Santa Barbara County is set to receive more than $11.7 million in state funding to help build a new housing community for families experiencing homelessness, county officials announced.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom recently awarded the funding through the state’s Homekey Plus program. The funding includes $9 million for construction and $2 million for supportive services tied to the project. Nonprofit partner DignityMoves has also committed additional funding toward construction and services.
The planned “Family Village” will include 30 housing units for families with children on county-owned land at the Calle Real campus in the eastern Goleta Valley.
Lucille Boss, housing programs manager for Santa Barbara County, said the homes will be prefabricated off-site before being assembled at the location.
“They are going to be built off-site, and then brought here on-site, and aside from the buildings, there will be a natural play area, gathering spaces for families to connect, and as you can see, it’s very peaceful here,” Boss said.
Officials said the development is intended to provide more than temporary shelter by offering stability and access to support services aimed at helping families transition into permanent housing.
County officials said the need for family housing assistance remains high.
“In 2025, we had just shy of 700 families experiencing homelessness,” Boss said.
Jack Lorenz, regional advancement director for Southern California for DignityMoves, said Santa Barbara County continues to face one of the highest childhood poverty rates in California.
“So right now in Santa Barbara County, we’re looking at 1,322 homeless children,” Lorenz said.
Officials also said homelessness during childhood can contribute to homelessness later in life.
“An indicator of adult homelessness, if someone experienced homelessness as a child, then they might be more likely to experience homelessness as an adult,” Boss said.
County officials said families are expected to be able to apply for housing closer to the end of the year. Construction on the project is expected to take about a year and a half to complete.
