Author Archives: Jaime Shaw

The Flu is Here – Get Your Vaccine

City of Goleta Emergency Services Coordinator Michael Baris encourages you to get your flu vaccine.

Flu viruses are especially present in the winter months, and now is a good time to start thinking about getting your annual flu shot. The Santa Barbara County Public Health Department highly encourages every person aged 6 months and older to receive their vaccine, if able. A bad case of flu can result in hospitalization or even death, so people at higher risk of developing serious flu complications need to receive the vaccine in order to prevent the worst.

For everyone else, getting a flu vaccine is still a great idea. Protecting yourself from disease is always a good thing! And by preventing yourself from getting the flu, you are one less person who could potentially pass on the disease to someone who is unable to receive the vaccine and may be strongly affected. Be good to yourself and your neighbor!

To get the flu shot, check with your health care provider. You can receive your flu shot at most pharmacies, and many provide the vaccine free of charge with insurance.

Visit the Santa Barbara County Public Health Department’s Seasonal Flu webpage for more information: https://www.countyofsb.org/2702/Seasonal-Flu-2022-2023.

Green Room: Are You Ready for the Rainy Season?

The City of Goleta Environmental Services Division would like to share some tips to help protect our watersheds during the rainy season. As winter approaches, let’s stop water pollution and keep our storm drains and creeks clean! Winter rains produce stormwater runoff which is rain that does not soak into the ground and flows over land and other surfaces. Stormwater runoff can carry trash and pollutants into storm drains, which flow directly to creeks, rivers, and the ocean without any treatment. The trash and chemicals in the runoff pose a threat to wildlife and water quality.

Remember “only rain down the drain.”

If you observe stormwater concerns such as trash, illegal dumping, or any fluid with a visible sheen, odor, or color entering the storm drain within the City of Goleta, Report water pollution within the City of Goleta to environmentalservices@cityofgoleta.org. Hazardous Materials Spills should be reported to 911. Sanitary sewer (wastewater) spills should be reported to the Goleta Sanitary District (805-967-4519) or Goleta West Sanitary District (805-968-2617) immediately.

Here are some great ways to keep storm drains clear of trash and pollutants:
  • Keep trash and recycling cans tightly covered to prevent litter from being blown away during storms.
  • Take your car to a commercial car wash prior to the first rains.
  • Do not drain or pour any automotive fluid onto the street or into a storm drain.
  • Sweep dirt out of curbs and into landscaping to prevent it from entering storm drains.
  • Adjust your sprinklers to prevent over-watering and prevent water from draining onto paved surfaces such as driveways and sidewalks.
  • Do not apply pesticides or fertilizers before a rain event or within:
  • 5 feet of pavement
  • 25 feet of a storm drain
  • 50 feet of a water body
  • Compost leaves and yard clippings.
  • Always pick up after your pet.

Click here to learn more about the City’s Stormwater program.

Our Water Our World: Pesticide Use & Disposal

Learn about pesticide use and disposal while protecting the health of people, pets, and our environment with these tips from the City of Goleta Environmental Services Division.

Pesticides can cause problems for our health and the environment even when applied according to label directions. Pesticides sprayed outdoors to kill insect pests or control weeds make their way into our waterways. Very small amounts of pesticides can be lethal to marine life, birds, and other life forms.

If You Must Use Pesticides

Choose wisely
  • Identify the pest and the afflicted plant, and then choose a product labeled for use on that pest and plant. Not all pesticides are effective against all pests.
  • Choose the least-toxic product available. Enclosed baits and traps are safer options.
  • Buy ready-to-use products instead of concentrates. In addition to being less toxic because they are diluted, ready-to-use products avoid spills because you don’t need to measure or mix the product.
  • Avoid sprays. Aerosol sprays in particular increase the risk of exposure to beneficial insects, birds, pets, you, and your family.
Use wisely
  • Use only the amount recommended on the label to do the job. More is not better.
  • Spot-treat whenever possible.
  • Don’t use pesticides outdoors when rain is predicted, or just before you water your lawn or garden.
  • Pesticides, whether tracked in from outdoors or used inside, can contaminate carpets and floors where children play. If you apply pesticides outside, you can carry chemicals inside on your clothing and shoes. Pets can also be carriers.

