City Council — October 12, 2026

Hi, everyone.

Somewhere, someday We'll be close together Wait and see Oh by the way

Hello

everyone, good evening and welcome to the Carpinteria City Council meeting. Today is Monday October 12th 2026 and we will begin with a roll call.

Mayor, we have no raised hands.

I will officially close public comment and bring it back to the Council for a

motion. I move that the City adopt the proclamation honoring Clementine Steakhouse for over 50 years serving the Carpinteria community. Second.

We have a first and a second. All those in favor? Aye. Motion passes unanimously, and before we read the proclamation I will ask Lloyd McLenathan to come on up to the podium. Perfect welcome! Okay and we will begin with reading the proclamation with Councilmember Mayer

Whereas Clementine's Steakhouse has been a landmark on Carpinteria Avenue for more than half a century, serving generations of residents, neighbors and visitors with home cooking, warm hospitality and dedicated service. And

whereas Clementine's opened in 1976 and in 1982 Irene McLenathan took over the restaurant beginning a family tradition that continued through her son Lloyd McLenathan.

Whereas Lloyd McLenathan, current owner and operator has given 45 years to Clementine's. Carrying forward its traditions and its personal connection with every guest and...

Whereas Clementines was known for its traditional full course meals of soup salad vegetables potatoes or rice bread and a varied selection of wonderful pies for dessert and

Whereas Clementines was a gathering place where people celebrated milestones, shared meals and caught up with friends and neighbors. And those memories remain part of Carpinteria community's story and history.

Whereas Clementines closed on October 4th 2026 and the City of Carpinteria thanks Lloyd MacLennathan and his family and the Clementine staff for their years of service.

Now therefore, be it proclaimed that the City Council of the City of Carpinteria hereby honors Clementine Steakhouse for more than 50 years in Carpinteria and recognizes Lloyd McLenathan for 45 years of devoted service as owner and operator. The city council extends its gratitude and best wishes to Lloyd, to you, the McLenathan family, and the entire Clementine staff. Congratulations.

Thank you very much. Yeah, I'd just like to say thank you so much. Clementines has obviously been a big part of our lives but Carpinteria customers and outside Carpinteria just as family so we just really appreciated being here it's been a very quick time it seems like but And we're going to miss it, big time. But we couldn't have done it without our great staff with my other family members that aren't here. My mother's passed and my sister is in Montana.

Thank you for the recognition. Thank you to everyone. Appreciate it. Thank you to the City of Carpinteria, County of Santa Barbara. Wonderful place to live. We're not going to go anywhere but as a business, we have to stop. But thank you so much. I appreciate that.

Thank you. Any words from council members?

I'd just like to say thank you for the great food, appreciate it. It's always been good. We are going to definitely miss it. Thanks. That's exactly what I was gonna say, thanks for the great

food!

Thank you for dedicating your time and your energy to Carpinteria. It's been such an integral part of our history, and I'm also so happy for you in terms of...I can see how running and owning and operating a business can take a lot of time and energy, so I just hope this next chapter gives you the opportunity to enjoy the fruits of your labor.

Oh thank you. Appreciate that.

I was just going to add, my family owned the Casitas Hallmark store for 48 years and so being part of a business with such a legacy, just know that no one will ever forget you. Everything you did for our community will live on through generations of stories All the experiences people had in those walls of Clementines.

Oh, thank you. That's awesome. Thank you very much. Thank you to everybody. Just awesome.

And we'd love to take a photo with you in the front please and whoever else you'd like to invite to partake.

Half my staff is like,

I

will immediately. But it was always like, oh my

gosh are they going to take it all?

1, 2, 3. Perfect. Thank you. I get one more drink? I'm all good. I promised his nephew that I'd... Congratulations. Thank you so much.

We will now

I'm here. We have no Zoom comment.

Okay, I will close public comment and bring it back to the Council for a motion.

I move to adopt the resolution recognizing October 2026 as Domestic Violence Awareness and Prevention Month in the City of Carpinteria. Second.

