Author Archives: Jaime Shaw

Goleta Creek Tours Finale of Creek Week

What better way to end Creek Week than with tours of two of our Goleta Creeks.

Approximately 25 people attended the Devereux Creek tour on September 28 led by City of Goleta’s Parks and Open Space Manager George Thomson. Participants learned about the Devereux Creek watershed, got an up-close look at transitional wetland habitats, examined why some invasive plants are able to negatively impact biodiversity, deciphered what monarch butterfly overwintering sites need to function, and more. 

Another 20+ people attended the San Jose Creek tour on September 29. The tour, led by the City’s Environmental Services Manager Melissa Nelson and Brian Trautwein of the Environmental Defense Center, also served as a great opportunity for community members to find out more about upcoming projects for the creek. Topics included the current bike path project, learning about the native habitat around the creek, the San Jose Creek Fish Passage project, the new “Clean Creeks Green Streets” initiative, as well as some potential locations for water capture and filtration features such as modular wetlands.

We appreciate the engagement of our community members who help us protect our creeks! 

SB Creek Week 2023 was a great success all-around. Here in Goleta, our highlights included Coastal Cleanup Day, the Goleta Valley Library’s Creek Week Art Contest, tours of the Devereux and San Jose Creeks, and giving out over 1,000 bilingual coloring books and creek giveaways during the Lemon Festival. The City of Santa Barbara also coordinated many other events County-wide, each of the other events led by our neighboring jurisdictions. 

Let’s keep the momentum going and continue to show our love for our precious creeks year-round! Don’t forget to mark your calendars for our community cleanup of Devereux Creek this Saturday, October 7th from 9:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.!  We keep up creek stewardship throughout the year and there are many opportunities to get involved. If you are interested in other events throughout the year, there are many more to come that you can find on our Beautify Goleta website. 

If you’d like to learn more about the City’s Creek and Watersheds Management Program, join us for a special City Council meeting on December 5th. More information about this will be posted on the City’s Council Meetings web page as it gets closer.

Pictured above: George Thomson leading the Devereux Creek Tour


Devereux Creek Tour


Melissa Nelson and Brian Trautwein leading the San Jose Creek Tour

 
San Jose Creek Tour

National Pedestrian Safety Month Happening Now

National Bike and Walk to School Day Today, October 4

October is National Pedestrian Safety Month. This observance recognizes the right of everyone to walk or roll safely and reminds drivers of their responsibility to stay alert for pedestrians, cyclists, and other vulnerable road users. Today, October 4th, schools from all over participated in National Bike and Walk to School Day. Thanks to Mayor Paula Perotte, City of Goleta Police Chief Lt. Rich Brittingham, Community Resource Deputy George Hedricks, and the California Highway Patrol for joining students at Brandon School to encourage walking and rolling to school.

It’s a two-way street. Drivers and pedestrians must work together to demonstrate safe behaviors on the road, helping to protect themselves and those around them. The Office of Traffic Safety and their partners provide the following tips for pedestrians and drivers.

Safety tips for pedestrians:

  • Make yourself visible: wear bright colored clothes and carry a flashlight if you are walking at night.
  • Avoid dangerous behaviors: always walk on the sidewalk (no jaywalking), stay sober and make eye contact with drivers – don’t assume the driver can see you.
  • Stay off your phones, talking and especially texting distracts you from paying attention to your surroundings.
  • Look before you step: cross streets at marked crosswalks/intersections, obey traffic signals and watch for turning vehicles.
  • Look left-right-left before crossing a street.
  • Be predictable. Use crosswalks.

Safety tips for drivers:

  • Don’t speed, follow the speed limit and never use your phone; always be cautious of your surroundings.
  • Never drive under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs.
  • Look out for pedestrians, especially in hard-to-see conditions such as at night or in bad weather.
  • Pedestrians have the right of way at any crosswalk or intersection, so yield and be prepared to stop.
  • Stop at the crosswalk stop line to give drivers in other lanes an opportunity to see and yield to pedestrians too.
  • Be cautious when backing up – pedestrians, especially young children, can move across your path.

It’s also important to teach children how to walk safely. Below are tips from Safe Kids Worldwide.

