Category: News

In anticipation of large numbers of travelers over the Thanksgiving holiday, the Amtrak Pacific Surfliner will require advanced reservations to travel on board Pacific Surfliner trains and connecting bus service beginning Wednesday, Nov. 23 through Monday, Nov. 28. Additional train cars and shuttle buses will be used to increase the number of available seats. However, customers are strongly encouraged to plan ahead and book early to guarantee available tickets. Visit PacificSurfliner.com/holiday to learn more and book a trip.

Santa Barbara Metropolitan Transportation District’s Board of Directors approved a Short Range Transit Plan on Nov. 1 that includes impacts to Carpinteria. Changes are expected to be rolled out over the next five years. Major changes affecting Carpinteria will be the addition of a line (Line 19X) that provides direct connection between Carpinteria and Santa Barbara City College; improvements to Line 20, which connects Carpinteria to Santa Barbara; and the replacement of the Seaside Shuttle service with The Wave, an on-demand microtransit service.

Line 19X

Line 19x will be a new line providing a direct, express connection between Carpinteria and SBCC. Specifically, the service will provide peak hour and midday express service between Carpinteria, East Santa Barbara, and SBCC. The service will operate on weekdays only, and will not operate during SBCC spring and winter breaks. The service will feature two morning northbound trips (toward Santa Barbara), one midday round trip, and two afternoon/evening southbound trips (toward Carpinteria).

Seaside Shuttle

The Seaside Shuttle has been suspended since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, and the new plan is to replace the shuttle with the Wave, a flexible, on-demand shared ride curb-to-curb microtransit service covering the entire City of Carpinteria and some unincorporated County areas, including the Santa Claus Lane area. The exact days of the week and service span have not yet been specified, but it will be equivalent to ten hours a day, six days a week.

Line 20 Improvements

Line 20 provides the only current connection between Carpinteria and Santa Barbara in the MTD system. During the pandemic, Line 20 experienced the least ridership loss. Because this route clearly provides an important community service, MTD will improve weekday frequencies throughout most of the day and extend peak hour service (in the peak direction). Plans are to adjust frequencies as follows:

• AM 15-min super peak 6 – 8 am (northbound direction)
• 30-min during the midday (8 am – 4 pm)
• PM super peak 15-min 4 – 6 pm (southbound direction)
• 30-min evening service (6 – 8 pm)
• 60-min late night service (8 – 11 pm)

For more detailed information, see the Short-Range Transit Plan in English at https://sbmtd.gov/mtdmovesahead and in Spanish at https://sbmtd.gov/mtdavanza/. Need more information? Email info@sbmtd.gov or call 805-963-3366.

The Carpinteria Groundwater Sustainability Agency will hold the second of a series of six community meetings on Nov. 16 to discuss the Carpinteria Groundwater Sustainability Plan. The meeting will be held from 6 to 9 p.m. at the Carpinteria Lions Club, located at 6197 Casitas Pass Road. The Carpinteria Groundwater Basin is designated a high priority basin in California under the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act, which means that our groundwater resources are critical as a water supply and, by law, we must develop a plan to manage our groundwater to ensure a sustainable future supply for our community.

We encourage your participation at the upcoming community meetings because this will ensure that your voice is heard during preparation of the GSP. The meeting will cover the groundwater model review, monitoring network, and an introduction to sustainable management criteria. It will be recorded and posted on the GSA website for viewing at your convenience. If you would like to know more about this process, please contact Carpinteria Valley Water District Executive Director Robert McDonald at SGMA@cvwd.net or visit the GSA website: https://carpgsa.org

The Carpinteria City Council will hold its next regular meeting on Monday, Nov. 14 at 5:30 p.m. In accordance with State guidance, the City will provide both in-person and virtual attendance and participation options for the meeting.

Members of the public may attend the meeting at City Hall, 5775 Carpinteria Ave. or view the meeting live at www.carpinteria.ca.us, on Government Access Television Channel 21 or by logging into the Zoom webinar.

The following topics are highlights of the agenda. Additional details and numerous ways for the public to provide comments can be found at http://bit.ly/3GbShe7. Comments posted on social media will not be provided to council members.

