PROTECTING THE ELLWOOD BLUFFS

UCSB, county propose nature preserve

8/9/01

By JUNE RICH
NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
jrich@newspress.com

In an unprecedented collaborative effort, the county and UCSB proposed Wednesday to create a 599-acre nature preserve along the Devereux Slough and Ellwood Mesa, a plan that would simultaneously allow construction of up to 550 homes for faculty, staff and students on the northwestern edge of campus.

The coast preserve, which would be one of the largest in Southern California, would permanently protect 2 miles of coastline between Isla Vista and Sandpiper Golf Course, and could resolve several development disputes that have dragged on for years.

Most notably, the plan would protect the entire Monarch Point Reserve site from being developed, through a land swap with the county. The developer, whose plans near the famous butterfly groves have faced fierce public opposition for at least 13 years, would be able to construct between 75 and 200 high-end homes at a different, less-sensitive site, at the northern end of Santa Barbara Shores Park.

UCSB would finally get to build affordable housing on its land after failing to get the go-ahead from the state Coastal Commission for almost a decade. The university would be able to build on the sites, which contain degraded coastal wetlands, in exchange for several concessions.

The university would abandon plans to build up to 122 units on a site south of Ocean Meadows Golf Course, dedicating the area instead to the preserve. It also would permanently dedicate the West Campus bluffs to the preserve. The 43-acre area is designated as "interim open space," a term with no protective force. The university also would probably end up building fewer homes than currently planned.

The idea of solving the area's numerous development and natural resource protection issues under one 933-acre plan was announced Tuesday by Chancellor Henry Yang and 3rd District Supervisor Gail Marshall, who represents the area.

"I see this as an opportunity to capture and protect some very unique coastal resources, as well as an opportunity to allow the university to accommodate their housing needs," she said, emphasizing that there would be many opportunities for public comment while the details of the plan are hammered out.

Mr. Yang said the need for affordable housing for faculty would only grow more acute in the years to come.

"Over the next decade, a significant proportion of our senior faculty members will be retiring," he said. "The young scholars that we must attract to replace them will face a truly daunting challenge when it comes to finding housing. This is a problem we already face."

The housing mix would probably be about two-thirds for faculty and staff, and about one-third for students with families.

Such a sweeping plan seems possible for the first time due to a unique alignment of forces, said Dan Gira, deputy county director of Comprehensive Planning.

"The confluence of a university that really needs housing, a developer who has been in the process for 17 years, and a strong Coastal Commission has made it right for everyone to work together to create the best open space plan that's ever been proposed out there," he said.

Part of what could make the equation work is the arrival of a new developer at the site of the Monarch Point Reserve.

Bob Comstock, of Manhattan Beach-based Comstock Homes, came on board about six months ago with the Santa Barbara Development Partnership, which has been trying to develop the land along the Ellwood Bluffs for years.

"I kept seeing issues with access and the monarch butterfly groves that seemed really difficult to mitigate," Mr. Comstock said. "We're 100 percent behind this. We think it's very exciting to create something very special for the county and potentially for the city of Goleta."

Mr. Comstock said he envisioned 125 to 145 single-family homes on the site, though the spot could allow up to 200 homes -- a number Mr. Comstock said was too dense for an attractive project. The houses would be high-end, he said, each with a price tag of at least $800,000.

The fact that the homes would be built on wetlands, albeit degraded ones, would still be a concern for those who celebrate the idea of saving the monarch grove area.

"The community has fought long and hard against an active recreational complex on that part of the property, fighting to move it toward a more passive park use," said Cynthia Brock, president of the Santa Barbara Shores Homeowners Association and a member of the Friends of Ellwood Coast. "This last winter we finally succeeded, and there was great jubilation. So it's hard to turn around right away and say, 'Oh well, let's put 200 houses there.'Ê"

Until recently, the 118-acre park was the possible location of baseball and softball fields that would be lighted at night, bike races narrated through loudspeakers, paid parking and group barbecue facilities. The area for the proposed development is the least sensitive on the parcel, which fronts the ocean.

Still, the homes would sit on a biologically rich area, including two auxiliary monarch sites, she said. Ms. Brock also wondered if the county would be setting a bad precedent by building on wetlands.

"It's triage, and I would prefer a win-win where the swap meant building on land that wasn't environmentally sensitive," she said, noting that none of the area's neighborhood groups has taken a stand on the issue. "That said, I should say that I'm convinced that this should be considered. But it will take some time, thinking and information to see if I can get fully behind it."

Another complicating factor could come about in February, if Goleta becomes a city.

Nearly 300 acres involved in the land deal are within the proposed boundaries of Goleta -- the 118-acre Santa Barbara Shores Park, the adjoining 135-acre tract owned by luxury home developer Santa Barbara Development Partners, and 43 acres UCSB plans for faculty housing.

If Goleta cityhood is approved by voters in November, the new city council would take over decision-making for those parcels on Feb. 1, 2002, which would be the city's official birthday.

The county's decision to get a deal in motion now irritates at least one major figure in the Goleta cityhood movement.

"The people of Goleta are going to be dismayed to have the county decision-makers lay this on the table at this time," said Jack Hawxhurst, a Goleta Now! founder.

Although the county's conceptual acceptance of the deal now would not eliminate the proposed city's ability to change it later, "the county has greased the skids in a certain direction," Mr. Hawxhurst said. "The thing on the table for the new city (is being) created by outgoing decision-makers."

Another key player would be the Goleta Union School District, which would need to sell UCSB a chunk of its property on Phelps Road. The deal might appear palatable to the school district because the land is saddled with constraints that make it difficult to develop. The district superintendent is scheduled to meet with UCSB officials next week.

Venoco would also need to get on board, because it leases land on the proposed nature preserve. The oil company's lease on the UCSB-owned land expires, however, in about 15 years and the company is required to restore the area upon its departure.

It's unknown at this point who would manage the nature preserve. The open space component would protect unspoiled beaches, vernal pools, wetlands and grasslands and, of course, the butterfly grove, counted as the largest in the United States last year, Ms. Brock said.

The plan would call for restoration of damaged habitat and a balance between protection and access; up to 10 miles of public hiking and biking trails are envisioned.

The Coastal Commission's senior deputy director already has told the county and UCSB that the commission would recognize the benefits of the joint project.

The next step will be a hearing before the county Board of Supervisors on Aug. 21. At that hearing, the board is expected to consider several motions: to suspend the current proposal process at the Monarch Point Reserve; to authorize one master plan for the entire project area, suspending all other plans; to seek state legislation that would allow the county to exchange park acreage in the land swap; to start processing the development plans for Santa Barbara Development Partners on the new site; and to schedule public hearings.

The UC Regents also would have to sign off on the plan. Eventually, the plan would be put before the county Planning Commission and Board of Supervisors, possibly Goleta's new city council, and the Coastal Commission.

If all goes smoothly, officials would expect housing construction to begin within about three years. Everything, including the hiking trails, would be completed in about 10 years.

Staff writer Morgan Green contributed to this report.