We have a first and a second, all those in favor? Aye. Any opposed? None. Motion passes unanimously. And I will now ask for Morgan Stephan, President of Domestic Violence Solutions of the Board of Directors please come on up to the podium. Welcome. And we will begin reading the proclamation

with Council Member Mayer. It's quite a bit taller than me. Yeah, thank you guys for recognizing October as Domestic Violence Awareness and Prevention Month and for honoring the work of domestic violence solutions across Santa Barbara County. Obviously, as you know my name is Morgan Stephan and I was the immediate past president of DVS Board of Directors. I've now passed the baton to a new president as of basically this month but I was first introduced to DVS almost 10 years ago. I had just turned 21 years old and I found myself sitting with a police officer after my partner attempted to take my life.

Seven years ago, I stood in a very similar setting with a judge and I gave my impact statement regarding the abuse he chose to subject me to. And for awhile Santa Barbara wasn't the paradise that a lot of us know and a lot of people envy when we say that we live here. Life didn't feel beautiful, it didn't feel safe, and it ultimately didn't feel like my life.

I felt and sometimes do still feel an immense loss for the person that existed before him There are pieces of me that were forever altered, new definitions that were added to who is Morgan Stephan, namely being a survivor. And when I first heard that word from a police officer and they suggested DBS, I didn't want it because I didn't understand feel or know what comes next as a survivor of domestic violence And since I first heard the words, do you know about DVS? I have now seen for myself and through my work that this organization has done what's possible when survivors know they do not have to face what comes next alone.

This year's national theme is With Survivors Always and those three words may sound very simple but they carry an enormous promise. With survivors means that we do not decide for someone what their life should look like. We listen, we believe them, we respect their choices and we walk beside them as they determine what safety healing and independence mean for them.

And always reminds us that support cannot end the moment a crisis is over. Leaving the relationship is not the finish line it's very often just the beginning. It can be the beginning of someone finding safe housing, of rebuilding financial independence, of helping children feel secure again and of counseling and healing. DVS starts at the beginning. It starts with, do you know about DVS? It starts with that first courageous phone call to our 24-hour crisis line. We were there through counseling, housing support, advocacy, employment and financial wellness and the countless steps that come after leaving.

Most importantly, we are there for what comes next whatever that might be. We are there to help people define on their own terms what it means to be a survivor and how to feel like a survivor. There are such few organizations in our county where a single phone call or a single person just telling you about that organization can change and even save your life.

That impact is so immeasurable not only for the survivors but for the families, for our community. For making people feel like there's a place to turn to if they don't feel safe in their home or with their partner. We've watched former clients return to DBS years later not because they're still defined by what happened to them but because they've rebuilt their lives and they're ready to use their voices to help someone else.

Some have still in the state at our annual brunch that just happened yesterday. We had a survivor who came and shared her story of being a client of DVS and leaving that relationship. We've had people become advocates, become speakers, become board members, and it's no longer about just surviving but creating a life after domestic violence that's on their own terms.

And that's what WIS Survivors always represents. I myself used to keep a little sticky note that had my court case number on it, the name of the detective and their phone number and the number for DVS. And any time I felt shame or terror, or just didn't really understand or believe that I was a survivor, I would use that note as a reminder that someone believed me, someone supported me and wanted to protect me. And I was recently packing because I'm actually moving out of Santa Barbara County soon.

And I found this little note at the bottom of like a file folder. It wasn't something I even think about anymore, it's not something I carry with me and the reason for that is because DVS helped me in the way that we help so many people where they become the person that believes them, that supports them where then being a survivor is so much more than just the violence that took place.

DVS helps shape the person and the life that you are afterwards. For me it's created a life that wouldn't otherwise exist and one that also feels safe Domestic violence is not something one organization can solve alone. It takes all of us, our local leaders, our law enforcement, service providers, businesses, neighbors, families and community members who choose to believe survivors, support them and work towards a future where violence is no longer accepted.

