Santa Barbara County officials have expanded the comment period for the Goleta Beach 2.0 environmental impact report after being bombarded with opinions from South Coast residents on the plan for the popular park.

Draft environmental documents were released June 3, and the comment period was supposed to end Thursday but planners extended it to Aug. 30.

Goleta Beach is the most popular park in the county, but erosion over time could threaten the grass portion of the park and structures near the beach. The county installed emergency rock revetments in 2002; however, the permits have expired, leading planners to think of alternative plans.

The environmental documents analyze the “managed retreat” proposal, which would remove 1,200 feet of the rocks, eliminate 107 parking spaces and move the bike path and utilities.

The plan has many enemies, who come out in force to each public meeting with concerns about removing the rocks, which have kept erosion at bay for more than a decade. The Goleta City Council has asked the county to prioritize saving the park and look at alternatives to the managed retreat plan.

All comments on the EIR can be made through Aug. 30, and questions can be directed to county planner Alex Tuttle at 805.884.6844 or atuttle@co.santa-barbara.ca.us.

— Noozhawk staff writer Giana Magnoli can be reached at gmagnoli@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.