Goleta Council approves memorandum with county to use Genesys evacuation mapping and ReadySBC alerts

The Goleta City Council on June 3 unanimously approved a memorandum of agreement with the Santa Barbara County Office of Emergency Management to use the county-hosted Genesys evacuation mapping platform and the ReadySBC alert system.

The agreement, approved by a 5-0 roll-call vote, authorizes the city manager to execute the MOA in substantial form and with any non‑substantive changes approved by the city attorney. The council’s action allows Goleta to access county-hosted evacuation zone maps (Genesys EVAC and Genesys Protect), coordinate zone activations with county dispatch and first responders, and link alerts to a public-facing map on readysbc.org.

City and county emergency management staff told the council the platform is intended to be a single source of geographic information for field responders and the public, and to speed publication of protective-action maps that have sometimes lagged alerts. “Genesys EVAC is an internal platform for our first responders and our emergency managers,” Stacy Silva, associate director for the Santa Barbara County Office of Emergency Management, said during the presentation. She added that the platform “includes a public facing map that is very easy to use and navigate for members of our community.”

The presentation described two parts: an internal operations portal with pre‑defined zones and decision‑support data (population estimates, number of structures, critical facilities, assessor parcel data and hazard layers), and a public-facing map and mobile app (Genesys Protect) that residents can use to check an address or saved zones. County staff said 28 zones were created for the city of Goleta and 535 countywide, and that zones were intentionally numbered to allow future splits or additions.

County staff emphasized that Genesys is a coordination and public‑information tool, not a replacement for the county’s alerting backbone. “Everbridge is the bedrock of our alert and warning program,” Silva said. Genesys will be used to draft and publish maps and as another tool in the public information toolbox; Everbridge and other alerting systems (wireless emergency alerts, EAS, radio, ReadySBC signups) will continue to deliver the official emergency notices.

Council members asked how the platform would help decisions about evacuation timing and routing. Jason Levy, the city’s emergency services coordinator, said field responders will have demographic and infrastructure data at their fingertips, which supports faster, data‑informed decisions. County staff also said Genesys integrates traffic/third‑party traffic data (for example, from Waze) and that zones in Genesys will be preloaded into Everbridge to speed message targeting.

Staff described several operational points: (1) field responders can draft and request activation of a public map; (2) the county Office of Emergency Management or sheriff’s dispatch can make the official activation; (3) protective actions remain standard (shelter in place, evacuation warning, evacuation order) and a lower‑urgency advisory option is available to limit alert fatigue; and (4) the Genesys reason box will be used to include Spanish translations in compliance with multilingual alert guidance (staff referenced AB 1638 during the presentation).

Council members pressed on equity and access issues — including how the platform helps people with access and functional needs and visitors unfamiliar with local zone names. County staff said organizations that serve vulnerable populations will receive notifications when a zone status changes so they can begin outreach; staff also said the public information campaign will emphasize “know your way out” and instruct residents to bookmark readysbc.org/emergency and register for ReadySBC alerts.

The memorandum passed with an oral motion by Mayor Pro Tem Casdin and a second; the roll-call vote recorded Councilmember Reyes Martin, Councilmember Kyriaco, Councilmember Smith, Mayor Pro Tem Casdin and Mayor Perotti as voting aye. The motion authorized the city manager to sign the MOA and any non‑substantive attorney‑approved changes.

Council and county staff outlined follow‑up steps: finalize the MOA execution, continue cross‑jurisdictional training (the county said they have run drills and training), and implement a bilingual public‑education campaign emphasizing how to access and use the map. County staff said vendor development for in‑app multilingual functionality is under discussion and that they are advocating for expanded language support at the state level.

The council’s approval enables Goleta to use the county‑hosted mapping and ReadySBC alert integration for future incidents, while preserving Everbridge and other alert channels as the primary emergency‑notification systems.

A copy of the memorandum of agreement and the county presentation were provided to the council as part of the meeting packet.