Homelessness in Santa Barbara
Where We Are and Where We Can Go
Homelessness is one of the most visible and complex challenges facing the City of Santa Barbara today. Like many coastal California communities, we face extremely high housing costs, limited rental availability, mental health and addiction challenges, and evolving state laws that affect how local governments respond.
Residents see the impacts in different ways. Encampments near parks and schools. Concerns about public safety. Pressure on downtown businesses. Frustration that despite real spending and effort, progress can feel unclear.
At the same time, Santa Barbara is a compassionate community. We believe people experiencing homelessness deserve dignity, safety, and a real path forward.
The question is not whether we care. The question is how we deliver measurable results.
What the City Is Currently Doing
The City of Santa Barbara has made significant investments in homelessness response, often in partnership with the County of Santa Barbara, which oversees behavioral health and substance use services.
Current efforts include:
Interim Housing Partnerships
The City has supported interim housing solutions in collaboration with nonprofit partners, including modular projects associated with DignityMoves in downtown Santa Barbara. These sites provide short term housing combined with case management and stabilization services.
Project Homekey Related Projects
Project Homekey is a competitive state program. Funding does not always flow directly to the City. In Santa Barbara, Homekey projects have been pursued through regional partnerships and the local Housing Authority, with the City contributing local support in at least one conversion project. The City’s role has often been partnership, land use approval, and financial participation rather than direct operation.
The FARO Center
The City partnered with the Santa Barbara Alliance for Community Transformation to open the FARO Center, a daytime navigation hub that connects individuals to coordinated services, housing navigation, and workforce resources.
Safe Parking
The Safe Parking Program is operated by New Beginnings in cooperation with community partners. The City supports this effort, which provides a safer alternative for individuals living in vehicles while they work toward stable housing.
Street Outreach and Case Management
The City contracts with City Net to provide street outreach, case management, and housing navigation services throughout Santa Barbara.
These programs represent meaningful public investment. They involve city staff, nonprofit operators, County coordination, and significant state and federal funding streams.
But residents are still asking a reasonable question.
Are we seeing measurable, visible improvement in our neighborhoods and public spaces?
My Perspective
Santa Barbara can be compassionate and accountable at the same time. We must continue expanding treatment access and housing partnerships. We must continue working with the County on behavioral health capacity. But we should also explore innovative models that combine housing stability with personal responsibility and job opportunity.
That is why I am proposing we explore a carefully designed Work and Housing Pilot Program.
The Work and Housing Pilot Concept
The idea is straightforward.
Provide structured transitional housing paired with part time paid work that builds job history, routine, and a pathway to independence, while also helping address visible maintenance needs across our city.
Participants would:
• Live in structured transitional housing operated in partnership with experienced providers
• Work part time at minimum wage in clearly defined roles
• Participate in case management and employment development by FARO
• Contribute to a savings plan to prepare for independent housing
• Graduate into private rental or long term employment
Potential work opportunities could include:
• Sidewalk power washing
• Public restroom cleaning
• Graffiti removal and repainting of public buildings
• Park and beach maintenance
• Downtown beautification support
This would not replace existing city staff or union positions. It would be structured carefully within labor laws and in coordination with city departments.
The goal is not punishment. It is empowerment.
Nationally, cities such as New York and Albuquerque have implemented versions of housing and work based models that combine structured housing with paid maintenance and beautification work. Santa Barbara does not currently operate a municipal housing program tied directly to city employment. This would be a new pilot approach, designed responsibly and transparently.
How the Program Could Be Funded
Any new initiative must be fiscally responsible and grounded in real funding sources.
A Work and Housing Pilot would rely on a blended funding model rather than a new long term General Fund obligation.
State Homelessness Funds
Programs such as HHAP and Homekey provide state resources for homelessness response. These funds are competitive and often flow through County or regional Continuum of Care structures rather than directly to the City. Santa Barbara can participate through partnerships and by aligning projects with eligibility requirements.
Federal Housing and Community Development Funds
The City receives federal Community Development Block Grant and HOME funds under its Consolidated Plan. These sources are designed to support eligible housing stability and community development activities and could potentially support transitional housing components.
Workforce Development Partnerships
Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act programs and regional workforce agencies can support job training, case management, and employment services tied to transitional employment models.
Public Private Partnerships
Local philanthropy, business associations, and downtown stakeholders may be willing to invest in a program that both improves public cleanliness and creates a pathway out of homelessness.
Cost Offsets and Operational Efficiencies
If participants perform defined maintenance functions that reduce certain contracted services or overtime costs, the City can evaluate whether limited operational savings can be redirected toward wages and program supervision.
County Service Coordination
Because the County oversees mental health and substance use services, strong coordination would be essential to ensure participants receive appropriate treatment support when needed.
The key is transparency. Any pilot would include public reporting on costs, outcomes, and measurable impact.
Why This Matters
The homelessness conversation often becomes polarized.
Some say the solution is only more housing.
Others say the solution is only enforcement.
The reality is that sustainable progress requires structure, services, opportunity, and accountability.
Santa Barbara deserves clean parks, safe neighborhoods, thriving businesses, and real pathways forward for those ready to rebuild their lives.
We can honor our values of compassion while insisting on accountability and measurable results.
That is the balance I will work toward as your representative.