Flash notice: Current status of Goleta Beach Park
On May 15th, 2012, the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors approved sending Goleta Beach 2.0 on it’s path to a full E.I.R. as explained below. This plan triggers the decimation of Goleta Beach Park as we know and love it. The Friends of Goleta Beach Park continue efforts to save and protect our precious park.
This plan will result in the elimination of 20% of the parking spaces in the park, relocation of three buried utility lines, and the removal of 950 feet of buried structural protection along the seaward front of the park. This protection has been in place for years and has prevented any loss of park area due to the recent severe Winter storms. This plan is estimated to cost an additional $3.5 million in addition to the nearly $10 million already spent in the last decade.
The Friends of Goleta Beach Park believe that our county supervisors should approve only a plan that utilizes eco-friendly protective measures as safeguards against the known damages that severe winter storms can cause. We urge you to study the facts, data, and publications on our science and data link, as well as the images link to see what erosion damage occurred prior to protection being installed.
Thank You for your support
Our Mission...
Goleta Beach Park is one of the crown jewels in our County that’s visited by 1.5 million visitors a year. It’s easily accessible, and offers convenient parking, a beautiful grass park, family picnic areas, and multiple recreational facilities for year-round enjoyment. But the California Coastal Commission, an appointed body, is mandating a philosophy called “managed retreat” which dictates that there be no structual protections to save our park during severe Winter storms. And now our Santa Barbara County Supervisors are moving forward with a plan, Goleta Beach 2.0, to remove buried rock backstops that have been in place for years to prevent such disasters and have saved our Park from further grass and turf loss several times in recent years. We strongly object to such a plan.
The County Supervisors are basing their decision on the conclusions pertaining to 100-year-sea level rise projections put forth in the Intergovermental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Annual Report of 2007 and past Gov. Schwarzenegger's Executive Order S-13. We do not believe our local officials should be spending millions of dollars to undo any protection measures already in place based on unproven science specific to California.
An overview of the major points in Goleta 2.0 and our recommendations:
1. Remove 950' of rocks on western side of the park seaward of the grass and turf.
Recommendation: Since there is no scientific evidence or documentation of negative enviromental impacts such as down coast sand deprivation, there is no justification to eliminate structural protection located at the High High Tide Line of Goleta Beach Park.
2.Eliminate 150 West end parking spaces , 20% of total existing spaces in the Park, and replace them with sand and cobble rock.This area would be subject to "Managed Retreat" along with grass and turf due to the absence of structural protection. Loss of "onsite site" parking will be substituted by "off site" parking serviced by a shuttle service.
Recommendation: Retain the parking spaces and provide structural protection or other eco-friendly protection such as Canary Island Date Palms and less costly recycled material products.
3. Relocate a recycled water line, sewer line and a high pressure natural gas line.
Recommendation: because there is no settled science to remove the protection that is already protecting these utilities, the cost to relocated these utilities will be eliminated.
4. Extend central park rock revetment to protect sewer outflow vault
Recommendation: we absolutly agree and have already recommended a combination of canary palms with eco-friendly soft protection measures on the landward side of the High High Tide line. We chose canary palms because of the 70 years of protection that these same species of Palm trees have afforded the Refugio Beach State Park that is fairly consistent in topagraphy and coastline mapping. The same Winter storms that have ravaged our Goleta Beach Park also hit Refugio beach with the same intensity. These three dozen (plus) palms have proven themselves through the test of time. This protection plan would cost a fraction of the proposed GB2.0
5. Multiple recreational improvements to park and beach enjoyment
Recommendation: we endorse all improvements
IF YOU AGREE WITH OUR POSITION AND RECOMMENDATIONS, PLEASE CONTACT YOUR SUPERVISOR AND VOICE YOUR SUPPORT
To Contact your Supervisor, here is information on the South County representatives:
Salud Carbajal 1st District 805.568.2186
SupervisorCarbajal@sbcbos1.org
Janet Wolf 2nd District 805.568.2191
Doreen Farr 3rd District 805.568.2192