Officials, community divided on county planning goals
5/18/05
NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
A proposal to establish the county's long-term planning goals drew fire Tuesday from officials and residents split about how to spend close to $6Êmillion set aside for competing regional and neighborhood needs.
The Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors took no action on a list of proposals presented in planners' three-year work plan, and it scheduled a vote next week on a set of contentious options, from neighborhood preservation to easing restrictions on farmers.
Critics of the Planning and Development Department -- including residents concerned about growth and agriculture advocates who want to keep farming viable -- have demanded it make changes. The comprehensive work plan is the department's proposal for changes. However, budget constraints have delayed other projects planners have on their wish list.
Fifth District Supervisor Joe Centeno led the charge to cut red tape for farmers after planners noted the county has more than 50 protected plant and animal species. Mr. Centeno complained that local farmers are now the "endangered species."
Mr. Centeno and 4th District Supervisor Joni Gray lobbied for converting antiquated zoning on agricultural lands to a system that allows farmers and ranchers to make property improvements, such as building additions.
At Mr. Centeno's request, supervisors unanimously approved a motion to consider removing farming issues from the planning department's umbrella and assigning them to the county's agricultural commissioner, William Gillette. These issues would include a grading ordinance that has sparked litigation from property owners.
Several work plan proposals would ease restrictions for farmers, including a measure that would allow them to build up to four farmworker homes after obtaining an over-the-counter permit. Another would permit them to open bed-and-breakfast hotels for up to 15 guests.
Residents of unincorporated Goleta asked for an update to their community plan, a long-standing goal that has lagged because of other county planning needs.
"What is distressing to us is that the county has thrown away funds on ridiculous projects that could be spent on proper planning for our area," Coalition for Sensible Planning member Ann Crosby said, citing expenditures on affordable housing studies and enforcement.
After Ms. Crosby's testimony, a coalition member complained that up to three supervisors had gotten up from the dais while she spoke, chatted with others at the hearing and, in some cases, left the room.
"I find that very discourteous," Mary Whalen said, adding, "I am very disturbed."
In place of a new Goleta plan, Supervisor Susan Rose of the 2nd District asked colleagues for community design standards that might serve as a "building block" to a plan.
The coalition has asked officials to reject "increases of density" -- putting in more dwellings -- in their neighborhood until a new community plan is completed.
Other Goleta residents, such as Patterson Avenue Neighborhood Association spokeswoman Cecilia Brown, said residents should stop holding out for a new plan that could take years to complete. "You have to go for what you can even if its a little piece," she said, warning that such a plan would not stop growth. "Development is not going to stop. It's ongoing, even as we speak."
e-mail: bmcmanigal@newspress.com