Chapter 4 - Megalopolis

Located in the California megalopolis, Santa Barbara is 13th in rank in urban agglomeration. The largest being the Los Angeles area. Santa Barbara is located off the 101 freeway which links the city along the coastal regions of California. Santa Barbara also has its own airport and access to an Amtrak service. The Santa Barbara Metropolitan Transit District provides bus services across the city. There are also numerous amounts of biking trails. Santa Barbara boasts being a car free area with its project Santa Barbara Car Free. It does not mean there are no cars, it just means anybody can get around Santa Barbara without the use of a car!

Santa Barbara is known for its many tourist attractions and big hospitality industry which has had a major impact on its regional economy. The motel chain, Motel 6, was actually started in Santa Barbara in the 60's. Firms like Alliant Techsystems and Raytheon have major operations in the city. Science and technology form the basis of the city's private employment.


According to the City's 2010 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report the top employers in South Santa Barbara County are:

#	Employer	# of Employees
1	University of California, Santa Barbara	6,200
2	County of Santa Barbara	4,000
3	Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital	2,500
4	Santa Barbara City College	2,000
5	Santa Barbara School Districts	1,800
6	Raytheon	1,500
7	Sansum Clinic	1,500
8	City of Santa Barbara	1,000
9	United States Postal Service	1,000
10	Santa Barbara Bank & Trust	950

Tourist attractions not only include Santa Barbara's beautiful beaches, but the Santa Barbara Mission, the Presidio, the Santa Barbara Courthouse, and Stearns Wharf. On top of these attractions, SB is home to many performing arts venues like the Arlington Theatre, the Lobero Theatre, and the Santa Barbara Bowl. SB also has festivals including the annual Fiesta, the French Festival, the Santa Barbara International Film Festival, and the Summer Solstice Parade. Santa Barbara also has an abundance of seafood restaurants and wineries. Santa Barbara also is home to many schools and universities including a research university, liberal arts colleges, a community college, trade schools, a conservatory, and many high, middle, and elementary schools.



[Sources]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santa_Barbara,_California#Geography

http://www.santabarbaracarfree.org/

http://www.lkjh.org/bike/california/santa_barbara