving closure had ended, and it expected the remaining paving to be finished in early August.
- July 2026. The new roundabout at Pine Avenue and Ekwill Street opens. The City now says traffic there is "flowing smoothly."
- October 12, 2026. Drainage work begins at the west end of the Hollister Avenue roundabout, near the southbound Highway 217 off-ramp and Dearborn Place.
- Later this year. The Ekwill Street extension is scheduled to open, with travel lanes, bike lanes, sidewalks and landscaped parkways. Until then, part of Kellogg Way near Ekwill is closed around the clock and traffic is detoured.
Ekwill runs parallel to Hollister on the south side of Old Town. Once it opens through, drivers who now use Hollister only to get across Old Town will have another route. So the traffic counts the City collects after that point will measure something new: Hollister working as one part of a two-street system instead of the only way through. That is the comparison Rapp said staff would make, and it is the one that will inform the eventual Complete Streets design.
The Council took no final action at the May 5 meeting. The item was a presentation to receive the update. The layout stands as a pilot. It has not been made permanent, and it has not been reversed.
Getting through Old Town between now and the parade
The drainage closure at the Hollister roundabout was expected to last about a week from October 12, running 24 hours a day. During that work, drivers leaving Dearborn Place or the southbound Highway 217 off-ramp can turn right onto Hollister but cannot head east. The City suggests turning right and making a U-turn at a safe spot. To reach Ward Drive, it suggests taking Highway 101 to the Patterson Avenue exit instead. If you are reading this after the week is up, check Project Connect's construction updates before assuming the turn has reopened.
The next time Hollister will be packed with people on foot is the Old Town Goleta Holiday Parade. It runs on Saturday, December 5, at 6 p.m. along Hollister from Orange Avenue to Kinman Avenue. Schools, nonprofits, businesses and community groups can register an entry through November 21. The fee is $45 for general entries and $30 for schools and nonprofits, and school bands enter free. The parade route covers the same stretch where the 90-minute spaces sit, so on parade night the side streets will likely do most of the parking work.
If you own a home near Hollister and want to talk through how Old Town's street changes might matter to its value, Alisa Pepper & Bill Urbany are glad to have that conversation. Both of us will walk through it with you, at whatever pace suits you.