  • Teach kids at an early age to look left, right and left again before crossing the street. Then remind them to continue looking until safely across.
  • It’s always best to walk on sidewalks or paths and cross at street corners, using traffic signals and crosswalks. If there are no sidewalks, walk facing traffic as far to the left as possible. 
  • Teach kids to make eye contact with drivers before crossing the street.
  • Children under 10 need to cross the street with an adult. Every child is different, but developmentally, most kids are unable to judge the speed and distance of oncoming cars until age 10.
  • Encourage kids to be especially alert for cars that are turning or backing up.
  • Teach kids not to run or dart out into the street or cross between parked cars.
  • If kids are walking when it’s dark out, teach them to be especially alert and make sure they are visible to drivers. Have them wear light- or brightly-colored clothing and reflective gear. 

If we all follow these few simple suggestions, we can improve our individual safety while enjoying the benefits of walking and enjoying our community.


Mayor Perotte with a student

 
CRD Hedricks with a young student on his scooter  


Mayor Paula Perotte and CRD George Hedricks


City of Goleta Police Chief Lt. Rich Brittingham and Brandon Principal Sheryl Miller


Group of students and parents biking to school

Save the Date for the Goleta Holiday Parade

December 2 from 6:00 – 9:00 p.m. in Old Town

Kick off the holiday season with the Goleta Old Town Holiday Parade! Join the fun as a sponsor, volunteer or participant on Saturday, December 2, 2023, from 6:00 – 9:00 p.m. Learn more at https://goletaholidayparade.org/.

Dozens of local businesses and individual community groups head down Hollister Avenue from Orange Avenue to Kinman Avenue, in brightly decorated floats and vehicles. Local schools will proudly march bands along the entire route and special entries will show off their finest holiday decorations.

The City of Goleta will be there with bells on! Look for the City Council, Public Works and Goleta Valley Library on the parade route. So mark your calendars to cheer us on December 2!

The parade is presented by the Goleta Lions Club, in partnership with the City of Goleta and community sponsors.

Pictured: City of Goleta Mayor Perotte

And the Ghost Story Challenge Winner Is…

Find Out October 26

The Goleta and Santa Ynez Valley Libraries Ghost Story Challenge 2023 was a smashing success! One hundred and nineteen scary and mysterious stories related to the supernatural were submitted by adults (50), high school students (20), and middle school students (49). A panel of professional writers will be judging the entries and selecting winners from a variety of categories (see list below).

Find out the winners and celebrate the participants at a special “Final Reckoning” event in the Santa Ynez Valley on Thursday, October 26th at 6:00 pm, at the Casa Cassara Winery & Vineyard Tasting Room (607 Mission Drive, Suite 112, Solvang). We encourage the community to come hear the winning stories and enjoy refreshments. Costumes are encouraged!

Can’t make the reception? The scary stories will be made available online at a later date. You can also check the Facebook page of each library branch the evening of October 26 for a list of winners:

We can’t wait to find out the winners! Stories will be judged on the following categories: Scariest, Best Plot, Most Original, Writer’s Craft, Best Overall, Best Dialogue and Best Setting. Prizes include horror genre books, including some signed by the judges, gift certificates and more.

Happy haunting!

Creek Week Art Contest Winners Announced

Community Selects People’s Choice Award Winner

Congratulations to the 2nd Annual Creek Week Art Contest winners. More than 60 people filled the Goleta Valley Library’s multipurpose room on September 27, for an art reception held to recognize the participants and reveal the winning artwork. This year’s theme “Goleta the Goodland, Thriving Habitats” inspired 59 artists this year to create pieces of art highlighting our creeks, watersheds, and ocean. The record number of submissions included a wide array of different mediums including paint, watercolor, photography, collages, mixed media, yarn, and more.

City of Goleta Mayor Paula Perotte had the impossible job of selecting the winners. She said, “I am wowed by the incredible talent that we have here in Goleta. These colorful and creative artworks highlight how fortunate we are to live in such a beautiful place! I look forward to seeing even more participants at next year’s Creek Week Art Contest here at the Goleta Valley Library.”

The judging was based on relevance to the theme, overall appearance, and originality.

Here are the 2023 Creek Week Art Contest Winners:

Children (6th grade and below)

  • 1st Place – Aishani Mishra
  • 2nd Place – Zoe Mac Donald
  • 3rd Place – Grace Johnsen
  • Honorable Mention – Siena Vanella

Teens (7th -12th grade)

  • 1st Place – Wylder Gordon
  • 2nd Place – Ava Zhang
  • 3rd Place – Rudy Gloo

Adults (18+)

  • 1st Place – Heather Frazier
  • 2nd Place – Jana Brody
  • 3rd Place – Paulette Ley
  • Honorable Mention – Merlie Samonte

A special “People’s Choice” category was added for the community to select their favorite art piece. The winner was Wylder Gordon who also took home 1st place in the Teen category.