And today this proclamation is part of that commitment. To anyone listening who might need help DVS Solutions can be there for that first call. You can call them, our crisis line that's available 24 hours a day at 805-964-5245 and on behalf of the DVS Board of Directors our staff and the survivors and families that we've had the privilege of walking alongside we really thank you for this recognition it means a lot to us and thank you for standing with survivors not only in October not only in the moment of crisis but always Thank

you.

Miss

Steppen, so I'd like to just say thank you for being here this evening. Thank you for sharing your story and for your continued work in spreading domestic violence awareness and in honor of that we will read the proclamation. We will start with Councilmember Mayer

Whereas Congress designated October as Domestic Violence Awareness Month in 1989, and in 2026 the theme With Survivors Always calls upon communities to move from awareness to action by centering survivors' voices, needs and experiences throughout the year.

Whereas Domestic Violence Awareness and Prevention Month provides an opportunity to honour the courage and resilience of survivors, and recommit ourselves to creating a future in which every person can live free from fear and abuse. In which relationships are rooted in respect, and in which homes are places of safety and

Whereas Domestic Violence Solutions of Santa Barbara County, DVS provides comprehensive support to survivors throughout Santa Barbara County including emergency shelter, a 24-7 crisis line, housing support, counseling outreach and prevention with the goal to help survivors move from crisis toward safety stability and

Whereas, each October DVS hosts its annual brunch which centers survivor voices and features former DVS clients who have chosen to share their experience advocate for themselves with others and inspire hope among survivors throughout our community.

Where standing with survivors always requires a sustained community investment in the services, resources and opportunities survivors need to build safe stable futures for themselves and their children.

Now therefore, be it hereby ordered and resolved that the City of Carpinteria City Council recognizes October 2026 as Domestic Violence Awareness and Prevention Month and encourages all residents to stand with survivors, raise awareness, promote healthy and respectful relationships, and help the city of Carpinteria be a place where all people take responsibility for promoting zero tolerance of domestic violence.

Thank you.

I'd like to say a few things. I'd like to thank you very much for what you're doing. I've had the, I would call it an opportunity to intervene three times once to save a life and I know what you have to go through. I know what you've done and I understand it pretty much situations that occur so with that thank you very much for bringing awareness to this

Thank you, that means a lot. And honestly, you really probably saved and changed those people's lives so much. There are so many people that I interacted with just once and it is crazy how much your support and just listening to someone can change it. So thank you.

Ms. Steppen we'd love to have you take a photo with us and whoever else would like to invite up?

Thank you so much. It was nice to meet you guys.

Thank you

for your support.

Item number three, a proclamation honoring 60 years of regional partnership through the Santa Barbara County Association of Governments. I will now open up public comment. I do not have any speaker slips. Do we have anyone via Zoom?

Mayor, we have no raised hands.

I will close public comment and bring it back to the Council for a motion.

I move to adopt the proclamation honoring 60 years of regional partnerships through the Santa Barbara County Association of Governments

We have a first and a second. All those in favor? Aye. Any opposed? None. Motion passes unanimously, and I will now ask Lauren Bianchi Clemmon and Mike Becker please come to the podium

Congratulations, you survived that name. Thank you so much Mayor and members of the City Council we really appreciate this opportunity to be here tonight in this recognition Carpinteria has a special place in SPCAG's 60-year history You were one of the six local governments that came together to form the Santa Barbara County Cities Area Planning Council if you thought SBCAG was hard In 1966, and when that first board selected its leadership then Carpinteria Mayor Alan R. Coates Jr was elected the organization's first vice chair.

So Carpinteria has been a part of a regional partnership and its leadership since the very beginning. So that makes it especially fitting tonight to recognize somebody who has carried on that tradition, Councilmember Al Clark. Has represented Carpinteria on the SPCAG board for 15 years, making him our second longest serving director. As Councilmember Clark prepares to step down from the Carpinteria City Council at the end of this year, November 19th will mark his final official meeting as a member of the SPCAG board.

