The Santa Barbara County Community Services Department, Parks Division has published the Draft Santa Barbara County Recreation Master Plan, available at Santa Barbara County Recreation Master Plan.

The Recreation Master Plan is a long-range proposal to fund and construct public parks, trails, and facilities to meet recreation needs for all Santa Barbara County residents. It fosters new facilities throughout the county in coordination with other area public recreation providers, such as cities and special districts.

The Draft Plan proposes capital improvements, programs, funding, and implementation strategies for the unincorporated area over about 20 years.

The plan includes the proposed Recreation Benefit Project (RBP) Program, allowing private developments to contribute to the public recreation system.

For more on the project, visit www.sbcrecplan.com. Comments on the Draft Plan are welcome until 5 p.m. Monday, Feb. 24.

The county also proposes amendments to the Comprehensive Plan and zoning ordinances to support the Recreation Master Plan and the RBP Program.

The county is also preparing a Program Environmental Impact Report (EIR) in compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) to analyze the potential environmental impacts of the Draft Plan.

To learn more about the EIR, there will be a virtual environmental scoping meeting, 5 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 6. Click here for more information.

To comment on the Draft Recreation Master Plan or the scope of the Program Environmental Impact Report, submit observations by 5 p.m. Monday, Feb. 24, via email to RecPlan@countyofsb.org or mail to Jeff Lindgren, Deputy Director of Parks Division, Community Services Department, Parks Division, 123 E. Anapamu St., Santa Barbara, CA 93101.

The Draft Recreation Master Plan is the result of some two years of community engagement, with nearly 8,000 survey responses and 86 outreach events.