Thank you to everyone who participated.

Pictured above: People’s Choice AND Teen category 1st place winner Wylder Gordon


Children’s category 1st place winner Aishani Misha


Adult category 1st place winner Heather Frazier


Group Photo


District 2 Councilmember James Kyriaco voting for the People’s Choice Award

 

Housing Element Revisions Available

7-Day Public Review through October 9

The City of Goleta submitted revisions to the adopted Housing Element 2023-2031 to the State for review on August 18, 2023. Based on preliminary feedback from the State, the City has prepared additional revisions to the document. The adopted Housing Element 2023-2031 with the revisions shown in tracked changes can be viewed here. A shorter document that only includes pages where new edits are proposed can be found here. The newly proposed revisions are highlighted in blue.

This document was released for a 7-day public review on October 2 and will be available through October 9. If you have any comments on these revisions, submit them to HousingElement@cityofgoleta.org by Monday, October 9 at 5:00 p.m. Staff will consider comments received, make necessary revisions, and transmit the revisions to the State for its consideration.

More information on Goleta’s Housing Element Update is available at www.CityofGoleta.org/HousingElement.

Our Water Our World: Identify Pests Before You Spray

…Pesticides Don’t Stay Put!

Garden pests can be annoying. The City of Goleta strongly discourages the use of herbicides, pesticides, or fertilizers on your home garden, as these products can degrade water quality and pollute local waterways. Fortunately, there are great methods of pest control that don’t rely on toxic chemicals that harm watersheds!

Aphids

Aphids are 1/16 to 1/8th inch in length and pear-shaped with long legs and antennae. They can be green, yellow, red or black in color. Some aphids have white or gray waxy covering. Aphids are found on new buds, leaves, stems, and undersides of leaves.

When you find aphids, remove the infested part of the plant and curled leaves with aphids inside. Wash off the plant with strong stream of water. Control ants with baits or sticky barrier. Apply insecticidal soap or oil.

Whiteflies

Adult whiteflies are about 1/8th with four white wings. The immovile nymphs have a protective cover which looks waxy, cottony, or hair like. Giant Whiteflies make long waxy strands on the underside of the leaf. Adults and larvae are found on the underside of leaves.

When you find whiteflies on your plants, remove heavily infested leaves (or plants). Replace with resistant plants. Wash Whiteflies off leaves with strong stream of water. Control ants with baits or sticky barrier. Apply insecticidal soaps or oil. Wash dust off plants.

Powdery Mildew

Powdery mildew is a fungal disease spread by airborne spores. It appears as a white, powdery growth on green parts of plant or as yellow patches with no powdery growth on artichokes, onions, peppers, and tomatoes.

To avoid mildew, plant in a sunny location with good airflow. Replace plants with resistance varieties. Remove heavily infested plant parts. Apply horiticulural oil to eradicate a mild infection.

Scales

Scales are insects under protective covers that look like small bups about 1/8th inch. They are found on stems leaves, and sometimes fruit.

When your plant has scales, remove infested plant parts. Control ants with bait or a sticky barrier. Apply horticultural oil or insecticidal soap. Wash dust off plants.

Snails & Slugs

Snails have a protective shell which slugs lack. Muscular foot on snails excretes mucus, and leaves a silvery trail when dry. Snails and slugs Hide in shady damp place during the day and feed on plants at night.

When you find snails and slugs in your garden, put a copper barrier around plants or tree trunks. Place traps or raised boards by plants and collect snails/slugs daily. Wear gloves and hand pick smails/slugs nightly until few are founds. Release predatory decollate smails under citrus and in ground cover.

Practice identifying pests below! Answers are at the bottom of the page.

 
 


Answers: 1. Whitefly, 2. Scales, 3. Aphids, 4. Powdery Mildew, 5. Snail and Slug

Learn more about identifying pests in the Healthy Garden Healthy Home brochure. Find more information on Pesticides and Water Pollution in our OWOW brochures in English and Spanish. Find more information on Integrated Pest Management (IPM) in our OWOW brochure. 

