SMFC and SWAP's Appeal challenging the Santa Barbara County's Planning Commission's July 27, 2005 approval of the Preserve at San Marcos project.


Representatives of the San Marcos Foothills Coalition, an alliance of fifteen local environmental organizations, and the Environmental Defense Center on behalf of the Santa Barbara Chapter of the Small Wilderness Area Preserves (SWAP), filed a joint appeal with the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors today, challenging the Planning Commission's July 27 decision to approve the Preserve at San Marcos project.

The 377-acre San Marcos Foothills offers an extremely valuable network of important habitats, rare species, an ancient Chumash village site, unique rock outcroppings, trails and panoramic vistas of the Channel Islands, Pacific Ocean and Santa Ynez Mountains. These rich attributes provide important educational, spiritual, aesthetic and recreational opportunities for our community. The approved project's 20 homes, including several estates as large as 9,000 square feet, would substantially diminish the site's valuable resources.

Everyone agrees this is a special landscape and that open space is important. "This is one of the most ecologically sensitive areas in the County and that is why over 17 state and local environmental groups have spoken out against this damaging development," according to Brian Trautwein, Environmental Analyst for the Environmental Defense Center.

One of the rarest habitats at San Marcos Foothills is California native grasslands.

"Native grasslands have been reduced in California and locally by over 99%. Because the development threatens the 173-acre San Marcos native grassland - the largest native grassland ever studied in the County - the community will stand up to ensure the project is redesigned to protect this incredibly rare resource," pledged Maria Gordon, President of the Santa Barbara Chapter of the Small Wilderness Area Preserve.

In particular, the site's West Mesa adjacent to Scenic Highway 154, supports native grasslands and many threatened plant and animal species that would be pushed aside to accommodate these mansions.

If the land is developed, these groups would like to see a plan that lessens the footprint of the project, offers genuine protection of sensitive habitats, and complies fully with state laws and county policies. "We have proposed several reasonable project alternatives that would preserve the unique resources on this site as required by both state and local law," states Alicia Roessler, staff attorney for the Environmental Defense Center. The appeal identifies several ways the project approved by the Planning Commission violates the County's General Plan and Zoning Ordinance.

The approved plan places the largest estates in the most visible areas on the site. It also puts them right in the middle of the habitats of the some of the rarest creatures in this region, including the White-tailed Kite, Burrowing Owl and Grasshopper Sparrow. County General Plan policies and the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) require avoidance of such areas whenever feasible, but the County Planning Commission failed to uphold these laws.

The groups maintain that the County relied on inaccurate mapping of native grasslands and wetlands. Several notable biologists confirmed this and determined the development will result in severe impacts to the Foothills' plants, wildlife and habitats. However, throughout the County's review process, measures to protect and replace lost habitats and to protect scenic views were watered down at the request of the developer.

In addition, the large estates would be served by septic systems and drywells which discharge toilet wastes right into the surrounding hills. This may threaten to pollute various springs, wetlands and creeks that occur in the Foothills.
San Marcos Foothills, EDC and SWAP are expecting this appeal to result in substantive changes to the project so that the valuable Foothills ecosystem can be protected to the fullest extent required by existing County policies and by CEQA.

For more information, contact EDC at (805) 963-1622.