Santa Barbara launches 30‑year waterfront adaptation plan to prepare for rising seas

On March 13, 2025, the Santa Barbara Planning Commission received a staff briefing on a newly launched 30‑year Waterfront Adaptation Plan intended to prepare the city’s low‑lying waterfront for increased storm surges, erosion and coastal flooding.

The planning effort, presented by Melissa Hetrick and Timmy Bolton of the city’s Sustainability and Resilience program, will cover the coastline from Leadbetter Point to the Clark Estate and aims to produce near‑term, implementable strategies — including conceptual and 30% design drawings for targeted measures — to protect public access, recreation, habitat and critical infrastructure.

City staff said the project will pair updated, higher‑resolution coastal and sediment‑transport modeling with a regional shoreline monitoring program, analysis of the harbor breakwater and focused study of the harbor commercial area and West Beach. “Our vision for the 30‑year waterfront adaptation plan is to develop a practical plan that prepares the Santa Barbara Waterfront for increased storm surges, erosion, and flooding,” said Timmy Bolton, Climate Adaptation Analyst.

Why it matters: the waterfront is publicly owned and contains key city assets — beaches, Stearns Wharf, harbor facilities, a multimodal beachway and…