If Orcutt residents want to borrow books, they can visit a branch of the Santa Maria Public Library in Old Town that sits on a leased plot measuring less than 5,000 square feet. However, community planning documents from nearly 30 years ago predicted population growth that would warrant a library more than three and a half times its current size.
“I think when you really look at it, it’s an absolute need because Orcutt just does not have a lot of the necessary gathering spaces that many of our other communities have,” 5th District Supervisor Steve Lavagnino said at the Oct. 20 hearing.
Santa Barbara County supervisors moved along a plan to construct a library and relocate the OASIS Senior Center to coexist at the corner of Clark Avenue and Foxenwood Lane.
The board voted 4-0, with 3rd District Supervisor Joan Hartmann abstaining, to include the project in the county’s five-year financial forecast. During December discussions, they’ll decide between supporting the entire project at up to $44 million or funding a smaller version that would only include the library, totaling around $28 million. Alternatively, the board could choose to not move forward with the project at all.
Fourth District Supervisor Bob Nelson, who represents Orcutt, is a proponent of the new library but described himself as a “fiscal hawk.”
“I’m always concerned about the cost of things and overspending on government funds, and I had a lot of heartburn about that,” Nelson said at the meeting.
Nevertheless, he said the project is an important investment for the town.
“This is an opportunity for the county to build out a community space and something that’s been envisioned for, frankly, generations,” Nelson said.
Under debt financing plans, the full project with OASIS and the library would cost $3 million annually for 20 years, according to Kirk Lagerquist, the county’s general services director. If supervisors want to minimize spending, the county could pay $1.8 million per year over two decades to finance the library without the adjacent senior center.
Staff received authority in August to use a $2 million grant from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development secured by U.S. Rep. Salud Carbajal (D-Santa Barbara). The county expects to be able to draw from the grant “momentarily,” Lagerquist said.
Around 20 members of the public spoke in favor of building a new campus combining the library and the senior center, some holding neon yellow signs urging a 5-0 vote from the board.
Marci Watson described multiple ways she’s used libraries throughout her life, including for her college studies and bonding time with her daughter. Watson is the secretary for the Friends of the Orcutt Library and said the current space can be considered cozy but lacks room to relax and read.
“My local library is as important as ever, allowing me to get out of the house, borrow new titles, avoid costly subscriptions, and save on book purchases thanks to the quarterly book sales,” Watson said. “I have attended those with my 92-year-old mother, and we also attend OASIS events together. … Having the funding for a larger Orcutt library adjacent to the new OASIS Center will help us all experience a sense of community both indoors and outdoors.”
In December, supervisors are scheduled to review the project as part of the five-year forecast and make budget cuts if necessary.
This article appears in October 29 – November 5, 2026.
