UC Santa Barbara has leased a housing complex on Santa Barbara’s Eastside for staff and faculty, the university announced via email to employees this week.

The university recently signed a master lease for the new 36-unit housing development at 219 E Haley St.: Alena on Haley.

The development has studio, one-bedroom, two-bedroom, and three-bedroom units.

The smallest studio is 429 square feet, while the one-bedroom units range in size from roughly 600 square feet to 800 square feet. The two-bedroom units range from approximately 750 square feet to 1,160 square feet, while the three-bedroom units are listed at 1,236 square feet.

Employees will be messaged directly with an opportunity to apply for the units. If there is significant demand, the university will use a lottery system to select residents, according to Kiki Reyes, the university’s media relations manager.

Once chosen, employees could move in the next few weeks.

Exact rents are still being finalized, but some units will range in price from $2,950 to $4,000, according to Reyes.

This is the university’s latest investment in downtown Santa Barbara housing.

In early 2025, UCSB acquired mixed-use properties on State and East Gutierrez streets, including the Reid’s Appliances store, the Soltara Apartments complex and the former Staples store.

The university has used the Soltara Apartments for workforce housing and plans to use the former Staples space for events.