GOLETA - Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors Chair Janet Wolf, Second District, and Third District Supervisor Doreen Farr will host a meeting along with the County Parks Department regarding the emerging concept plan for Goleta Beach County Park. The meeting begins at 6:30 p.m., Tuesday, February 16, in the County Planning Commission Hearing Room on the first floor of the County Administration Building, 105 East Anapamu Street, Santa Barbara.
“The future of Goleta Beach is, and has always been, of great importance to me. I encourage the public to attend this workshop to learn of Parks’ conceptual plans and to offer their input,” Board Chair Wolf said.
The public will learn about the emerging concept plan for Goleta Beach County Park, the most popular and heavily used county park in Santa Barbara County with more than 1.5 million visitors annually. For decades, the popular family park has experienced beach erosion from coastal storms and has been the subject of much analysis and community concern for the past eight years.
“Goleta Beach is one of the gems of our County Parks system. We all care deeply about protecting it for future generations to enjoy and I’m looking forward to hearing from our residents as they help guide us in developing plans for this treasured park resource,” Supervisor Farr added.
A proposal to expand Goleta Pier for natural beach sand nourishment was denied by the California Coastal Commission in July 2009. In response, County Parks began a six-month-long conceptual planning process—known as “Goleta Beach 2.0”—to examine other alternatives for the park. Supervisors Wolf and Farr head the County’s Goleta Beach 2.0 Ad Hoc Committee overseeing the process.
A presentation of this conceptual planning process will be the focus of the February 16 public meeting. County Parks officials will highlight several initiatives, including:
• Relocation of some parking spaces from a prime erosion zone
• Creation of a new utility corridor set back further from the ocean
• New alignment for a portion of the California Coastal Bicycle Trail and
• Enhanced recreational and cultural programming for the park.
County officials view the Goleta Beach 2.0 process as an opportunity to reinvent Goleta Beach County Park and make it even more relevant for public recreation and coastal access. County Parks staff is interested in hearing the ideas and suggestions that beach users may have as the Goleta Beach 2.0 planning process moves forward.
After the February 16 public meeting, County Parks plans to schedule hearings with the Park Commission and the Planning Commission before coming before the Board of Supervisors in the spring with the conceptual basis for a new, long-term project.