Santa Barbara Harbor Commission approves 2019 budget, appoints new commissioner
March 13, 2018
Advisory board also grants lease extension for NOAA’s waterfront office.
SANTA BARBARA — The Santa Barbara Harbor Commission weighed in on several topics during its Feb. 15 meeting. Some of the highlights of that meeting were extending the lease of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), presenting the budget overview for the 2019 fiscal year and appointing a new commissioner, while reappointing a familiar face.
NOAA Lease Extension
Santa Barbara Harbor Commissioners unanimously recommended the City Council extend National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) lease at their current address on Santa Barbara’s waterfront. For several years, NOAA has had a presence at 113 Harbor Way, totaling 452 feet of office space and storage.
Waterfront Business Manager, Brian Bosse stated NOAA currently operates the two research vessels in the water, Shearwater and Shark Cat, and two office spaces and a storage space on Santa Barbara’s waterfront. NOAA asked for an extension of three years to their five-year lease and will be $1,396.68 ($3.09 per square foot).
2019 Fiscal Budget Report
Commissioners received a report on the status of the fiscal year of 2019 for waterfront capital and were then asked to provide comments on the draft budget proposal.
Bosse lead the presentation, sharing while the numbers may change slightly, and in fact have already changed a bit, the overarching goal was to keep changes to a minimum with the two-year budget review process.
The 2018 budget was nearly $15 million, only slightly more than predicted.
On Jan. 31, staff met with Waterfront Budget Committee and planned for fee adjustments.
Among the 2019 fee adjustments: the slip rental fee is proposed for a 2 percent increase; a slip permit transfer fee will increase $25 per foot for slips above 30; one parking permit per slip can receive a “blue” permit slip, allowing permitee to stay longer than 72 hours for an unlimited time frame during the year, will see an increase from $70 to $125 ($0.19-$0.34 per day). It has been 13 fiscal years, back in 2006, since the parking permit has seen any change. The public parking permit will increase from $100 to $125 ($0.27-$0.34 per day)
Visiting/Transient Vessel Fee will also increase for vessels measuring 70 feet or more from $1 per linear foot to $1.50. The change is to account for water and electricity by the larger vessels.
Another permit fee increase will be introduced incrementally: Annual West Beach Rack Permit Fee will go from $1,000 to $1,100.
On Feb. 26, a meeting was held with city administrator and finance staff to review budget. In May, a visit to the Finance Committee and Council budget work session will occur with Bosse reporting the results at future Harbor Commission meetings.
The predictions for revenue are $5,837,934 for Property Management (1.9 percent change); $235,500 for Financial Management (96.9 percent); $2,870,138 for Parking Services (minus-3.7 percent); and $6,319,491 for Marina Management (4.6 percent). Totals for the revenue assumptions in 2019 equate to $15,263,063 with a 2.7 percent change.
Commissioner Appointment & Reappointment
John Stedman was appointed to serve a term of four years until Dec. 31, 2021. Appointed by the City Council in December, Stedman served 10 years in the Navy surface warfare officer aboard a guided missile destroyer with a specialty in tactical air intercept control. He is a consultant in the area of analytics and business intelligence. With a long list of contributions, he also sailed on the Navy sailing team, enjoying sailing on small craft vessels.
Stedman has been associated with the Santa Cruz Yacht Club in the past and is a qualified US-sailing-certified small boat instructor at California Maritime Academy. He also serves as a board member of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society.
“It’s a real pleasure and honor to be appointed to this commission and I hope to serve everyone well. I had excellent debriefing by the waterfront staff – quite impressive – so hopefully that sets the tone for the next four years,” Stedman said at the meeting,
Lang Sligh was reappointed to serve another four years on the Harbor Commission until Dec. 31, 2021. Sligh serves on the Budget Committee as well and was originally appointed in June 2016.
