Jim Stubchaer, former flood control officer of Santa Barbara County, dies at age 94

Jim Stubchaer, flood control engineer for Santa Barbara County from 1962 to 1986, died last week at the age of 94 from complications of cancer.

As flood control commissioner, Stubchaer – who wore short-cropped hair, walked with a posture that seemed stiffer than it actually was, and kept chitchat and small talk to an absolute minimum – was considered a brilliant engineer by friends and foes alike. As a government official, he was extremely impressive and even more assured in his demeanor. Stubchaer was always approachable, even – perhaps especially – when he was under fire from environmental critics who claimed his ideas on flood control neglected the natural channels of the county’s rivers. For Stubchaer, his supporters claimed, it was always about maximizing public safety at minimal public cost.

During his time in flood control, Stubchaer built 13 debris basins on the south shore. He was an ardent advocate of the State Water Project, approved by county voters in 1990, and an equally ardent supporter of plans to pave the lower reaches of Mission Creek. Ultimately, a much more environmentally friendly and scaled-down flood control plan for the lower part of Mission Creek was adopted, but only after lengthy public debate and community protests.

During his tenure, Stubchaer saw firsthand the extreme violence that mudslides could cause in 1964, 1969 and 1971. “We had a saying for these canyons back then,” Stubchaer said in an interview immediately after the Jan. 9, 2018, mudslide that killed 23 people in Montecito. “We said they were shotguns loaded with rocks and triggered by fire.”

Tom Fayram, who succeeded Stubchaer and is now retired, would describe his former boss as “a genius” and “the Wizard of Oz behind the curtain.” Fayram said Stubchaer was way ahead of his time when it came to putting stormwater back into the ground to both minimize damage and expand groundwater supplies. “I always thought that if I was half as good as Jim, I would be cheering for joy and putting my feet up,” Fayram said. “That’s the kind of mountain I looked up to.”