Boss Brockett, 6, right, and his brother Beau, 5, romp near the play structure at Pioneer Park in Lompoc in February 2018. The House of Representatives recently approved spending bills that would provide more than $1.26 million for renovations and upgrades at the park if the Senate also approves the measures.
Rows of shelves are packed with books inside the Orcutt Branch Library, currently located in a leased commercial space. The Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors would like to buy and renovate a building to provide a permanent home for the library, and a bill approved by the House of Representatives would provide $2 million for that effort if the Senate agrees.
An architectural rending shows a conceptual design for the planned Santa Maria Japanese Community Center to honor the first-generation immigrants to the Santa Maria Valley. The House of Representatives just approved a funding bill that would provide $500,000 to assist with construction, if the Senate also approves the bill.
A floating pump delivers Cachuma Lake water to an outflow line serving southern Santa Barbara County communities in March 2017, when the lake level was far below historical levels, as can be seen in the exposed embankment that's usually underwater. A House of Representatives bill has allocated $500,000 toward building a pumping facility but must be approved by the Senate.
Boss Brockett, 6, right, and his brother Beau, 5, romp near the play structure at Pioneer Park in Lompoc in February 2018. The House of Representatives recently approved spending bills that would provide more than $1.26 million for renovations and upgrades at the park if the Senate also approves the measures.
Rows of shelves are packed with books inside the Orcutt Branch Library, currently located in a leased commercial space. The Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors would like to buy and renovate a building to provide a permanent home for the library, and a bill approved by the House of Representatives would provide $2 million for that effort if the Senate agrees.
An architectural rending shows a conceptual design for the planned Santa Maria Japanese Community Center to honor the first-generation immigrants to the Santa Maria Valley. The House of Representatives just approved a funding bill that would provide $500,000 to assist with construction, if the Senate also approves the bill.
A floating pump delivers Cachuma Lake water to an outflow line serving southern Santa Barbara County communities in March 2017, when the lake level was far below historical levels, as can be seen in the exposed embankment that's usually underwater. A House of Representatives bill has allocated $500,000 toward building a pumping facility but must be approved by the Senate.
More than $16.6 million is allocated in bills approved by the House of Representatives for Santa Barbara County, including projects in Santa Maria, Orcutt, Lompoc and the Santa Ynez Valley.
On July 21, Rep. Salud Carbajal, D-Santa Barbara, who pushed for the funds, announced the allocations were approved in House bills.
However, those appropriations will also have to be approved by the Senate before any dollars start flowing down the pipeline.
Carbajal said he has secured a total of $22 million for his 24th Congressional District, which includes San Luis Obispo and a portion of Ventura County.
“With these funds, we will be able to make critical upgrades that will reduce traffic, renovate public spaces, and improve access to food and clean water across the Central Coast,” he said.
Funding bills with additional money for projects in Santa Maria and the Santa Barbara area have yet to be taken up by the House.
Here’s a look at the House-approved spending for northern Santa Barbara County projects:
• Santa Maria Japanese Community Center, $500,000 — Proposed for the Enos Ranch West development along Bradley Road north of Betteravia Road, the cultural community center is estimated to cost $2 million, and the federal money would give the project a big financial boost.
Santa Maria Japanese Community Center Inc. donated $300,000 toward the project in 2021, and the remainder of the funds was expected to come from a park development fee.
“This important project will memorialize the Issei first-generation immigrants to the Santa Maria Valley, yet will also serve as a gathering spot for all cultures,” Santa Maria Mayor Alice Patino said.
The 10,000-square-foot facility would feature a monument and memorabilia documenting the lives of the Issei — first-generation Japanese immigrants — as part of the 7-acre Smith-Enos History Farm House project.
• Orcutt Branch Library, $2 million — Currently, the Orcutt Branch Library is located in a leased space, unlike most of the other libraries in the system that are in city- or county-owned buildings.
In addition to greatly increasing the annual cost of operating the branch, the leased facility has become inadequate for housing the additional books and other materials needed to serve the community.
The federal funds would be applied to acquiring and retrofitting a larger building that would be county-owned.
“Funding for a new and permanent Orcutt Library and community center will make a true difference for residents in and around Orcutt, the largest unincorporated area in Santa Barbara County,” said County Supervisor Bob Nelson, whose 4th District encompasses Orcutt.
“The current space is inadequate for the 35,000 residents in this growing area, and a larger building will be able to serve as a destination for all families and members of our community,” said Nelson, who has made finding a permanent home for the library one of his priorities.
• Lompoc Pioneer Park, over $1.26 million — Located between East Pine and East Airport avenues adjacent to Leonora Fillmore Elementary School, Pioneer Park has a small playground, a couple of barbecues, a baseball field and restrooms.
However, the park sees heavy use by a variety of groups and is in need of renovations and upgrades, including a new playground and ball field.
“With so many of our parks needing upgrades and refurbishment, this funding helps the city do more than we could have accomplished on our own,” said Lompoc Mayor Jenelle Osborne.
“This park is utilized by the neighborhood, the public school across the street and our youth sports programs, so this funding will not only improve the quality of life in and around it, but for the entire city,” she said.
The money approved by the House would cover about a third of the estimated cost, with the balance provided by the city and Community Development Block Grant funds.
• Cachuma Lake, $500,000 — A reservoir that not only captures runoff from the Santa Ynez River drainage basin but also stores state water, Lake Cachuma provides 70% of the water supply for 200,000 residents of Goleta, Santa Barbara, Montecito and Carpinteria.
The lake’s downstream releases also support fish and other wildlife and recharge groundwater basins from Santa Ynez to Lompoc.
But record low water levels during the extended drought has made it difficult to use the normal gravity-feed extraction of water for South Coast communities, and in recent years a moveable floating pump has been pressed into service.
The federal money will be used to construct an emergency pumping facility on the lake.
“The Cachuma Operation and Maintenance Board and its member agencies appreciate Congressman Carbajal’s assistance in support of our critical lifeline project at Lake Cachuma during these times of drought,” said Janet Gingras, general manager for the board.
Carbajal is also seeking funds for a project in Santa Maria and another along Highway 154 that could benefit Santa Ynez Valley residents:
• Marian Regional Medical Center, $1 million — A draft funding bill would provide money to cover part of the cost of constructing a new 8,700-square-foot Obstetrics and Gynecology Residency Program Clinic in Santa Maria.
Funds also would be used to provide equipment for the clinic.
“This crucial funding supports Marian's OB/GYN Residency Program Clinic where physician residents will train to provide prenatal and postpartum care for the current and future health-care needs of our community,” said Sue Anderson, president and chief executive officer of the medical center.
• San Marcos Road, almost $1.4 million — San Marcos Road provides fire suppression and emergency access from eastern Goleta Valley to Highway 154 about 4 miles south of San Marcos Pass.
Sometimes winding along steep ridgetops, the road is an especially important link when the highway is closed between those points.
The federal funds would stabilize about 975 feet of roadway railing and restore embankments and shoulders prone to landslides and other failures.
Scott McGolpin, director of the County Public Works Department, said the work will protect a vital link between eastern Goleta Valley and Highway 154 as well as Santa Ynez Valley.
“Over the last 20 years, the roadway and slopes adjacent have been severely impacted by several storm-related disasters,” McGolpin said. “These roadway improvements will not only protect access for those who use the road during detours of State Route 154 closures, but also for the people who live in the area.”
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