Director Clark Your 15 years of service on the regional board is a significant commitment. You're the second longest serving board member on SBCAG and we are grateful for the time that you have given to us representing this city, and that long history and regional partnership has translated into some significant transportation investments in this city. And so I'm going to turn it over to Mike to share a little bit about those memories.

Thank you, Lauren. There may be no better example of a project with the City of Carpinteria than Highway 101 and the improvements that came with it right here in the City of Carpinteria. SPCAG, Caltrans and Carpinteria and our regional partners worked together to complete Carpinteria's portion of the final phase of Highway 101 corridor improvements from Carpinteria to Santa Barbara.

The new carpool lanes through the city opened at the end of 2022, and I would say Montecito is probably envious. Along with new creek bridges sound walls and other improvements But for Carpinteria, the investment went well beyond the freeway itself. The Linden and Casitas Pass interchange improvements created new connections and improved circulation around the community including access to the beach at Linden Ave and connections to the Carpinteria Creek Bikeway.

Today, the work has moved north through Montecito and Santa Barbara and we are on track to complete the full corridor in 2028. Highway 101 is also one of the flagship investments of the Measure A program, Santa Barbara County's voter-approved half cent sales tax for transportation. Measure A helps make major regional investments like Highway 101 possible, but it also provides funding directly to our local communities for their own transportation priorities. Here in Carpinteria, Local Measure A funding has helped support city projects such as the Linden Avenue improvements and the Franklin Creek Trail project. These are city-led projects and they show another important part of SPCAG's role. Helping to provide the funding, our local partners can put to work on the transportation needs they identify in their own communities So whether it's a regional investment like Highway 101 or improvements to local streets and bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure, Measure A gives us a way to invest at both levels.

And that really reflects the idea that brought our communities together 60 years ago. Some things simply work better when we work on them together. On behalf of the SPCAG board and staff, thank you for this recognition and thank you to the City and Carpinteria for 60 years of partnership. Thank you.

And we will now read the proclamation beginning with Councilmember Mayer.

Whereas for 60 years, local governments throughout Santa Barbara County have worked together through a regional partnership to address shared challenges and advance solutions that cross jurisdictional boundaries. And

whereas the City of Carpinteria joined with the County of Santa Barbara and the cities of Guadalupe, Lompoc, Santa Barbara and Santa Maria to establish the Santa Barbara County and Cities Area Planning Council which held its first organizational meeting on October 26th 1966 beginning a regional partnership that has continued for 60 years.

Whereas the partnership was created during a period of significant growth and change when local leaders recognized that challenges increasingly extended beyond individual city and county boundaries, and that regional coordination could help communities plan together and qualify for state and federal funding.

Whereas today SPCAG brings together all five members of the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors and representatives from each of the county's eight incorporated cities, Bulton, Carpinteria, Olita, Guadalupe, Lompoc, Santa Barbara, Santa Maria and Solvang providing a forum for communities with different needs priorities and perspectives to work together on issues affecting the region as a whole.

Whereas over the decades, the organization evolved alongside the region it serves assuming important state and federal transportation planning and funding responsibilities. And in 1990 becoming an independent public agency known as Santa Barbara County Association of Governments or SPCAG while continuing the regional partnerships established in 1966 and

Whereas Santa Barbara County voters demonstrated their commitment to regional transportation investment through the approval of Measure D in 1989 and Measure A in 2008, providing locally controlled funding for transportation priorities throughout the county and helping leverage significant state and federal resources.

Whereas through regional planning, funding, advocacy and partnerships, SBCAG has helped advance investments in highways, local streets and roads, public transit, passenger rail, bicycle and pedestrian connections and other improvements that connect people to jobs, schools, services and communities throughout Santa Barbara County.

Whereas while Santa Barbara County has changed considerably over six decades, the principle at the heart of SBCAG remains remarkably consistent. Some challenges extend beyond jurisdictional boundaries and our communities can accomplish more by working together And now therefore be it resolved that the City of Carpinteria hereby commemorates the 60th anniversary of Santa Barbara County Association of Governments and recognizes six decades of collaboration among the cities and county of Santa Barbara to address shared regional needs. Congratulations!