Storing Pesticides & Application Equipment

  • Store pesticides in their original containers and keep the label on the Follow all storage instructions on the label. If the label gets wet or starts to come off, protect it with plastic tape. Never transfer pesticides to soft drink bottles or other containers.
  • Store pesticides where children and pets cannot reach Close containers tightly and remember that “child-resistant” packaging does not mean “child-proof.”
  • Do not store pesticides where flooding is possible or in places where they might spill or leak onto the ground or into water. Clearly mark containers, applicators and utensils used for mixing or applying pesticides and store them with the pesticides. Do not use them for any other purpose.

Safe & Legal Pesticide Disposal

  • Take pesticides you won’t be using to a local household hazardous waste collection facility or event. Learn how to dispose of pesticides on our Solid Waste website. In California, it’s illegal to dispose of any amount of unused pesticide (or any hazardous waste) in the trash, in spite of what the label may say.
  • You may dispose of empty pesticide containers in the trash if they are 5 gallons or less in capacity. When you have used up the pesticide, rinse the container three times, each time pouring the rinsewater on the plant you bought the pesticide for. Then put the rinsed container in the trash.
  • Never dispose of pesticide rinse water in any indoor or outdoor drain. Water used to rinse out a sprayer or applicator should be applied like the pesticide.
  • If you have a pesticide that is no longer available in stores—such as chlordane, DDT, chlorpyrifos (Dursban), or diazinon, do not use it. Take it to household hazardous waste collection.

Find more information on Pesticide Use and Disposal in our OWOW brochures in English and Spanish. 

The City of Goleta along with the Cities of Buellton, Carpinteria, Solvang, Santa Barbara, Santa Maria, and the County of Santa Barbara have partnered with the OWOW organization to promote the use of less-toxic products in an effort to reduce pesticide pollution in our communities. By reducing pesticide use and the use of less-toxic products around the home, you can help reduce pesticides and other pollutants such as herbicides and fertilizers from being picked up while watering or when it rains and transported to the nearest storm drain inlet and into our waterways. The OWOW website is a great resource for finding less-toxic products to use around your home or garden.

Removal of Last Two Oil Piers at Haskell’s Beach in Progress

The work to remove the pier and caisson structures, known as PRC 421-1 and 421-2, at Haskell’s Beach is going well and is on schedule to be completed by early next year. At the end of August, the State Lands Commission in collaboration with the City of Goleta began the work which will up to six months to complete. Sections of the beach may close temporarily to keep the public safe during the operations, but the beach will remain open otherwise.

The State Lands Commission is currently in the process of dismantling the first Pier (421-1), and removal is expected in mid-November. Removal work on the second Pier (421-2), is expected to start in mid-December.

Crews are working Monday through Friday from 6:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Due to the surf zone location of the facilities, some work must be scheduled around low-tide cycles, which may be outside of these hours. The project requires the use of heavy equipment at the worksite and the transport of approximately 500 truckloads of material to an approved recycling and disposal facility. Crews will access the worksite via the existing gravel access road adjacent to the Ellwood Onshore Facility and along a 12’-wide easement across the Sandpiper golf course and along the cliff to the piers. Removal of the piers and caissons will require equipment access along the beach during low tides.

The Commission prepared an Environmental Impact Report and secured permits for this project in collaboration with federal, state, and local agencies. More information can be found at: www.slc.ca.gov/ceqa/prc-421-decommissioning-project.

Pictured above: Looking inside the 421-1 caisson. The caisson has been excavated down to bedrock. All of the original fill (soil, wood, steel, and concrete) has been hauled out. Some seawater has accumulated at the bottom of the caisson from the ocean waves cresting over the top of the ocean-facing wall.


