Kate Ford is officially joining the Santa Barbara County Planning Commission after the Board of Supervisors unanimously approved her appointment on Tuesday. 

Ford is taking over the Second District seat for Laura Bridley, who is stepping down due to frustrations with state housing laws taking discretion away from review boards. 

Ford was nominated by board chair Laura Capps, who represents the Second District. The two served on the Santa Barbara Unified School District Board of Education together from 2018 to 2022. 

“We were in the trenches together on the school board during a pandemic where there was no road map, there were often no right answers on many of the things that we had to do,” Capps said when explaining why she nominated Ford. “People were mad at us no matter what we did, and she approached these decisions not from ideology but from just trying to achieve balance. I saw that integrity up close everyday, and I know that’s the kind of commissioner she will be because I’ve seen it.”

Capps added that Ford is detail oriented, does her research and is a fun person to work with. 

First District County Supervisor Roy Lee supported the nomination, even thanking Capps for “finding someone so amazing” to serve on the commission.

“We are very fortunate as a county and as a community to have you serve on the county Planning Commission,” Lee said to Ford.

Ford, a Santa Barbara native and Santa Barbara High School alum, was a teacher for 15 years and a principal for 20 years, most recently working at Peabody Elementary School in Santa Barbara. 

She also previously worked as an education senior program officer for the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the LA Area Superintendent for Aspire Public Schools. 

Ford currently serves as Vice Chair of the Santa Barbara City Harbor Commission and Vice President of the Santa Barbara Maritime Museum Board. 

Ford thanked the supervisors for their trust and compared the feeling to being on “American Idol.”

“Today I get the golden ticket and it’s really now my turn to go forth and serve the community and make you proud,” Ford said.

Capps also thanked Bridley for her time on the Planning Commission, particularly for her work during the Housing Element Update process where a vast majority of housing projects were proposed for the second district. 

“Commissioner Bridley did an excellent job helping me navigate that,” Capps said. 

Ford is set to begin her role as a commissioner on Sept. 24.