A public meeting will be held from 5:15 p.m. to 6:15 p.m. Tuesday, March 1 in the Council Chambers at Santa Maria City Hall, 110 E. Cook St., to seek input and brainstorm possible alternative solutions to Santa Barbara County’s chronic lack of jail capacity and early releases of inmates.

Santa Maria Mayor Pro Tem Alice Patino will host the meeting. She will take the comments received and share them with county Sheriff Bill Brown.

This past November, voters in the county rejected Measure S as the solution to the county’s jail overcrowding problem. The sheriff says the need for a North County jail remains, and an alternative solution must be found. He said he wants to work in partnership with interested parties willing to find creative and viable solutions.

— Mark van de Kamp is a management analyst for the City of Santa Maria.