421-1 Pier looking at the northwest side of the caisson. The west wall and a portion of the north wall has been partially demolished by knocking down the concrete and steel structure. The original wall height was about 15 feet from the beach. The wall height is now about 6-8 feet above the sand. 421-2 Pier can be seen in the background. Crews are preparing to start excavation in the 421-2 Caisson.


421-1 Looking at the east side of the caisson. The east wall has also been partially demolished. The concrete and steel materials from the structure has been hauled out.

Supportive Housing Development Update

The site of the future permanent supportive housing site, Buena Tierra, in Old Town Goleta is getting closer to welcoming its first residents as conversion work continues. Construction is estimated to be completed by April 2023 and start housing people by the end of that same month. The application process for the project is set to begin by the end of 2022.

The Housing Authority of the County of Santa Barbara, in partnership with the County of Santa Barbara and City of Goleta, held an in-person meeting on October 13, 2022, at the site of the project located at 6021 Hollister Avenue in Old Town.  It was a great opportunity to learn about the project, see the progress made thus far and ask questions.

Approximately 50 people attended the informative meeting and site visit including community members, stakeholders, and local elected officials. Attendees included representatives from HASBARCO, the City of Goleta, SB ACT, Goleta Mayor Paula Perotte, Mayor Pro Tempore Stuart Kasdin, Councilmember James Kyriaco, Councilmember Kyle Richards, Third District Supervisor Joan Hartmann, and representatives from State Senator Monique Limón’s office.

The Permanent Supportive Housing development project will make use of all 65 rooms currently on-site. Of these rooms, 59 would become permanent supportive housing units for people experiencing, or at risk of, homelessness. One unit would house the onsite property manager, and the five remaining units converted to communal spaces that will provide a series of wide-ranging services from health clinics, support services, meeting areas, and community dinners.

Nearly $16 million of the Homekey 2.0 award from the State of California goes toward the approximately $20 million total project cost. An additional $3 million in Homekey 2.0 funding will be applied to initial rental subsidies.

Under recent State law (AB 140 and AB 2162), supportive housing projects funded through the Homekey program are automatically deemed consistent and in conformity with local General Plan and zoning requirements and allowed by right as a permitted use.


Attendees at October 13, 2022, meeting

Catalytic Converter Thefts Continue

Catalytic converter thefts continue to be a crime trend. Recently, Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s deputies arrested two suspects from the Los Angeles area for theft of catalytic converters in Goleta and recovered six stolen converters.

The deputies responded to the area of Dearborn Place and Armitos Avenue for a reported theft of a catalytic converter that had just occurred. The reporting party provided a suspect vehicle description. Approximately 7 minutes later, deputies spotted a similar vehicle on Highway 101, southbound and conducted a traffic enforcement stop near the Las Positas offramp.

The theft of catalytic converters is popular because they can be easily removed, they do not have identifying marks like serial numbers, and the components are made up of precious metals that can be resold to recyclers. There are steps that can be taken to thwart these thefts including parking inside a garage or secured yard, installing motion detector lights near parking areas, installing a catalytic converter protection device, and educating neighbors to be on the look-out for thieves.

To report suspicious activity, call 911 or the non-emergency dispatch line at 805-683-2724.

Pictured: Catalytic converters found in trunk of suspects car

Community Resource Deputy Available to Help Goleta Businesses

Book Appointment for Free Assessment and Review Burglary Prevention Tips

The City of Goleta’s Community Resource Deputy (CRD) is now available to provide free assessments to Goleta businesses to help deter burglaries. Goleta business owners can book an appointment with CRD Ehren Rauch to receive an onsite inspection and personalized tips. Deputy Rauch will come to your business and provide tips on what the business can do to improve employee safety and prepare against burglaries and robberies.

Deputy Rauch said, “By taking preemptive measures, businesses can help prevent crime and deter would-be criminals. Our goal is to maintain an open line of communication with local businesses. The Sheriff’s Office takes the community’s safety seriously and looks forward to working together to keep Goleta safe.”

