Who Installed This Security Camera in Montecito?

There’s now a security camera at the intersection of Hot Springs Road and Olive Mill Road. Who’s responsible for it? —K.

In the fall of 2022, the Montecito Association shared that the “Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office will install automated license plate readers to aid in law enforcement investigations as part of a one-year trial. […] The cameras will be installed at major entries and exits to the county, and areas most impacted by significant criminal activity, including violent crime, high-value property crime, and rural crime. Montecito will have six cameras installed, about a fourth of the total for the county. […] The study doesn’t utilize our individual license plate data, but rather the SBSO organizational use of the ALPR system, and their ability to investigate crimes that occur within Santa Barbara County.” The association went on to say that “there will be a portal on the SB Sheriff’s Office website so the public can see where cameras are installed, data retention policies, and more.”

In the spring of 2023, the Montecito Association published an update that there would now be four Flock cameras in Montecito, rather than six, and installation was likely to happen in the coming weeks. The four locations: 129 Sheffield Drive (on N. Jameson Lane, just before Ortega Hill), 104 San Ysidro Road (between N. Jameson Lane and the northbound Highway 101 off-ramp), 385 San Ysidro Road (at Montecito Union School), and 191 La Vereda Road (the northern corner of San Ysidro Road).

The one at MUS is still there, but the others are gone. As for the new camera, the Sheriff’s Office confirmed that it’s one of the department’s Flock cameras and proffered a link to its “Transparency portal” on the Flock website. The page states around 300 law enforcement agencies in California have access to the data, but notably, it does not include where the cameras are installed. I asked the Sheriff’s Office how many Flock cameras the organization currently has operating in the South County, and in Montecito in particular, and also where they’re located. “The list of locations is not available for public release,” was the response.

The Montecito Association says it was not informed about the new camera or any others in the area. In fact, a representative of the organization told me that “Our Safety Committee discussed the matter and ultimately did not recommend that the board move forward [with Flock cameras] due to concerns regarding cost, legal issues, and limited effectiveness in solving local crimes.”

So the Sheriff’s Office felt some obligation to run the cameras by the Montecito Association the first time, but not the second. Was that because it didn’t want to hear the response? Not that the Montecito Association has any authority; its role is merely advisory.

The county’s Planning & Development department confirmed that an encroachment permit was issued in February 2025 for the location at Hot Springs and Olive Mill, and when pushed, it said that “permits of a similar nature have been issued for other locations in Montecito within the County right-of-way.” I also asked whether the public has any way of finding out about encroachment permits, perhaps by accessing a database, and I was told I would have to file a Public Record request. I did just that, and four permits came up: the new camera at Hot Springs and Olive Mill, the one at Montecito Union School, and ones at 4171 State Street and 4235 State Street.

I later discovered that encroachment permits can indeed be read on the county’s Accela Citizen Access Portal. It’s clunky, but I did manage to find four more permits related to Flock cameras—three in Santa Maria (3325 Black Road, 4141 Black Road, and 3435 Black Road), and one in Montecito at Birnam Wood’s Sheffield Drive exit (450 Eastgate Lane). That last one had this note: “Double fee for being installed prior to permit being issued.”

Of course, cameras of all kinds are everywhere these days; ones on private land often share data with police. Personally speaking, I don’t like the idea of being surveilled at all, but especially by the state, and even more so without any oversight from another governmental body.

Is there a question you’d like investigated? Email [email protected] or text 917-209-6473.

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Previous Burning Questions:
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••• Why does street striping take so long to happen?
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••• What are those old pilings in Arroyo Burro Creek?
••• What’s this building under construction in Toro Canyon?
••• What’s the story behind the seal of the City of Santa Barbara? 
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••• What’s this pole with a flashing blue light?
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↓↓↓ Why is part of this West Beach mosaic covered in concrete?
••• What was the Weeping Willow Inn?
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