Any comments from our second to longest serving SB CAG member?

This has been very interesting. There's a lot of stuff happening that you wouldn't imagine going on to help the county and help all those cities, so it's just been very interesting experience. I

want to thank SBCAG representatives for being here and also for, I thought it was very fitting for you to honor Councilmember Clark by pointing out his years of dedication to SBCAG. He's been a great representative for the council for all those years so thank you for making a point of underscoring that for us.

We'd love to take a photo with you in front!

I know you don't, but you have to be.

We'll now move on to item number four which is introduction of Jacob Lyle, Management Analyst 1 in the General Government Department.

Good evening Mayor, Council Members, Ryan Kentz Assistant City Manager I'm really excited tonight to introduce our new management analyst Jacob Lyle. Jacob you want to come up to the podium? So Jacob earned his bachelor's degree in government and economics from Claremont McKenna College, graduating cum laude. He brings a strong background in local government including experience with the city of Bellflower where he supported the city manager's office there on policy research economic development grant administration and many other projects Prior to that, Jacob worked with Tripepi Smith. This is a firm that we're familiar with. They specialize in local government communications and public affairs.

He worked on supporting cities and other public agencies on strategic communications, public outreach, and policy initiatives there. In his role with Carpinteria, Jacob will be supporting a number of initiatives within our general government department including updating and continuing our work on our city policies and administrative procedures. He's going to be our primary lead on supporting risk management efforts and continuing to improve our risk management response He's also going to be leading the charge on some of our ADA and our accessibility issues, and efforts. And he's also going to be helping with some human resources analysis as well. And finally, he will also support a ton of special projects, as the council knows that will be coming up, and other operational priorities across city departments as well.

So this position is unique in that it does work across departments. We're really excited to have Jacob join us and come on the team, and we look forward to the contributions I know he'll make to our organization and to our community. And I'll turn it over to Jacob to say a few words.

Yeah, I just wanted to say I'm very grateful to this city. I'm excited to be here. Everyone here has been so great. I am grateful to Michael and Ryan and the rest of the City staff for being so welcoming and setting me up so well. And i'm just very excited to be here and get started on the work for the good people of Carpinteria.

Well welcome Jacob and we look forward to working with you. I know, I think it was your first or second day where you hit the ground running and we threw you in some meetings so welcome.

Thank You.

I would like, I would now like to open up public comment. I do not have any speaker slips for this item. Do we have anyone via Zoom?

Mayor we have no zoom comment.

Okay I will officially close public comment and we will now

Good evening Council. It is my pleasure to introduce Tania Sanchez, the city's new intern through UCSB's California College Corps Fellowship Program. Tania will be with us through June 2027 splitting her time between the Sustainability and Environment Division and the Parks Recreation and Community Services Department She'll support our environmental programs and community garden operations through community engagement, environmental compliance and hands-on projects.

The opportunity to work with TANIA comes at no cost to the city. College Corps places students with local organizations to serve in areas like education food security and climate action and provide stipends directly to fellows for their service Tania is a fourth-year UCSB student double majoring in environmental studies and geography, and has a passion for community service and inspiring positive environmental change. Looking ahead she hopes to pursue a career in environmental compliance and enforcement which aligns really well with our work here at the city Tania has already hit the ground running. She helped organize and host four Creek Week events, including California Coastal Cleanup Day where she served as a site captain at the Jelly Bowl Beach leading volunteers in collecting over 30 pounds of trash.

We're excited to see her build on that momentum throughout her time here at the city. We are thrilled to have you on board, Tania. Please join me in giving her a warm welcome.

I just wanted to say hello to all the City Council members, and it's a pleasure to be here and to meet everyone. And I'm excited to work with the Carpinteria team. They seem like a wonderful team, and I'm just excited to see what the future holds. Thank you!

Welcome to the team, we look forward to working with you as well. I will now open up public comment. I do not have any speaker slips, do we have anyone via Zoom?

I'm here, we have no Zoom comment.

