After the appeal hearing was rescheduled multiple times, the Gaviota Coast Conservancy has dropped its appeal against the El Capitan Canyon campground expansion project after the two groups settled on some compromises.
The owners of El Capitan Canyon and the Gaviota Coast Conservancy agreed to limit RV cabin visibility from Highway 101, protect environmentally sensitive areas and creeks, and improve public trail access.
“I know that this project has been controversial for a long time, and we really appreciate the trust that our constituents have placed in us to do the absolute best thing we could for the Gaviota coast,” said Doug Kern, executive director of the Gaviota Coast Conservancy. “I think we’ve gained a lot by this process.”
The campground at 11560 Calle Real off Highway 101 is home to cedar cabins and yurts, a market, and offers activities such as hiking, swimming, and wine tasting.
The Central Board of Architecture Review granted preliminary approval to the El Capitan expansion project last September. The project was first approved by Santa Barbara County in 2010, but because of wildfires, the COVID-19 pandemic and the debris flow, the project faced delays.
The expansion project includes the construction of 22 RV cabins, 17 yurts, a 1,200-square-foot campground support building, an 1,800-square-foot camper services building, a 2,700-square-foot camper services barn and a 592-square-foot comfort station.
The appeal was set to go to the county Planning Commission on Wednesday, but it now has been withdrawn. The Gaviota Coast Conservancy had concerns about the project’s impacts to the Gaviota Coast because of its proximity to Highway 101.
In April, the project developers and the Gaviota Coast Conservancy agreed to postpone a scheduled appeal healing while they collaborated on solutions.
On Friday, the Gaviota Coast Conservancy announced it was dropping its appeal after coming to an agreement over key concerns.
“El Capitan Canyon is grateful for the time and effort the Gaviota Coast Conservancy has invested in our discussions over the last several months,” said Adam Shiffman, representing El Capitan Canyon ownership, Sun Communities Inc. “These discussions have resulted in a path forward that allows us to integrate the concerns of the community into plans for the future at the campground.”
Shiffman said they are committed to continuing to work with the Gaviota Coast Conservancy and other stakeholders as the project progresses.
The campground owner, Sun Communities, agreed to reposition cabins to ensure minimal visibility from Highway 101.
Kern said they had many meetings with the owners over the visibility issue.
“We worked very closely with the applicant, and we had multiple meetings where they set up facades of where the proposed RV cabins would be,” Kern said. “We took quite a bit of time driving up and down the freeway to see if we could see these things, so they were very accommodating.”
Sun Communities agreed to move the RV cabins back, making them less visible from Highway 101.
Sun Communities also agreed to give up its entitlements to add 55 campsites within the El Capitan Creek riparian corridor, ensuring environmental protection for the area.
The owners also agreed to prohibit any future development in area F of the campsite, which is the area visible from the highway.
“We did not want to have this hillside be filled with development that could be seen, that would ruin the rural character, the rural feel of the Gaviota coast,” Kern said.
Additionally, Sun Communities agreed to offer public parking and improve trial access to the Bill Wallace Trail and California State Parks lands.
While Kern said they would prefer not to have any development on the coast, the process of working through these issues built a relationship between the two groups, allowing for more conversations around environmental protection in the future.
“We have a good relationship going, and they’ll be open to fixes,” Kern said. “If there’s a problem, I think the management will be open to working with us.”
Now that the appeal has been dropped, the campground owners will take the project back to the Central Board of Architecture Review for final approval this fall.
