Community Members Rally for Return for Lobster Jo’s Beach Camps in Santa Barbara

Community members gathered in large numbers to urge the Santa Barbara City Council on Tuesday, January 13, 2026, to reinstate the permit for Lobster Jo’s Beach Camps, a summer camp and after-school program in Santa Barbara.

Supporting the beach camps, residents and parents described the program as a critical childcare provider and expressed confusion over its termination.

Several parents highlighted the camp as an affordable childcare facility within the state’s maximum reimbursable rates, with working mothers testifying that the camp’s flexibility and safe environment helped them stay employed in the summer months. 

Parents and former counselors emphasized the camp’s impact on young children, describing it as a place where children build resilience and confidence and develop social skills. One former counselor shared an example of how the camp helped a new swimmer gain the confidence to complete a buoy swim. 

Parents credited the staff for finding the “perfect balance between structure, play, and free time,” enabling children to learn from counselors and older peers. 

Joseph Evers, the owner and operator of Lobster Jo’s Beach Camps, said he was recently informed that the City of Santa Barbara had revoked his permit to run the programs due to safety and staffing concerns. 

Disputing the City’s claims, many parents and campers cited the camp’s stringent safety measures, including mandatory swim tests, the consistent use of life jackets on paddleboards, and the frequent applications of sunblock. 

Expressing high trust in the camp, an emergency physician and medical director for the local EMS agency noted that his children have been attending the camp for years.

The only safety hazard that had occurred was an unavoidable stingray sting, and not any negligence by the staff, a counselor said. 

Evers argued that the camp operates in full view of the public and within six overlapping EMS jurisdictions, making it subject to constant scrutiny. 

Evers was joined by many speakers who expressed frustration over the lack of specific details provided by the City for revoking the permit. Some residents noted that the City had failed to share “specific or compelling reasons” for the revocation with the public. 

Some parents argued that citing safety concerns without offering clarity or evidence felt like a disservice to the program and the children it served.

A representative of the Santa Barbara South Coast Chamber of Commerce characterized the contract termination as a result of “misunderstandings and miscommunications” between Evers and the City rather than actual safety failures. 

Allowing the termination to stand would result in an outcome that “doesn’t serve anyone’s best interests,” Dustin Hoiseth, the Chamber’s Director of Public Policy, told the City Council. 

The Chamber urged the City Council to provide leadership and work toward a resolution that would allow the camp to continue operating. 

While the City Council did not vote on reinstating the permit, Mayor Randy Rowse acknowledged the volume of public support and asked City Administrator Kelly McAdoo for a future Council update on the matter. 

No formal response to the parents’ claims was provided during the meeting.

Lobster Jo’s Camps started in 2021 as a beach-only program, according to its website. The program has since expanded to offer art, skate, and adventure programs in Santa Barbara and Goleta.