The three candidates for Third District Santa Barbara County supervisor met at a forum for the first time this week in Goleta, each hoping to come out on top in the March 5 primary election.
Lompoc Mayor Jenelle Osborne talked about her experience leading the city, a major player in the new Third District boundaries, and her vision if elected, while incumbent Joan Hartmann and candidate Frank Troise threw occasional barbs at each other over her head.
Osborne said she would bring a “different viewpoint” as a nonpartisan candidate who understands the commuter experience and how cities deal with problems that “trickle down or run downhill at us from the county.”
Hartmann, who is hoping to win a third four-year term, started her comments with a list of endorsements and told the audience, “if you trust them, you can trust me.”
Troise repeatedly said that the county should “never be operating from a deficit mindset,” and it needs to increase its revenues.
Santa Barbara County has a $1.48 billion budget, and about half of its revenues are from state and federal sources, with the rest from local sources, mostly property taxes. The state and county are expecting shortfalls for the upcoming fiscal year, which begins July 1.
On county finances, Hartmann said they budget conservatively and have five-year projections to stay vigilant of changes.
“I expect that we’re going to weather this initial storm just fine,” she said.
“It’s typical for challengers to allege the sky is falling, and the only way to fix it is to elect them, but the county is prospering,” she said.
Osborne said the county needs to fund more maintenance, not just new facilities.
“Before we go acquiring new green space and open space, we need to take care of what already exists,” she said.
Troise said “our priority and our platform are about three things: revenue, revenue, revenue.”
He said proposals like the Lompoc Space Base, more childcare options, and building a Lompoc tech campus would bring in $200 million per year for the county and then it could “fully fund” itself.
One revenue area he apparently wouldn’t be supporting is cannabis, an industry he thinks will fail for lack of investment. Troise said he won’t be paying attention to it, and it will “die a natural, quiet death on its own.”
First Election After Redistricting
The Third District is often a swing vote between North County and South County supervisors, who typically disagree on major policy decisions.
This is the first election with the new district boundaries, which include residents in the Lompoc Valley, the Santa Ynez Valley, and the Goleta Valley.
When asked how they would balance representing the Third District and the county overall, Hartmann said, “first and foremost we have to look out for the residents of the county.”
Osborne said the Third District “hasn’t had a voice” in the past. “If district issues are ignored at the betterment of the entire county, then it’s not a balance,” she said.
The district is a swing vote and “it needs to swing a little more than it has in recent years and I’d like to be that voice for you,” Osborne said.
Troise didn’t directly answer the question.
Big County Issues
In her answers at the forum, Osborne focused on the need for housing, saying that employers often can’t fill the jobs they already have available. She also tailored her comments to Goleta, where the forum was held.
The county’s Housing Element Update put a lot of development pressure on the Goleta Valley when the city has already built more housing than its neighbors and is funding supportive housing for homeless residents, she said.
The county needs to “really look at Goleta and say you’ve done a good job building out housing on the South Coast, should you really continue to carry more of that burden?” she said.
Economic development is the county’s biggest issue, Osborne also said.
“What happens when you don’t have the workforce to meet the amazing new jobs that will potentially be here in five to 10 years?” she asked.
Troise attacked Hartmann in several of his responses rather than answering the questions. He said her decision to recuse herself during an oil pipeline project vote shows the Board of Supervisors can’t vote on big issues with her on it.
Hartmann, who responded to his comments in her answers, said she fought oil trucking proposals, and it’s “time to make a shift” to clean energy options such as solar and wind. She pointed to the newly operational Lompoc wind farm as an example.
When Troise said his proposals could make the county another $200 million a year, Hartmann said, “you don’t make a plan by pulling stuff out of the air.”
She also accused him of not being engaged in local issues.
“He doesn’t really have the pulse of the community; he likes to make stuff up,” Hartmann said.
More to Know Ahead of the March Primary Election
This week’s forum was hosted by the League of Women Voters Santa Barbara Chapter, and each candidate got time to answer the same questions. You can watch it here.
Several more candidate forums are planned before ballots get mailed out for the March 5 primary election.
Because it’s a three-candidate race, it will go to a run-off in November if no one receives a majority of the votes.
The last day to register to vote for the primary election is Feb. 20.
