Anonymous
By an edhat reader
Week of September 26 – October 1, 2022: council and advisory committee meetings of Santa Barbara City
A long-time Edhat subscriber, hoping for more public participation in our local government, thought it would be helpful and interesting for the community to have a weekly listing of selected meetings, those of city-wide interest. We agreed. Please tell us what you think. There have been requests for coverage of other jurisdictions; volunteers to do that, please contact info@edhat.com. If we’ve mis-posted an address or there’s a meeting that we failed to list, please note the correction in the Comments section below. Thanks!
Santa Barbara has a City Calendar of meetings; for September: https://www.santabarbaraca.gov/cals/. (NB: City Calendar is a guide and may not be complete or, as for this week, completely accurate.) City TV covers many of the meetings and has reruns and updates with newly-scheduled meetings. In general, Consent Calendar meetings are not televised. There’s a new city website design, but it’s a mixed blessing, with some information harder to find if it exists at all.
Common acronyms, abbreviations: hybrid, meeting access is both in person and via Zoom or other web; PDA, Project Design Approval; FA, Final Approval. Meeting locations: City Council chambers upstairs at City Hall, 735 Anacapa Street; David Gebhard Room, 630 Garden Street; or where noted. Hyflex, means access both in person and by Zoom; CAR, Council Agenda Report.
This week there are the usual Council and commission meetings in the City of Santa Barbara; with Finance and Ordinance committees, and STRs on the main Council agenda, Tuesday will be another probably long Council meeting. We note for curious, interested members of the public, there is no agenda reference to the City Attorney.
MONDAY, 9/26
Single Family Design Board, 11:00 A.M., DGR, in person: Consent Agenda, 116 Santa Cruz Blvd, review after FA; 154 Coronada Circle, PDA and FA; 2731 El Prado Rd, Concept Review; 276 Santa Monica Way, Concept Review. Architectural drawings, link.
Architectural Board of Review, 1 P.M., DGR, in person, Consent Agenda: 525 E. Yanonali, PDA & FA at the desal. plant; 117 Bath St, PD & FA; 25 E. Mason, PD & FA.
Single Family Design Board, 3 P.M., DGR, hyflex, Agenda: 102 Jorgenson Lane, Concept Review; 214 Salida del Sol, Concept Review; 2501 Medcliff Rd, Concept Review. Architectural drawings, link.
TUESDAY, 9/27
City Council, hyflex, Ordinance Committee, 11:30 A.M., city council chambers., hyflex, access info at the Agenda: proposal to amend Title 17 relating to the SB Municipal Code re harbor matters; introduction of draft ordinance, assigning additional civilian oversight to the Police/Fire Commission, staff report.
City Council, Special Finance Committee, 12 P.M., DGR, hyflex, access info at the Agenda, 2022 4th quarter review and proposed changes to the city’s reserve policy, link.
City Council, regular meeting, 2 P.M., city council chambers., hyflex, access info at the Agenda; Agenda packet (121 pgs.) Consent Calendar (C.C.) follows the Minutes, catching up with June and August minutes; also, the transfer of two advisory groups, Arts Advisory and Community Events and Festivals from the City Administrator to the Library. To be adopted are the FPPC conflict of interest code requirements in place of the City’s Resolution 19-094, which is rescinded (and not provided in the agenda.) Item 10 (of the C.C.) the public hearing re 691 Hope Avenue has been rescheduled to 11/1.
Item 11, Community Development asks the Council to provide direction on future Short Term Rental permitting, as well as to direct the staff to draft a STR permitting ordinance, CAR link.
Community Development and Human Services Committee, 6 P.M., in person, DGR Agenda 2021-22; Annual report .
WEDNESDAY, 9/28
Historic Landmarks Commission, 11 A.M., in person, Consent Agenda: 26 Chapala St, FA; 2209 Chapala, PDA, FA, Historic Significance report; 1020 Chapala, PDA, FA. Architectural drawings.
Historic Landmarks Commission, 1:30, DGR, hyflex, Agenda: Solar/electric vehicle update; 1242 Dover Lane, Historic Significance Report, Applicant narrative; One-time pre application consultation; 1601 State Street, Review after FA; Architectural drawings.
Parks and Recreation Commission, 4 P.M., hyflex, City Council Chamber, Agenda: Street Tree Advisory Committee recommendations, including recommending denying a request to remove 9 eucalypti at 3775 Modoc Road.
THURSDAY, 9/29
No council or commission meetings listed, scheduled.
FRIDAY, 9/30
Biweekly city administrative offices closed.
Of general interest:
City Advisory Commissions are listed with their duties and powers described in the Charter of the City of Santa Barbara, See: Article Vlll, Appointive Boards and Commissions, pg; 25 et seg. Other commissions may be formed by the City Council for certain issues of public concern. Santa Barbara Municipal Code. The fall recruitment is presently on-going: https://santabarbaraca.gov/government/boards-commissions/applications-vacancies
AIA-Santa Barbara, August 2020, State Street Promenade and housing community survey results, more than 4,800 responses, linked here. Civic groups concerned about city government: Allied Neighborhoods Association, Citizens Planning Association, League of Women Voters -Santa Barbara, and various hyperlocal neighborhood associations.
City of Santa Barbara emphasizes transparency: https://santabarbaraca.gov/government-transparency. Not listed under city transparency is a link to the Ralph M. Brown Act (“Brown Act“), “In enacting this chapter, the Legislature finds and declares that the public commissions, boards and councils and the other public agencies in this State exist to aid in the conduct of the people’s business. It is the intent of the law that their actions be taken openly and that their deliberations be conducted openly.” On 9/15/22, Assistant City Attorney John Doimas gave the Harbor Commission two presentations, on the Brown Act and, also, on Conflict of Interest considerations; item 2, approximately 12:31 minutes into the meeting. (There are no documents listed online.)
