San Marcos Foothills is a biologically diverse property located near the edge of Santa Barbara’s urban area. Gentle slopes among grassy plateaus characterize the expansive west and east mesas. Four creeks and associated riparian areas, oak woodlands, and Coastal Sage Scrub are dispersed over the land. Lying just north of Cathedral Oaks and Foothill roads, the southern half of its 377 acres is bounded by residential developments and State Highway 154, yet the land maintains the far away character of the higher foothills of the Santa Ynez Mountains from which it descends.

In relation to its Santa Barbara and Goleta neighbors, San Marcos Foothills plays a crucial role. Visible from More Mesa to the south and the University of California to the southwest, this large scenic open space absorbs the impacts of adjacent development. Unpaved surfaces provide important ground water recharge. With careful stewardship, runoff and siltation can be managed on the site, improving the water quality of creeks that run through urban areas and ultimately to Goleta Slough and the Pacific Ocean.

The San Marcos Foothills Coalition is a blend of environmental, planning, and civic organizations, and individuals who believe in the importance of this property. The Coalition advocates principles of good stewardship and is leading the effort to preserve San Marcos Foothills in its natural condition rather than opposing any particular development. We focus on the unique value of the land as a whole. More than a visual treat that spoils with the incursion of any development; San Marcos Foothills is a richly integrated system of geology and wetlands that supports a diverse fauna and flora. Development of any kind would seriously damage both its priceless visual impact and its complex biological integrity.

A Plan for the Preservation and Stewardship of San Marcos Foothills
The purpose of this document is to share with the community our deep conviction of the value of San Marcos Foothills as a natural open space, to advocate its use for public benefit, and to outline a plan for responsible stewardship of the land.

The principles that guide our advocacy for San Marcos Foothills are:

• The restoration and preservation of open space and natural habitat within urban boundaries are necessary for the health and well being of the community, both now and increasingly in the future
  
  
• The biological, educational, and scenic values of rare parcels such as this within the urban border make them unique cultural treasures
  
  
• The land tells a story of the long-term presence of indigenous people who lived in balance with the land’s resources, which we can respect and from which we can learn
  
  
• A purposeful stewardship of San Marcos Foothills confers benefits to the larger foothills ecosystem and to Goleta Slough
  
  
• The diverse habitats of this parcel work together as an organic whole; damage in one part reduces ecosystem complexity in the rest
  
  

 

The San Marcos Foothills Coalition coordinates periodic field trips to the Foothills, during which trained observers gather data on occurrences of animals and plants to

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