Jack Ucciferri

[vc_row][vc_column width=”1/2″][vc_column_text]As District 6 City Council candidate Jack Ucciferri went door-to-door to campaign, he found that many Santa Barbara residents had one thing in common: a mutual disdain for the Cox Communications internet monopoly.

“Every person I talk to agrees with me,” Ucciferri said. The Atlanta-based telecommunications company provides a majority of Santa Barbara County with internet and cable, meaning that when there’s an outage, many residents and retailers are affected. Cox’s service has been the subject of several complaints as Santa Barbara attracts more tech companies.

But where local leaders have only paid lip service to regulating Cox, said Ucciferri, he wants to see internet service improve.

Continue reading…[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/2″][vc_single_image image=”1115″ onclick=”custom_link” img_link_target=”_blank” link=”http://www.independent.com/news/2017/nov/03/city-council-candidates-campaign-fiber-optic-inter/”][/vc_column][/vc_row]

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image image=”925″ onclick=”custom_link” img_link_target=”_blank” link=”http://jackucciferri.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/2017-COUNCIL-ELECTION-6TH-DISTRICT-updated.pdf”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/6″][/vc_column][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text]Not only do I share the views of the majority of those surveyed who support the idea of raising funds through a modest sales tax increase, but I question why this tax wasn’t approved several years ago when the street maintenance deficit was foreseeable and avoidable. Roads get exponentially more expensive to maintain after a certain point of neglect. A stitch in time really could have saved a lot of dimes in this case.

If Mr. Hart had not opposed the half-cent sales tax that was voted on in 2015, taxpayers would likely not even be asked to consider his year’s full one cent tax proposal, especially considering the $2-3M gas tax influx we are anticipating from Sacramento. Why did Mr. Hart join Mr. Hotchkiss in voting against a half cent tax then, but supports a 1 cent tax now?

Infrastructure is, of course, the foundation upon which a vibrant local economy relies. Whereas Mr. Hart has a full-time six-figure job working for a separate government agency that renders him unable to dedicate sufficient time to the management of the City, I will dedicate myself to considering, approving, and managing infrastructure projects in the most prudent manner possible. I will value Chamber’s voice greatly in doing so.

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Santa Barbara City Council candidate Jack Ucciferri, a self-professed “Berniecrat,” is upset that that the city forced him to remove a reference to Bernie Sanders from his ballot statement, and is now considering a legal challenge.

Ucciferri, who is running for a spot in District 6 against incumbent Councilman Gregg Hart, submitted an original 200-word statement with the sentence, “I will represent the Bernie Sanders movement.”

However, city officials told the 38-year-old Realtor that the statement was a “partisan reference,” which is not allowed in the statement.

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For years, Santa Barbara’s cadre of well-organized bicycle agitators dared only dream that a South Coast bike-share program might one day be possible. Now, the author of a just-released economic feasibility study on bike sharing estimates that UCSB might launch such a program within the year. “Things are moving so fast,” said study author Jack Ucciferri, that the results of his report, released only two weeks ago, might already be outdated.

Since 2007, bike-share programs have popped up in 119 American cities. In Santa Monica, a Hulu-sponsored commercial fleet of solidly built, bright-green utilitarian street bikes set up shop only 15 months ago and is already turning a profit. Like Uber, bike-share operations depend on GPS technology, credit cards, smart phones, and apps that alert users where the nearest bikes can be found. Commuters can join as members, pay a $25 monthly fee, and avail themselves of 90 minutes’ worth of bike-riding time a day. Nonmembers can use the bikes, as well, but the price tends to be higher.

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There has been a lot of finger-pointing and hand-wringing of late about the sorry state of State Street, but there has been a disappointing dearth of interesting ideas. Well, I have one, and gosh darn it, I am going to share it with you.

First, a quick question: When was the last time you drove on lower State Street?

Unless you are lost, drive a taxi/Uber, are delivering goods to a retail store in the middle of the night, or want to show off your fancy rental car, why on earth does anyone drive on State Street between Carrillo and Gutierrez (and De la Guerra from State to Anacapa)? There is just no good reason.

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