Moving Days

Welcome, Daniels — all 79 of you — and you 69 Emilys, too. Such are the most popular names among the new and returning UC Santa Barbara students moving onto campus before fall quarter begins September 25.

Coming from 47 states and 85 countries, 9,400 new and returning UCSB students are expected to take up residence in UCSB housing by the end of the September 22–24 move-in weekend. More fun facts: 129 of the student residents are under 18 and 370 of them are 30 or older.

“Move-in is a highlight for our auxiliary team,” said Willie Brown, associate vice chancellor for UCSB Housing, Dining & Auxiliary Enterprises. “It is a wonderful time to connect with Gauchos and their families, and to be a part of their transition into this great university.”

It all starts Friday, September 22, when hundreds of student volunteers and university staff will be on hand to assist families in navigating campus and help students settle into their new homes away from home.

With residents of UCSB’s new apartment complex, San Joaquin Villages, already in place, the remaining inhabitants of the west campus facilities will begin arriving in the morning. Traffic management will be provided for the area around Storke and El Colegio Roads throughout the weekend, when the bike path immediately in front of San Joaquin, as well as the path behind the complex, will be closed.

Santa Barbara Metropolitan Transit District is closing its bus stops in front of and alongside Santa Catalina Residence Hall. Lanes for motorists on El Colegio and Storke will be restricted.

Traffic is expected to be noticeably higher throughout the weekend. Each student typically arrives with their family — 2 to 5 people apiece — in 2.5 cars. That translates into more than 23,000 extra vehicles in the area over the three days.

As in previous years, there will be several campus parking lots closed and reserved all weekend in order to safely and efficiently move in thousands of students. 

On Saturday, September 23 and Sunday, September 24 the following parking facilities will be closed and reserved:

• East campus parking lots 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9 (limited parking will be available in lots 1 and 10 to staff wishing to access the east campus over the weekend)

• Lots 23 & 24 off of Ocean Road 

Parking will be available in Structure 22, though it will be impacted by long-term parking both Saturday and Sunday. Structures 10 and 18, as well as lot 16, will also be affected.

Additionally, a majority of lot 30 will be restricted both Friday and Saturday, due to move-in operations and a UCSB men’s soccer game Saturday night. A large section of lot 30 is allocated for game set-up and preparations; if you normally park in lot 30 as a staff member, please use an alternate lot.