Ordinance committee forwards changes to Santa Barbara’s marina slip wait list to council

The Special Ordinance Committee on Dec. 16 voted unanimously to forward to the full City Council a proposed ordinance amending the municipal code governing marina slip assignments, a step staff said is intended to reduce private “flipping” of public slips and expand public access.

Harbor Operations Manager Nathan Aldridge told the committee the proposed changes would consolidate the master, submaster and lottery wait lists into one public wait list open for annual application, create an annual Harbor Commission lottery to refresh the list, and make slips received from the wait list nontransferable. "The aim is to improve the slip wait list, fairness and accessibility to marina and harbor slips," Aldridge said during the presentation.

Aldridge and staff said the revisions align with the city’s Local Coastal Program and that they discussed the proposals with the California State Lands Commission, which staff reported was supportive. Aldridge cited what he called a recent example of market abuse under the current system, telling the committee that "a 50 foot slip permit that was received from the wait list at no cost was immediately sold or flipped for over $300,000," a concern the proposed nontransferability rule is intended to address.

Under the draft ordinance, people who receive a slip through the wait list could not transfer it to a private party; if the recipient later stopped using the slip, it would be returned to the Waterfront Department. The proposal would also open the consolidated wait list to the general public and hold a yearly lottery to populate that first year’s list. Current master/submaster list members would be offered positions on the first year's combined list as a courtesy, staff said.

Councilmember Jordan pressed staff on scale and potential gaming of the system; staff said the master/submaster list currently contains 11 names, a separate lottery list has roughly 20 names, and combined they would total about 31 people in the first year, with the list refreshed annually thereafter. Staff said the current annual wait‑list maintenance fee is $50 for those accepted onto the list, and that eliminating the transfer fee for wait‑list slips would be budget‑neutral in practice because transfers from the wait list affect a very small number of transactions (staff estimated 1–2 per year and noted less than $5,000 in transfer‑fee revenue in the last fiscal year).

Councilmember Jordan moved to forward the ordinance to full council for introduction; Councilmember Gutierrez seconded. The committee recorded a verbal vote: Gutierrez Aye; Jordan Yes; Chair Sneddon Yes. The motion passed unanimously. The ordinance is scheduled to be introduced to City Council for the next steps in adoption.

What’s next: the committee’s action sends the draft amendment (noted in staff materials as an amendment to section 17.20.005C of the municipal code) to full City Council. If introduced there, the Council will consider the ordinance in subsequent hearings and votes.

Who said what: Harbor Operations Manager Nathan Aldridge presented the staff recommendation. Councilmember Jordan moved the item forward and Councilmember Gutierrez seconded. The committee’s recorded verbal vote shows unanimous support to forward the item.

Notes: Staff emphasized the change is intended to reduce secondary-market profit from public slips and to improve equity and access for residents and regular harbor users. The proposal includes guardrails such as vessel operability and an 80% slip‑fill requirement that remain in harbor regulations.