• Extension of the temporary COVID-19 Outdoor Business Permit Program to June 30, 2023. This action would allow additional time to finalize the Downtown “T” Parklet regulations for the City Council’s consideration.
• Acceptance of the Santa Barbara County Regional Broadband Strategic Plan.
• Formation of the Ad Hoc Civic/Youth Engagement Committee and appointment of up to two Council members to the Committee.
• Informational Report on the City’s Emergency Services Management Program.

Sheriff’s deputies have arrested a Santa Barbara man for an attempted kidnapping that occurred earlier in the week. On Tuesday, November 9 Community Resource Deputy (CRD) Bryan Dickey was notified by Carpinteria Middle School staff of a kidnapping incident that had occurred at approximately 4 p.m. on Monday, November 8, in the 5500-block of Carpinteria Avenue near the entrance to the bicycle path. CRD Dickey spoke with the female juvenile reporting party who provided a thorough account of the incident and a suspect description.

SRD Dickey and patrol deputies conducted a follow-up investigation, identifying the suspect as 51-year-old Elias Maldonado from Santa Barbara and tracking him to a motel in the 5500-block of Carpinteria Avenue. Deputies also learned that Maldonado had an outstanding warrant for his arrest.

On Thursday, November 10, at approximately 9:50 a.m., SRD Dickey along with patrol deputies and a Sheriff’s K-9 unit contacted Maldonado at the motel where he was taken into custody after briefly attempting to flee.

Maldonado has been booked at the Main Jail for attempted kidnapping of a child under the age of 14 (felony) and obstructing a peace officer (misdemeanor) as well as his outstanding warrant for domestic violence (felony) and false imprisonment (felony). He is being held on $150,000 bail.

Historians and authors Damon B. Akins and William J. Bauer, Jr. will discuss their award-winning book “We are the Land: A History of Native California” during a virtual event on Wednesday, Nov. 16 from 4 to 5:30 p.m. at the Carpinteria Community Library, 5141 Carpinteria Ave. “We are the Land” focuses on the lives and legacies of the Native people who have shaped California. With more than 110 federally recognized Tribal Nations in California, this is a rich history. The public is invited to participate in the free book talk and the discussion that will follow.

Come out this weekend to help beautify Santa Monica Creek Trail! This volunteer work creates habitat for important pollinators and helps native plants thrive. Volunteers can drop in and lend a hand anytime on Saturday, Nov. 12 between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. Led by trail steward Ray Kolbe, volunteers will plant provided CA natives and lay down cardboard and spread mulch to keep invasives from crowding out native species. The workday is part of an ongoing effort to plant native species and beautify the often overlooked creekside trail that runs along Santa Monica Creek from Via Real to Foothill Road. Volunteers are encouraged to bring work gloves, a hat and water. Join the effort at El Carro Lane and Santa Monica Creek. To learn more, contact Ray at rwkolbe@gmail.com or (805) 705-3429.

Tomorrow, Tuesday, Nov. 8, is the General Election. Polling places will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Vote-by-mail ballots can be dropped off at any official drop boxes by 8 p.m. on Election night for secure pickup and direct delivery to the main Elections Office in Santa Barbara for ballot processing. In Carpinteria, official drop boxes are located at City Hall and Casas de las Flores. For additional information, including a tool to look up polling places, visit sbcvote.com/

The Carpinteria City Council will hold a conceptual review for a Palms Hotel proposal at its next regular meeting on Monday, Nov. 7 at 5:30 p.m. A prospective buyer for the Palms building at 701 Linden Ave. has proposed a change of use from a restaurant, office, and five residential apartments to a 17-room hotel and attached bar/café.

The City will provide both in-person and virtual attendance and participation options for the meeting. Details for how to participate and numerous ways for the public to provide comments can be found in the agenda at https://bit.ly/3Wuaj0P.

The City of Carpinteria has added five new vehicles to its Public Works, Code Enforcement and Parks & Rec fleet in the last three years. The new trucks replace vehicles that were 20 years old. Keeping City staff safe and operating efficiently and effectively, the new vehicles were purchased with funds from Measure A, the ½-cent transportation sales tax approved by Santa Barbara County voters in 2008.