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Santa Barbara County First District Supervisor Das Williams — Year’s End Review

by Community Contributor • January 3, 2023 • Comments Off

2022

Throughout this year, we have witnessed modern-day war as there are continued attacks on Ukrainians and their sovereignty. We have all experienced the transition out of COVID-19 and continue to see its devastating effects on our mental, physical, and emotional health. This year we have also seen communities continuing to come together to work towards common goals, like the completion of the Randal Road Debris Basin. After two long years of a global pandemic, we finally gathered to celebrate fiestas, birthdays, and other community events. I have continued pushing and advocating for more housing and alternative transportation methods. As we enter 2023, I will continue to advocate for local community needs, help improve our infrastructure and stand up against injustice. Thank you for all your support. Best wishes and a Happy New Year from my family to yours.

1/9 Commemoration Event

Please join the Community Remembrance Event of the 1/9 Debris Flow. We will be holding space to come together to remember all that was lost and the progress we have made toward making our community safer.

Construction Update

Due to rain, the Olive Mill Roundabout will not start construction the week of Jan 3. Most work will occur between 7:00 am and 4:30 pm when construction starts.

The Olive Mill Roundabout will improve traffic flow at the intersection of Olive Mill Road, Coast Village Road, North Jameson Lane, the northbound Highway 101 off-ramp at Olive Mill Road, and the southbound Highway 101 on-ramp at Olive Mill Road. Construction is anticipated from January through the summer of 2023. Project information, including maps and a timeline, is available at www.SBROADS.com.

With holiday travel, it is important to remember to please drive safely through the corridor and to Slow for the Cone Zone. The speed limit is reduced to 55 mph for safety throughout the construction areas. Two freeway lanes remain open in each direction during daytime hours.

VOLUNTEERS ARE NEEDED

The County of Santa Barbara is in the mix of a massive effort to reduce homelessness. The Point-In-Time Count is an essential aspect of the County’s efforts to help tackle homelessness. We are recruiting volunteers to conduct interviews with individuals and families experiencing homelessness during the Point-In-Time Count on Wednesday, Jan. 25, between 5:30 and 8:30 a.m. Volunteers must register online at countyofsb.pointintime.info and have access to a smartphone.

All volunteers are required to attend a virtual training session. In this 1-hour session, you will learn more about the importance of the count, review canvassing best practices, explore the PIT survey tool, FAQs, and more! To make this training as accessible as possible, the online training is at varied days and times between January 16 – 20. Only one training is required.

The PIT count is only possible with a community-wide effort through the incredible support of many volunteers and partners. Your help is important in capturing this crucial community data.

SBCAG UPDATE

As the current Chair of SBCAG, I am proud to see projects moving forward and gaining funding. We head into a New Year with the Unanimous Coastal Development Permit approval and seven projects approved by the SBCAG Board of Directors.

UNANIMOUS COASTAL DEVELOPMENT PERMIT APPROVAL

The County Planning Commission unanimously approved the coastal development permit for the Highway 101: Montecito segment at their meeting this week. This is a critical milestone to start construction in the Montecito segment by next summer, 2023. This means that only one coastal development permit remains for the Highway 101 project; much of the work to get to this point of construction-ready is thanks to advance funding through Measure A, local transportation sales tax.

SEVEN PROJECTS A-SWIMMING

The SBCAG Board of Directors approved a suite of seven projects to include in SBCAG’s Regional Early Action Planning (REAP 2.0) Grant Dec. 31 application to the state. A total of 24 applications were considered representing $33 million of the available $5.3 million for transformative housing and sustainable transportation projects. Overall, slightly more than 80 percent of the funding has been identified to go directly to implement and construct projects, with 61 percent being in the north county, 29 percent in the south coast, and 10 percent countywide. Projects selected include:

Permit Ready Accessory Dwelling Unit Program for the City of Lompoc to expedite the permitting process and reduce pre-construction fees for housing
Santa Barbara County Active Transportation Data Dashboard to provide regional bicycle and pedestrian data and maps countywide to inform future bike, walking, safety and accessibility plans
City of Santa Maria Downtown Revitalization Infrastructure Improvements to increase sewer capacity and multimodal improvements in downtown Santa Maria including a bus rapid transit station and traffic calming improvements
Jacaranda Court project by the Housing Authority of the City of Santa Barbara to fund soft architectural costs for a 63-unit middle-income housing development to replace a parking lot downtown Santa Barbara
Prototype 3D Printed Affordable Home House by the Housing Trust Fund of Santa Barbara County to build the first 3D-printed affordable housing unit in Santa Barbara County as a demonstration of the concept.
EV Charging Infrastructure and Alternative Transit Incentives for the Perkins Place Project by the Housing Authority of the County of Santa Barbara in New Cuyama
San Jose Creek Multipurpose Path in the City of Goleta to support a 1.5-mile Class 1 bikeway connecting Calle Real, Old Town Goleta, UCSB, and the Coast Route

Would you like to serve your community?

Current SBC District 1 Commissioner Vacancies:

County Riding and Hiking Trails Advisory Committee
Air Pollution Control District Community Advisory Council
Human Services Commission

For more information on each commission visit and to apply, visit:

Santa Barbara County Boards and Commissions

Please contact Esme Estrada in my office if you have any questions

Direct line: 805-568-2155

Email: esestrada@countyofsb.org

Support Ukraine

I am sure that you have been watching the continued war of aggression against Ukraine with anguish. Unable to win on the battlefield, Putin is striking terror and destroying infrastructure with Iranian-made suicide drones, cruise missiles, and the like. Below is a picture of a bomb crater where my best friend’s son used to play in Kyiv. It is important to achieve victory with speed to save lives, and there is a way you can help. A friend and I have been raising a small amount of money to manufacture drones in Ukraine and send over drones and drone parts from the U.S. Check it out at Drones 2 Ukraine and help if you can. Drones for scouting and surveillance reduce casualties. Winter is coming, as is a large amount of Russian conscripts. Now is the time to help.