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South Coast City Council Votes To Change Street With "Flat-Out" Offensive Name

A South Coast street with a name dating back to the 1850s will be undergoing a name change.

Located on the east side of  Santa Barbara, "Indio Muerto" ("Dead Indian") Street will no longer bear that name.

The Barbareño Chumash Tribal Council asked the Santa Barbara City Council to consider renaming the street "Hutash," or "Earth Mother," instead.

The City Council voted in favor of the move.

"I know it's not going to make everyone happy and I apologize for that, but this is the time, right now is the time to change it," says Oscar Gutierrez, a City Councilmember who was born and raised in Santa Barbara. "The name flat-out, bottom line, is offensive. The new name is not."

The process to change the name will take several months, allowing residents and businesses in the area to change the address on their stationary and other important documents.

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