The Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors, based on nominations from 2nd District Supervisor Janet Wolf, on Tuesday appointed seven local residents to the newly formed Goleta Valley Planning Advisory Committee.

The members — Edwin “Ted” Adams, Thomas Elliott, Kenan Ezal, Bonnie Freeman, Kenneth Mineau, Valerie Olson and Kimberly True — were selected for their skills in a wide variety of areas: architecture, real estate market trends, ecology, environmental protection and community advocacy.

“I am very pleased with the dedication and strong qualifications of the GVPAC members,” Wolf said. “Together, I am confident that this planning advisory committee will represent the Goleta Valley community throughout this exciting opportunity for the benefit of future generations of residents and visitors.”

The GVPAC will serve as the liaison between Santa Barbara County and residents in its 2nd District planning area in the Goleta Valley, which roughly covers the unincorporated area northeast, east and southeast of Goleta. It’s part of a three-year, nearly $500,000 effort by the county to update the 1993 Goleta Valley Community Plan, a plan that once encompassed the entire Goleta Valley before the city of Goleta incorporated in 2002.

Erica Leachman, a planner with the county’s Office of Long-Range Planning, says the GVAC will participate in about 24 meetings in the next year or so, during which participants will discuss an array of topics.

“We’re going to be reviewing a number of topics, like environmental constraints and public services,” Leachman said.

While the plan recently submitted by the Goleta Visioning Committee serves as a long-range vision for the community, the work by the PAC will help give form to the vision by dealing with things such as the realities of infrastructure and policy choices. Last March, the Board of Supervisors voted to institute a development freeze in the area as the plan was being updated.

Using the information and input provided at the meetings, county staff members will revise and update the community plan and present it to elected county officials for adoption.

The first public meeting will be at 6 p.m. Oct. 1 in the Planning Commission Hearing Room, 105 E. Anapamu St., Santa Barbara. The county Office of Long-Range Planning will update its Web site soon with more information on the process and how to reach the GVAC members.

Noozhawk staff writer Sonia Fernandez can be reached at sfernandez@noozhawk.com.