Must-See October Programming at the Library

What do Jedi, Pete the Cat, and poetry have in common? You can find all of them at Goleta Valley Library this month! See our fantastic line-up of programming for the whole family below. Plus, check out details about our In-N-Out Cover to Cover Reading Program and the return of After-School Homework Help.

Teen Black-Out Poetry
Sunday, October 1st – Saturday, October 14th
Create a poem by selecting words and phrases from a page and removing the rest of the text. Pick up a page of text in the Teen Corner or use one of your own! Submit your finished poem for display in the library.

After-School Homework Help
Thursdays 4:00 – 6:00 p.m.
Kindergarten – 6th grade students can receive free, one-on-one help with their homework after school at the library. Service is provided on a drop-in basis, so no appointment is needed ahead of time. Our volunteer tutors are excited to help our local students finish the school year with success.

In-N-Out Cover to Cover Reading Program
October 7th – November 18th
Children will receive an award of one free hamburger or cheeseburger for every five books read, up to three awards! See your local branch for details.

Bookworm Bingo for Kids
Friday, October 13th, 4:00 p.m.
Join us for some kid-friendly, bookish bingo! We’ll play four bingo rounds featuring titles and characters from children’s literature. Plus, there will be take-home gift baggies for all participants. Space is limited! Please sign up at the circulation desk or call 805-964-7878 to reserve a spot.

Star Wars Day
Saturday, October 14th, 2:00 – 4:00 p.m.
Meet your favorite Star Wars characters, enjoy crafts and activities, and find Baby Yoda on the shelf to win prizes!

Halloween Children’s Craft
Saturday, October 28th, 2:30 – 4:00 p.m.
Calling all Goblins and Ghouls! Stop by Goleta Valley Library for a ghooostly good time and spend an afternoon making spook-tacular crafts! Costumes encouraged!

Find Pete on the Shelf! Halloween Edition
Saturday, October 28th, Sunday, October 29th, Tuesday, October 31st, All Day
Pete the Cat is dressed up for Halloween and playing Hide and Seek at Goleta Valley Library! Find where he is hiding to get a treat!

Trick, Treat, and Read!
Tuesday, October 31st, All Day
Stop by the library and get a fun treat and check out a great book to read! Be sure to wear your Halloween costume!

Check out the online Events Calendar for all our recurring programs, including storytimes, the Writers’ Workshop, book clubs and more!

Coffee and Community THIS Saturday, October 7

Join Us from 9:00 – 11:00 a.m. at Ellwood School

It’s time for City of Goleta’s next Café y Comunidad / Coffee & Community event. We hope to see you THIS Saturday morning, October 7th at Ellwood Elementary School (7686 Hollister Avenue) from 9:00 to 11:00 a.m. for coffee, conversation, and pastries. Thank you to KOZY Coffee for generously providing the coffee at this event.

Join Mayor Paula Perotte, City Councilmember Stuart Kasdin, and Goleta staff members from Neighborhood Services, Planning, Public Works and more. Come alone or bring your friends and neighbors. Live Spanish interpretation will be provided at this bilingual event.

The Café y Comunidad / Coffee & Community event will take place outdoors at the covered picnic tables by the auditorium. The playground will be available for children attending. Opening remarks will begin at 9:30 a.m. followed by a time for questions.

We have enjoyed seeing community members connect with their neighbors at these events and get to know the City better. You will hear updates from the City and learn about current and future projects, including what’s in store for Ellwood Mesa. This is an opportunity for you to ask questions and share ideas or concerns about your neighborhood.

The City has held two successful Café y Comunidad / Coffee & Community events in different locations throughout Goleta and look forward to our next one on October 7. See you Saturday!

Nominations Open for Goleta’s Finest

Submit Your Nomination by October 6

The Santa Barbara South Coast Chamber of Commerce will recognize Goleta’s Finest during the annual community awards gala on December 1, 2023, at 5:30 p.m. at the at the Ritz-Carlton Bacara (8301 Hollister Avenue). If you know someone deserving of special recognition for their community contributions, now is your opportunity to nominate them for these prestigious awards. To ensure your recommendations are considered, please submit a completed nomination form by October 6.

Award nomination categories include:

  • Man of the Year
  • Woman of the Year
  • Educator of the Year
  • Student of the Year
  • Volunteer of the Year
  • Non-Profit of the Year
  • Innovator of the Year

#GoodLandGoodPeople