Chamber News

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE April 4, 2023 Santa Barbara South Coast Chamber of Commerce Awarded Carpinterian of the Year and Junior Carpinterian of the Year at the Carpinteria Community Awards Gala The Santa Barbara South Coast Chamber of Commerce, from Goleta to Carpinteria, honored several outstanding individuals for their remarkable contributions to the Carpinteria community at the…

On April 5, the Chamber held a Ribbon Cutting Ceremony with Santa Barbara Pickleball Shop. This was a great event celebrating Santa Barbara’s first Pickleball Shop at 835 N Milpas St B, Santa Barbara, CA 93103. We appreciate everyone that came out to support this new shop! Check out all they have to offer here. The…

The Chamber released the March Data Dashboard. The monthly dashboard showcases data trends related to real estate, workforce, sales tax, tourism, cannabis revenue, crime, homelessness, poverty, and COVID-19 throughout Santa Barbara County and the South Coast. Click here for the full March 2023 South Coast Data Dashboard. Contact Dustin@SBSCChamber.com with questions and/or suggestions.

The next State Street Job Fair will take place on April 19, from 3-5 PM in downtown Santa Barbara. Over 100 registered employers from throughout Santa Barbara County will meet with potential job candidates in a relaxed setting in the heart of downtown Santa Barbara.  Following the success of the first State Street Job Fair…

The US Chamber of Commerce has shared some important updates, including two sign-on letter requests. The first is a Permitting Reform Coalition Letter, calling on Congress to improve America’s permitting processes to enable infrastructure projects to improve the economy and the lives of Americans. The second is a Sign-On Comment Letter Opposing the Proposed FTC…

The County of Santa Barbara has officially released the Draft 2030 Climate Action Plan (CAP), which includes programs and policies associated with the 6 focus areas of the CAP. The Chamber has reviewed the 71-page document to identify items of interest to the business community.  The top three items of note are as follows:  “Develop…

On March 31, the County of Santa Barbara submitted a revised draft Housing Element to the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD). The County’s initial draft Housing Element was met with some community pushback in the cities of Goleta and Carpinteria, due to the County’s initially proposed rezone sites’ proximity to the two…

The City of Carpinteria received a response from California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) regarding the City’s 2023-31 Housing Element. After revising the draft Housing Element, City staff brought an update to the City of Carpinteria’s Planning Commission on March 20. The revised Housing Element is expected to be brought before the City…

The City of Santa Barbara is continuing the process to revise its 2023-31 Housing Element, following comments in the California Department of Housing and Community Development’s (HCD) November 16, 2022 response letter. The letter provides feedback and various recommendations for the element’s improvement. HCD recommended a full analysis of identified sites, including an assessment of…

The Chamber supported the Heritage Ridge residential apartment project at its final hearing before Goleta City Council on March 7. The Chamber has been in support of this project dating back to the Goleta Chamber – for just over 8 years. The Council approved the project, and Heritage Ridge will soon provide 102 affordable rental…