Santa Barbara Harbor Clean up Crew Honored
They use mops, brooks, and cleaners all day every day at the Santa Barbara Harbor, and today a special crew has been honored for 21 years of service.
The 30-person team comes from UCP-Work Incorporated as part of an agreement with the City of Santa Barbara’s Waterfront Department.
A special lunch for the crew took place at the Veteran’s Memorial Building this afternoon.
Assemblyman Das Williams was among those who presented the crew with a special commendation. He also talked about the program’s ability to launch workers with a disability into higher paying jobs in the future.
Williams told the crew their work was an important service to the harbor and guests in the waterfront area.
Kevin Smith with UCP-Work Inc. said, “they have so much better self worth and independence. The pay check really helps. They can pay their rent. The social aspect of having 30 people that are part of your family and more like 40 with the coaches and more like 60 with the harbor maintenance people and it goes on and on.”
This afternoon the crew was working on the restroom building at Marina One in the harbor. They also regularly take care of trash cans, liter, and general clean up around the shops.