Okay, I'll close public comment and we will now

Good evening Mayor Alicorn, Council Members. I'm Jerry Estrada, General Manager Santa Barbara Metropolitan Transit District. Appreciate the opportunity tonight to share with you some good news. Thank you that'll help. You know, some good news. A new service for Carpinteria. Microtransit on-demand for the city is something we've been trying to do for a number of years. The pandemic did set MTD back on the workforce side but we're at a point now where we were able to introduce the service soft launch really a few weeks ago right before Avofest and we're off to a good start, really happy with it. Before I jump into the on demand service, I do want to briefly discuss you know the Line 20 I think it's really important when you talk about microtransit to understand it's not a great replacement for quality fixed-route service.

That's really ultimately what we want, and that's what we have in Carpinteria at the Line 20 that connects Carpinteria to Summerlin, Montecito, Santa Barbara. It's been serving Carpinteria for decades. A lot of local residents rely on it, and we're really proud of that service. Another service, and a kind of shout out to SPCAG as well. In partnership with them the 19X temporarily has been running for a few years with Caltrans funding to mitigate the 101 project and that service from Carpinteria directly to City College through the east side of Santa Barbara as well so that's a great opportunity want to get that out there if you're a young person or anyone attending Santa Barbara City College campus think about trying the 19x But let's get on to the primary service that we want to talk about, we've been wanting to discuss for a long time.

And that's MTD's On Demand Service. It's flexible curb-to-curb service between two points within a specific geo zone area which is for the most part all of the City of Carpinteria. Not quite in its entirety but pretty close. Also a couple additional points such as Padero out Santa Claus Lane. And you can use software that you can download to your phone, to essentially reserve a ride to get from where you are to where you want to be. It's a flat fee of $3. There is no surge charging or anything like that so similar to rideshare but the difference is you have that flat fee, you can share a ride to where you want to go And it's accessible, which we'll get on to discuss a little bit further in the presentation.

The service is Wednesday through Sunday. It's 10 AM to 9 PM. As I mentioned, it serves the majority of the city. We did get it in time for the AVO Fest. It will now connect to the Amtrak station as well. One of the reasons it's such an important service is a lot of people remember the old Seaside Shuttle. And it was a loop that connected Carpinteria because the freeway divides the city. I'm a local, I was born and raised here, and you know that you just didn't have that service other than the seaside. While it was used somewhat, it was always challenging. The comments I'd get locally was it didn't go to Legoland, didn't go to Padero, didn't go all the way down to the beach or took too long for the loop.

With the on-demand service, it's point to point. And it covers a lot of those areas that we weren't able to cover with a fixed route service. So we think it's a unique opportunity and we're excited about it. Up on the screen now you can see the zone, which covers most of the city including out to Padero. And I think so far we're off to a good start. It's only been a few weeks but we had some really good ridership over the weekend.

It is serving a lot of different destinations from what we are seeing from restaurants, grocery store as well as church and other local amenities. So that is exactly what it is intended to do, to connect both sides of Carpinteria And this is what we did during the Avofest, which of course we couldn't serve downtown but we still covered most of everything that we would normally offer. I also have a video it's about three minutes which will share with you what is exactly how you can use the service

Welcome to the WAVE, MTD's new flexible on-demand microtransit service with a van that takes you from curb to curb in a specific area for one flat fare. To get started riding the WAVE you will need to book your ride through the Translope smartphone app or call MTD's Transit Center so that one of our customer service representatives can help you book a ride.

If you need help downloading the app on your phone you can watch the how-to guide on the WAVE website After you open the Transloc app, first you will tap booking available. Then enter both your pickup and drop off addresses and what time you want to be picked up. You can schedule in advance or request your ride ASAP as long as you're within the service window.

Next select your number of riders If you use a wheelchair or other mobility device, no worries. The van is equipped with a ramp and lift. You must specify that you need this access when you book the ride. When booking in the app please turn on slider with the wheelchair icon to let our drivers know. Once you've entered all of this information tap the button that's labeled next step confirm details. This will take you to a page with all of your ride booking details for you to confirm When you're done reviewing the details, if you need to make a change, tap the button labeled I Need To Make A Change Go Back.

