Central Coast roundup

By El Latino Newsroom
[email protected]

County Executive Officer, Dr. Sevet Johnson, was recognized by the Pacific Coast Business Times as one of the Top 50 Women in Business. 

The event, which was held at the Hilton Waterfront Hotel in Santa Barbara, honored women leaders in business from across San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, and Ventura Counties. Dr. Johnson was the keynote speaker for the evening.

“It was an honor to be recognized among this incredible cohort of women business leaders who have shown up and excelled in their own unique ways,” said Dr. Johnson. 

“Their efforts have left an indelible mark on their industries and wider communities. Through unparalleled leadership, tenacity, and resilience, they have paved the way for other women and young leaders, such as our daughters, to have role models to look up to and follow in their footsteps.”

Dr. Johnson has served as the County Executive Officer since 2022, previously holding the role of Interim County Executive Officer. 

In her role, Dr. Johnson oversees 27 County agencies and departments with an operating budget of $2.7 billion and over 10,000 staff members. 

She also serves as the Ex-Officio Clerk of the Board.

Prior to her tenure in the County Executive Office, Dr. Johnson served as the Chief Deputy Director of the Ventura County Health Care Agency and Director of the Behavioral Health Department. 

She holds a Bachelor of Arts in English Language and Literature from the University of Massachusetts, Boston, a Master of Science in Marriage and Family Therapy and Master of Science in Clinical Psychology from Pepperdine University, and a Doctorate in Clinical Psychology from Alliant International University, Los Angeles.

SB WILL STUDY PLASTIC POLLUTION

The City of Santa Barbara informed this week the Creeks Restoration and Water Quality Improvement Division (Creeks Division), in partnership with the University of Southern California (USC) Sea Grant Program, has been awarded $1.26 million in grant funding for microplastic pollution research.

According to local officials the City’s Sustainability & Resilience Department will oversee the project.

The work will be carried out in collaboration with the City of Santa Barbara, the University of California Santa Barbara, the San Francisco Estuary Institute, the Southern California Coastal Water Research Project, the Moore Institute for Plastic Pollution Research, WSP USA, and Cascade Water Resources.

“We are incredibly excited to work with USC Sea Grant and our research partners, including Dr. Patricia Holden at UCSB” said Jill Murray, Creeks Division Water Quality Research Analyst.

Microplastics are small plastic pieces or fibers smaller than 5mm in size (about the size of a pencil eraser). 

“They are found on our streets, in our creeks and ocean, the water we drink, the food we eat, and the air we breathe. Microplastics can absorb and carry pollutants, leach harmful chemicals into water, and are often mistaken for food by wildlife,” she said.

Microplastics often come from larger plastic products breaking down due to sun, wind, and wave exposure, breaking down into smaller and smaller pieces.

The City indicates the project, “Clean Streets, Clean Seas: Innovating Public Works to Intercept Microplastics in Urban Runoff,” will provide the first measured and reported results on the impacts of street sweeping and trash capture devices on microplastic marine debris in stormwater runoff, which transports the bulk of microplastic pollution to the sea. 

Project fieldwork will take place in Santa Barbara as well as the San Francisco Bay and Los Angeles areas at the same time. 

“This project will determine how to remove microplastics from impervious urban surfaces to the greatest extent possible, as soon as possible, from as many acres as possible, in order to protect our streams, estuaries, and oceans from harmful pollution,” said Murray.

This funding is part of a $27 million funding effort by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to address the prevention and removal of debris in marine and Great Lakes environments throughout the country. 

This project is one of 29 competitively selected through two opportunities supported by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and leveraging funds from the Inflation Reduction Act: The Marine Debris Challenge Competition and The Marine Debris Community Action Coalitions. 

“The Creeks Division’s research on decreasing the amount of microplastics reaching our creeks and ocean complements the City’s ongoing efforts to reduce the impacts of single-use plastics in Santa Barbara,” said Sustainability & Resilience Director Alelia Parenteau. 

“We look forward to this project contributing important data to help government agencies nationwide take meaningful action to prevent microplastic pollution.”

LESS HOMELESS IN SB

The County of Santa Barbara informed that preliminary results of the 2023 Homeless Point in Time (PIT) Count showed a decrease of 3.7% in the number of people experiencing homelessness in the County. 

Local officials said the report was conducted on January 25, 2023 by the Santa Maria/Santa Barbara County Continuum of Care (Continuum of Care), and it serves as a snapshot of homelessness in the county on a single night.

Countywide, 1,887 persons were counted representing a decrease of 3.7% in the number of persons experiencing homelessness. 

The Count includes 1,202 persons experiencing unsheltered homelessness and 685 persons living in emergency shelters or transitional housing. 

More than 77% of persons surveyed during the count reported losing housing while living in Santa Barbara County.

The County Board of Supervisors, Continuum of Care and cities adopted a Community Action Plan to Address Homelessness in 2021 outlining key strategies and action steps. 

Following adoption, 140 shelter beds and over 800 opportunities for permanent housing have been added to the homelessness response system. 

Approximately 1,050 persons transitioned out of homelessness into permanent housing despite soaring rents and an extremely low rental vacancy rate in 2022. 

The County has made significant investments in shelter, housing and services including resolving 154 encampments. 

This significant achievement was made possible through the collaborative efforts of dedicated service providers.

According to Continuum of Care Chairperson, Sylvia Barnard contributing to this success was the Emergency Housing Voucher program. 

“The Voucher Program is helping families enter housing and end their homelessness. This program has been instrumental in the County of Santa Barbara’s efforts to house vulnerable and chronically homeless residents across our communities,” she said.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development provided a total of 272 long-term rental subsidy vouchers to the Housing Authority of the City of Santa Barbara and the Housing Authority of the County of Santa Barbara. 

The two housing authorities worked with the Continuum of Care and the County of Santa Barbara to successfully lease up all vouchers ending homelessness for hundreds of local families and individuals. 

“Largely as a result of prevention and housing efforts like vouchers, the 2023 Point in Time Count has shown a decrease in homelessness in the county,” Barnard said. 

Local program implementation has received national recognition for the efficient utilization of this valuable permanent housing resource.