San Luis Obispo has a new police chief set to take over on January 4, 2016.
City Manager Katie Lichtig announced Friday that Deanna Cantrell was selected for the position.
The new chief comes to the Central Coast from Mesa, Arizona, where she served on that city's police force for 21 years, most recently as Assistant Police Chief.
San Luis Obispo has had an interim leader since this past spring when former Chief Steve Gesell was placed on administrative leave.
Meanwhile, the City of Santa Barbara is launching a nationwide search for a new police chief to replace outgoing Chief Cam Sanchez. He's set to retire in February, after 15 years with the force.
Santa Barbara is looking for community input regarding the selection of the next chief and has an online survey to collect that information.