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The County has embarked on a community process to devise a comprehensive
plan and long-term vision for Goleta Beach County Park. This process,
the Goleta Beach Master Planning and Community Visioning Process, was a
critical step in determining the most effective way to protect and
enhance the environment and recreational opportunities at one of the
most unique coastal areas in California. A visioning process was
selected as a means to bring a variety of stakeholders together to work
towards consensus on a long-term sustainable plan for Goleta Beach
County Park. This process was built on previous studies and community
input that occurred in the past.
The beach and adjacent park have experienced
accelerated coastal erosion due to storms and high tides during El Niņo
years and more recent unseasonable storm events. These events have
eroded the sandy beach and lawn area, damaged parking areas and
threatened park infrastructure. The utility lines that run through the
park are also in jeopardy if this accelerated erosion
continues. Temporary rock revetments and sand berms have been placed to
protect areas of the beach and park from further erosion until a
long-term solution could be found.
Two facilitated community education and visioning
meetings were be conducted in fall 2003 to bring participants up to date on
the history, technical issues and processes that have been occurring in
recent years, and to seek common understanding and goals for future
protection of this popular beach and park. At the conclusion of these
sessions a working group was convened to study and refine the preferred
recommendations of workshop participants. A report was prepared
as the basis for a master plan for future management
of the beach.
Environmental Review of Master Plan alternatives, will commence in June
2006. Please refer to Santa Barbara County Parks website at
www.sbparks.org
for the ongoing documents prepared
for the environmental review of plan alternatives. |