To promote this new service, the City of Goleta partnered with the Goleta Police Department to publish a brochure that provides information on how to book an assessment and includes important tips for businesses such as what to do to avoid a robbery, what to do if a robbery occurs, proper design recommendations and video surveillance advice. The brochure is available at the Sheriff’s substation at the Camino Real Marketplace (7042 Marketplace Drive), Goleta City Hall (130 Cremona Drive) and the Goleta Valley Library (500 N. Fairview Avenue).

You can view the brochure with the full list of tips here, or on our website at https://www.cityofgoleta.org/your-city/city-manager-s-office/public-safety/goleta-police-department.

For Goleta business owners who want to schedule a free assessment with CRD Rauch, call (805) 968-3878 or email goletapd@sbsheriff.org.

Thank you to the Goleta Police Department for providing this great resource.

The City of Goleta contracts with the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office for law enforcement services.

Creek and Watershed Management Plan Survey Update

Thank you, Goleta, for the great response for the City’s Creek and Watershed Management Plan (CWMP) survey. More than 500 people completed the survey before it closed on October 31st.  Your survey responses will help the City prioritize work efforts with the limited funding available for the CWMP. There are a number of possible projects ranging from supporting cleanups of trash and homeless encampments to maintaining proper flood control and drainage within creeks and throughout our watersheds and supporting fire prevention projects within corridors and open space.

Learn more about the Creek and Watershed Management Plan, which was adopted in December of 2020, here.

The City of Goleta deeply appreciates the community’s feedback on the CWMP. Please look out for future opportunities to provide stakeholder input, a critical part of the overall program’s success.

Hollister Avenue Old Town Interim Striping Project Approved

Construction to Begin Early Next Summer

The Hollister Avenue Old Town Interim Striping Project (Project) is headed to the final design phase and will begin construction in early summer 2023. At a Special City Council meeting held October 27, 2022, the Goleta City Council voted in favor of moving the project forward after hearing a presentation from City Staff and testimony from community members. This meeting was the culmination of several City Council meeting and a recent well-attended workshop.

Goleta Public Works Director Charlie Ebeling said, “Public Works is excited to move to the next phase of delivering this project. The project will meet several community goals such as increased parking and bike lanes. The project will also include several safety improvements.”

The Project includes:

  • One vehicle and bike lane in each direction
  • A non-traversable painted median
  • Back-in angled 90-minute parking along the north side of the street
  • Parallel 90-minute parking along the south side of the street
  • Pavement restoration
  • Traffic signal equipment and timing upgrades

For more information on this project, please visit: https://cityofgoleta.org/hollisterinterimstriping.

Pictured: Aerial photo of Hollister Avenue in Old Town

Last Chance to Help Update Goleta’s Accessibility Plan

Take Survey through Friday, November 4

The City of Goleta is reminding its community members and organizations to provide input on its Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Self-Evaluation and Transition Plan by taking our survey. Your feedback will assist in addressing and prioritizing current and future accessibility needs for individuals with disabilities to access City facilities, programs, services, activities and events offered to the public.

There are two surveys available and will remain open through November 4. One survey is intended for input from the general public and is open to everyone who accesses City services, and the other survey is designed for organizations and agencies that assist persons with disabilities. Both surveys are available in English and Spanish and can be accessed through the links below. To take the survey in another language, use the drop-down at the top of the survey.

The survey is also available to download and print on our website at https://www.cityofgoleta.org/your-city/public-works/disability-services.

Hard copies can also be picked up at:

  • Goleta City Hall (130 Cremona Drive, Suite B, Goleta, CA 93117) during regular business hours (Monday – Thursday, 8:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. and 1:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.).
  • Goleta Valley Library (500 N. Fairview Avenue, Goleta, CA 93117) during regular business hours (Tuesday – Thursday, 10:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.; Friday & Saturday 10:00 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. and Sunday 1:00 – 5:00 p.m.).

Please return all hard copy surveys to Julie Jang, City of Goleta ADA/504 Coordinator, at the City Hall address listed above. For any additional feedback, please contact Julie by phone at (805) 690-5121, by TDD through California Relay at 7-1-1, or by email at jjang@cityofgoleta.org.