If all of your information is correct, tap the button labeled Confirm Details and Request Ride. This will take you to a booking confirmation page. Initially your pickup time may say pending. Once your pickup time is available, the page will update with the estimated time of the man's arrival. If you've created a login and turned on alerts, you'll also get a text message with an update that your driver is on the way.

Be ready at your designated pickup location at least 5 minutes before your estimated pick-up time when the driver's on the way to pick you up next! As it gets closer, you'll receive an updated ETA via text and the time will update in the app If you need to cancel, change or rebook a scheduled ride, you can do so using the app or by calling the Transit Center prior to your scheduled pickup time.

When the van arrives, the driver will wait no more than two minutes for you as a courtesy to other passengers. The Wave vans have teal and blue wave graphics and the driver will be wearing an MTD uniform and badge to help you identify your ride. The app will also provide the vehicle unit number you're expecting as your ride approaches. You can pay your fare two ways when you board the wagon, with cash or with contactless payment. Personal belongings must be kept out of the aisles to make way for other riders. During your ride please remember you are required to wear your seatbelt for own safety. A driver will drop you off at your destination in a safe location For all questions, call MTD's Customer Service Center during regular business hours at 805-963-3363.

For a complete set of rules and frequently asked questions, visit sbmtd.gov slash the wave. Ride the Wave! Easy.

Okay, thank you for listening. This particular slide that we have on the screen has pretty much been covered in the video. It gives you the basics of what the fare is and how you could pay. And our last slide is something I really want to point out is when you use Rideshare one of the challenges I think is it's not accessible for everyone. But that's not the case with The Wave. All of our vans have wheelchair lifts, so it is accessible to everyone. I think it's a great addition to the community, at least the community I grew up in. I think it's something that's been overdue and I'm hoping you know the temporary funding we have we can extend in the long run and that it'll be well received. We'll need that ridership to make it really count. So if you're out there and you want to ride, try the app and give it a shot.

Happy to answer any questions. Questions.

Can you repeat again the hours of operation?

10 a.m. to 9 p.m., Wednesday through Sunday and right now as we're doing, so we're doing a soft launch this is our pilot for the first year it's really mostly dependent on our driver availability which has been really the hold up for a number of years

I just wanted to thank you so much for being here, Jerry. I serve on the board for MTD as Carpinteria's representative and so I know that this has been a long time coming. I wanted to ask are there any lessons learned from the Goleta pilot since that's where the first leg of this project started?

Yeah, absolutely. And I think you know big one of the some of the lessons we learned was to take our time early on and while we will tell you you know We started a few weeks before the AVO You may have seen the vans even earlier than that and that was our operations folks out here testing and you know getting comfortable with the community the roads the turns Making sure that we knew if there's any spots that you know are going to be challenging that were clear and instruction early on what? We can't it can't do So I think that's one of the things you learned from the pilot in Goleta, as well as how to get the information out there. We're really thrilled with the start in Goleta and that opportunity. But I'm really excited about Carpinteria.

I'm a little biased though, it's my hometown so...

And then you had mentioned that it is temporary funding right now that is allowing the program to exist. So how long does that last and then what might options be afterwards?

Yeah, great question. Currently we're relying on ELSI top funds which are Tier 3 cap-and-invest funds And if you've been following that, you know those funds are somewhat in jeopardy I think beyond this year. We have great representation I think in Sacramento that's standing up for public transit and hopefully those funds will continue and that would definitely make it a little bit easier for us to justify keeping the service like a lot of agencies we do have a fiscal cliff And ultimately, you know in balancing our budget we'll have to make some tough decisions and really it will come down to not just the ridership because a fixed route service typically is going to perform better. But you have to look at the community as a whole what you're offering and if this service is something that our board feels is worthwhile keeping Because of the different things that serve for example the Amtrak station connecting both sides of the city That's otherwise divided by the freeway.