Would a CSD calm down Isla Vista?
December 2, 2014
California Assemblyman Das Williams introduced a bill Monday that propose creating a community services district in Isla Vista, which currently remains unincorporated territory despite its dense and reputably rowdy population. [KEYT]
Williams, a Santa Barbara Democrat, cites recent sexual assaults, riots and a deadly shooting as justification for needing a form of local governance in the area. His bill, AB 3, states that the CSD could offer police and fire services.
Other potential responsibilities of the proposed CSD that are outlined in the bill are: infrastructure, utilities, garbage, parks, recreation, cultural facilities and roads.
Following recent unrest, which included a combined seven shooting and stabbing deaths in May and a block party riot in April, UC Santa Barbara formed a committee to analyze the chaos. The committee recommended that the state of California create a CSD with powers similar to what Williams is proposing.
Isla Vista borders the University of California Santa Barbara campus and its residents are primarily university students. About 20,000 people live in Isla Vista, which is Santa Barbara County’s most densely populated area that is not a city.
A previous attempt to create a CSD in Isla Vista failed when Santa Barbara County’s Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO) rejected the proposal. The newly proposed district must pass the legislature, gain the governor’s signature and receive approval from LAFCO in order to take effect.
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