The Santa Barbara City Council appointed Kelly Ann Gordon as the city’s new police chief during a special meeting on Tuesday.
Gordon, who most recently worked as chief of the Monterey Park Police Department in Los Angeles County, will start the job on Sept. 19, according to the city.
“I look forward to serving the Santa Barbara community and being a part of this amazing team of policing professionals and incredible executive team,” Gordon said in a statement.
“My first priority is to get to know my people in the Police Department and our community — both residents and businesses. Together we will work hard to continue to strengthen our collaborative relationships, achieve common goals, and remain dedicated to keeping our community safe.”
Santa Barbara has been looking for a new chief since Lori Luhnow retired in early 2021. She was the city’s first female chief of police, and was hired in mid-2016.
Longtime law enforcement leader Barney Melekian filled in as interim police chief from March 2021 until early July while the city searched for a permanent replacement.
Melekian worked as Santa Barbara County undersheriff and in the County Executive Office before joining the Santa Barbara Police Department, which has about 200 sworn and civilian staff members.
As chief in Monterey Park, Gordon managed a staff of about 150 people, including 78 sworn police officers, and a $23 million budget, which is about half of Santa Barbara’s police budget.
At that department, Gordon started a neighborhood engagement team that worked with people experiencing homelessness and mental health issues.
She also “restructured the department’s recruitment and hiring practices to reflect modern policing, and to ensure the hiring and retention of personnel through comprehensive selection and training programs,” the city of Santa Barbara said in a statement announcing Gordon’s hiring.
“Chief Gordon is known for her progressive leadership style, strong communication skills, and her dedication to serve, and we are happy to have her join the team,” City Administrator Rebecca Bjork said in a statement.
The city of Santa Barbara also released background information on Gordon’s career and education:
She began her law enforcement career with the Los Angeles Police Department in January 1996, then left in 2000 for the Montebello Police Department. She worked numerous assignments there as she progressed through the ranks to lieutenant.
In January 2017, she was hired by the Monterey Park Police Department as a captain.
She also worked with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Urban Search and Rescue Team for over 20 years, and was part of the National Disaster Search Dog Foundation.
She was a Canine Disaster Search Specialist, and her deployments include the World Trade Center after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, Hurricane Katrina, Hurricane Ike, and Hurricane Rita.
Gordon has a bachelor’s degree from Cal Poly Pomona and a master’s degree in leadership from Saint Mary’s University.
She is a graduate of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s National Academy and Sherman Block Supervisory Leadership Institute.
— Noozhawk managing editor Giana Magnoli can be reached at gmagnoli@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.