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Article reports San Luis Obispo downtown on the brink

October 11, 2025

By KAREN VELIE

A reporter details the ongoing decline of San Luis Obispo’s downtown including vacant buildings, less foot traffic, increasing prices and issues with paid parking, in SFGate’s “Heartbreaking: Once thriving California downtown is on the brink.”

In September alone, the article details closures of Branca’s gallery, Brixton, Antigua Brewing Company, Starbucks and Avanti.  Meanwhile, tariffs and climbing rents are leading additional business owners to pull up stakes.

The article includes allegations the SLO City Council’s missteps on issues such as paid parking have led to the decline in the downtown, with consumers headed to free parking downtown areas in Paso Robles and Atascadero.

“The city of SLO has admitted to some gaffes in the recent past, namely with its parking, according to SFGATE. “After deciding to significantly increase downtown parking rates in 2023, the city saw backlash from residents and merchants. Then it rolled the hikes back in the spring of 2024, and even apologized.”

 


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I’m absolutely sure that the recent tariffs are not helping the situation downtown BUT every single local here in SLO county knows that businesses were in decline far before 2025.


I’ve walked through downtown over the last five years and noticed a steady decline. It’s super sad as I was a local young adult in the 90’s when downtown was thriving.


PISS POOR city leadership along with highly inflated rent caused many businesses to pull up their roots.


Hopefully one day Californians will wake up and realize that the lib leadership they’re continuously voting for due to their loyalty to the ridiculous democrat party is not the same party it once was.


WAKE UP CALIFORNIANS. TIME FOR CHANGE BEFOR THE GREATEST STATE IN THE UNION BECONE MORE APOCALYPTIC THAN IT ALREADY IS!!!!!!!!!!!


71

We’re already missing CJ’s BBQ Smokehouse, on Monterey, next to the aforementioned shuttered Antigua Brewing. It was easily the best BBQ in any direction for many miles. Their closing is absolutely OUR loss.


Nice work SLO city and county sTupervisors.


What a complete failure on “leadership” (an oxymoron).


71

The businesses were located in the CITY of San Luis Obispo. Could you clarify why you believe the elected COUNTY Supervisors are responsible? Cause, honestly, this just sounds like a spew that has little logic.


-34

Parking , parking , parking! Yes ! I don’t even know why we have a planning department.

For years local “leaders” pretended they were going to usher in a great new “ Green Deal” of their own, with electric buses and bike lanes. Surely the locals would see the wisdom of it all and abandon their cars- their personal transportation, and all the bad ol’ cars would be tossed aside.

But alas! Both trust fund babies and worker bees alike have clung stubbornly to there rides.

And to make matters worse , the well meaning , but dopey leadership green lit “ affordable “ housing and apartments everywhere in town- even in former industrial areas! Oh my! Gotta keep that green belt! The other factor that has long been a problem are the hundreds of illegal dwellings in back yards and rental houses packed with students as a source of income for those who can afford it. Thanks again to Cal Poly for never providing adequate on campus housing. Worst neighbor 30 years in a row!

So , not just downtown, right? But almost the whole city. Courtesy of arrogant politicians, no common sense planning , greed and a careless college.

Hard to watch sometimes….


97

Reduce the government parking grift, and run the junkies out of downtown and it will come back in 2 weeks.


45

Here’s an idea. Free parking. Eliminate homeless from downtown. Support our police. Then we’re done.


But we’ve got a bunch of leftists in charge. How about getting them out? But we won’t. We’re a bunch of pansies. Unless we stop “feel good failure”. When will the pain be enough to change? SLO used to be built on common sense. Now it’s shooting itself in the foot.


73

We need to support our downtown businesses to keep them alive. Shop local!! And our city needs to do better in supporting them too.


-23

But, I don’t go to bars, and I don’t wear expensive women’s clothing, I’ve no need for another tattoo, knic knacs I have plenty of, and much much less expensive Llama burgers are available elsewhere.


61

Women’s “clothing” in quotes because a lot of it looks like rags these days. Yeas, would be nice if there were some useful stores downtown, such as a hardware store, Woolworths, camera shop, luggage store, and a perhaps a department store.


3

How can we support something that a lot of us cannot afford?


47

It’s an accurate article in SFGate, but it doesn’t mention how run-down downtown looks, dirty, homeless, and trash. It’s hard to feel safe there now, especially in the evening. The parking is not worth it. The City Council relies on staff, where the problem is never resolved. Time for leadership.


61

This is VERY understandable, but also NOW very complex and global. For my wife and I, it is the paid parking that pushes us to other communities in the county having free parking. And, as I have informed the city of SLO in past years, closing down parking in places along Higuera and Marsh to allow more restaurants to develop permanent “on-street” outdoor seating will also help. SLO has some great weather, which can’t be enjoyed eating inside a stuffy and noisy restaurant. I thought the city would have learned by the results of allowing on-street parking during the pandemic, but, No, they did not. Consider turning Higuera into a pedestrian mall with outdoor restaurants, etc., to pull in more people. BUT, that may all be moot — One other thing that is now a MAJOR impact to all tourist and shopping communities in America is that more and more foreign visitors are discontinuing coming to the U.S. due to our nation’s federal government highly discouraging any tourists from outside the U.S. AND, even in the U.S., more and more people are discontinuing their desires to travel within the U.S. because of America’s federal government attacking and arresting law abiding U.S. citizens. Effectively, America is now CLOSED to all tourism. Those who do travel around the U.S. are increasingly subject to search and arrest, for no legal reason. When federal agents (thugs) illegally start showing up around SLO county communities, all bets are off. Now THAT sure can have an impact on ALL U.S. cities wanting and needing foreign and local tourism. Tourism is rapidly becoming a thing of the past in the U.S., and elsewhere in the world, which is becoming devastating to our nation. We have canceled plans for foreign travel and U.S. travel. SLO and many other SLO County cities are beginning to feel the destructive impact of this, which our local communities have no power to resolve. Better buckle up — more difficult times are barreling at us like a speeding train.


-75

Is SLO somehow different than most other small downtowns, who have also seen similar declines? Amazon or Walmart or other online retailers can sell you the same thing cheaper and get it to you within a few days. As for restaurants, groceries are expensive and owners have had to raise prices. Hard to go out to eat on a $20 an hour salary. Parking fees just exacerbate the problem, but are not the source of it. So, why go downtown?


41

People used to go downtown for a fun outing. See friends and neighbors, enjoy browsing or a meal. Price isn’t everything. A junkie on every corner and a $70 ticket for a 10 minute mistake tip the scales to Amazon and door dash.


9

An inviting, safe feeling downtown space offers opportunity for spur of the moment spending. No foot traffic equals no income opportunity AT ALL.


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