What’s on the Ballot in the City of Santa Barbara in 2024?

It’s an election year once again, and in Santa Barbara, there will be three city councilmembers running for reelection in the November 2024 general election, along with a ballot measure in the March primary that will leave it to voters to decide whether the city’s construction contracts should go to the lowest responsible bidder — as is the current process — or through a new method that would allow the city to choose contractors through alternative standards.

While half the City Council seats are up for grabs, there has been little fanfare over the three district races in the November general election. In District 1, incumbent councilmember and mayor pro tempore Alejandra Gutierrez is looking to get a shot at a second term to represent Santa Barbara’s Eastside, where she was born and raised. Gutierrez was elected to a five-year term in 2019, and since then, she has earned praise for her support of the Latino community and criticism as the swing vote on several local issues such as rent control. As of the filing deadline, two challengers have filed to run against Gutierrez in District 1. 

The first challenger, Jett Black-Maertz, is a housing program specialist with the County of Santa Barbara Community Services Department who has worked in homeless services since 2010 and has been directly involved in the annual homeless Point-in-Time Count since 2018. The second challenger, Wendy Santamaria, is a passionate housing advocate and community organizer who has been an outspoken supporter of tenants’ and workers’ rights. Santamaria formerly worked as an organizer with the Central Coast Alliance United for a Sustainable Economy before taking a new position with the local union representing university workers.

In District 2, which includes the Mesa and waterfront, current councilmember Mike Jordan will look to defend his seat against first-time challenger Terra Taylor. Jordan was elected in 2019, and has navigated through hotly contested issues such as State Street and housing, including the threat of a mass eviction in his own district. Taylor is a first-time candidate who runs a consultation service in Santa Barbara.

And in District 3, Westside local Oscar Gutierrez will likely run unopposed. While one other resident, Daiquiri Beebe, has filed an intention to run for City Council, the documents declaring her candidacy do not specify the district in which she intends to run. According to the city clerk’s office, Beebe left this portion of the application blank on both forms.

While the City Council races will not be on the ballot until November 2024, voters will see the measure during the primaries just a few months away on March 5. The ballot measure, as explained by City Attorney Sarah Knecht in her impartial analysis, would effectively allow the City Council to change the way it awards contracts for public works projects. Currently, the city charter says that contracts are to be awarded to the “lowest responsible, responsive bidder” after a public notice has been published, with the only exceptions being for maintenance or emergency work contracts. 

If approved, the city charter would be amended to allow “competitive procurement of contracts,” as long as they aren’t otherwise prohibited by law.

The city published two arguments, one for and one against the measure, which were filed before the December deadline. In the argument in support of the measure, Mayor Randy Rowse — who signed the document along with former mayor Helene Schneider, current councilmember Eric Friedman, and former city administrator Paul Casey — says that the change would “modernize” the city’s contract process by allowing other options other than the lowest bidder, which would give the city more flexibility when awarding contracts.

“This change is important for large, complex projects (such as the new Police Station) or specialty work to ensure interest from top-tier, more experienced contractors who often will not participate in projects where contracts are awarded by low bid,” the support letter stated. “Ultimately, the city wants to establish professional relationships with our contracting community who are instrumental in the city’s maintenance, repair, and rebuilding of its infrastructure; where contractors are awarded projects at a fair, competitive price and the city receives an end product that the city’s residents can be proud of and that will serve the community well for generations to come.”

In the argument against the measure, submitted by president of the Santa Barbara County Taxpayers Association Lanny Ebenstein and former city councilmember Dale Francisco, Ebenstein writes that the measure is “cloaked in the language of giving the city more authority over contracting for public works construction projects,” though in reality it could come at the cost of local contractors who may be outbid by higher-paying companies.

“It would harm local Santa Barbara contractors who employ local residents, and it would reward out-of-town contractors who employ workers from outside of the area,” Ebenstein writes. “It would, over time, cost the city of Santa Barbara tens of millions of dollars in higher construction costs that could instead be spent on construction, maintenance, and improvement of local public roads and facilities, while taking jobs away from local Santa Barbarans.”

For more information on candidates, or to view the full arguments regarding the ballot measure, visit santabarbaraca.gov/government/city-hall/elections.