Rowse touts SB’s resilience in State of the City speech

By NEIL HARTSTEIN NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER

The impact of the winter rainstorms, in particular January’s “once-in-a-generation weather event,” tested Santa Barbara like never before – and the city came through them with flying colors, according to Mayor Randy Rowse.

“There’s nothing like disaster to test the mettle of a community, and we’ve experienced a few in recent years,” Mayor Rowse said in a speech at last week’s annual State of the City luncheon hosted by the Santa Barbara South Coast Chamber of Commerce.

“I can state with confidence

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For Carpinteria Mayor Al Clark’s remarks at the State of the City luncheon, see page A2.

that our public safety personnel, general staff and citizens performed admirably as a cohesive unit in facing these challenges.”

The mayor spent much of his speech touting the city’s continued strides toward making Santa Barbara a great place to live, including efforts to improve State Street, public library and airport, implementation of innovative police department policies and civilian oversight, and moves to create more housing.

But the unprecedented rainstorms, and the city’s coordinated response, clearly left more than a lasting impression on him.

He spent nearly half his speech on the subject.

“We were successful coming through that challenge because of our focus on community first,” he said. “Citywide, our staff showed flexibility and

Please see SPEECH on A4