Bob Geis, the county-appointed Isla Vista Community Services District director, resigned from his position effective July 14 to join his wife in retirement. 

During the Isla Vista Community Services District’s (IVCSD) July 13 meeting, the board unanimously approved a resolution honoring Geis and his work.

Geis’ involvement with the IVCSD dates back to 2017, prior to the IVCSD having a revenue source to fund their operations. Aside from his involvement with the CSD, Geis has been heavily involved in Isla Vista over his 40-year career. Geis was the former county auditor-controller and often worked with the Isla Vista Recreation and Park District. 

“I’ve enjoyed the elected and appointed members of this board. I think it was really fun to work with everybody because I think we were all going in the right direction. Everybody was committed to improving the Isla Vista community,” Geis said. “To me, when you do see improvement, when you do have progress, that’s what gives me satisfaction on the board.” 

IVCSD Board President and Director Spencer Brandt expressed his admiration for Geis’ “spirit of public service” and appreciated Geis for his financial acumen and mentorship. 

“We together as a district went through a lot during your time on the board,” Brandt said to Geis during the meeting. “I don’t think there is anyone that the county Board of Supervisors could have appointed that had your level of knowledge, expertise on financial accounting systems to help us really get our feet off the ground.” 

IVCSD Directors Ethan Bertrand and Jay Freeman both thanked Geis during the meeting for his innovative approach to problem solving, financial systems and government planning. 

“It always felt very comforting having you on the board and having all that experience that you brought. Interestingly, and this is something Ethan touched on too, [you were] not dragged down into the feeling of, ‘Well, there’s only one way to do it,’” Freeman said. “But this feeling of, ‘Well, I did this for 25 years in this way, and honestly I learned the following lessons. Let’s do it differently this time.’ Having the lessons of experiences as opposed to merely the force of experience is something that was a gift.” 

Freeman said that although he has reservations about the nature of a county-appointed position, he doesn’t “have any complaints about Bob.” 

“I also think that there’s something magical about having somebody who is appointed by the county, who would sit in our meetings and say, ‘Well, you know, the county says this, but I think we should go in this direction, and I think this will be better for the Isla Vista community,’” Freeman said. “I hope that if the county gave us you, that the county can give us somebody at least half of you.” 

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Atmika Iyer
Atmika Iyer (she/her/hers) is the Daily Nexus editor in chief for the 2022-23 school year. Previously, Iyer was the County News and co-Lead News Editor for the 2021-22 school year. She's a lover of loud music, loud laughs and loud prints.