The Magnolia Shopping Center in the Goleta Valley is now on the list of potential housing sites, after Santa Barbara County Second District Supervisor Laura Capps pushed for the property to be included in the county’s draft Housing Element.

Facing massive pressure from the state of California, the county released the draft 770-page document Monday afternoon.

The state has mandated that the county find land to build 5,664 units between now and 2031.

The county has proposed rezoning agriculture sites, including the Glen Annie Golf Club, to build up to 1,536 units, and another 821 units at San Marcos Growers on Hollister Avenue west of Turnpike Road.

Capps, looking to ease pressures on converting agriculture land, quickly jumped into the fray after taking office in December.

“In an effort to preserve agriculture, my team and I surveyed the streets of our district, and the Magnolia Shopping Center was an obvious opportunity for multi-use development, of which I am a big proponent,” Capps said.

“I contacted the owners, and in a day, they responded with interest, and now it is part of the proposed plan. We welcome the public to engage in this process and help with creative solutions to the state mandate.”

The proposed rezoning of agricultural sites for housing near Goleta, and some in Carpinteria, has set the stage for a dynamic political territorial battle over density, traffic, water, open space — and community debate over how much housing is too much.

The state requires the county to update its Housing Element every eight years and find sites that could accommodate new housing.

To meet the requirement, Santa Barbara County planners must find land or rezone it.

Of the 5,664 new housing units, 4,142 must be on the South Coast, and 1,522 must be in North County.

The total assigned is 10 times higher than eight years ago, and it’s the first time the state has split the allocation between the north and south regions of the county.

The county will miss the Feb. 15 deadline to submit the document to the state since it only released the draft version on Monday.

Hundreds of agencies throughout California will also miss the deadline; they blame the state’s new, stringent requirements that require government jurisdictions to seriously examine sites for housing and ensure that they are real possibilities, and not faux sites on a piece of paper just to satisfy the state.

The city of Goleta, for example, submitted its draft Housing Element in August, and promptly got stiff-armed by the state for failing to seriously analyze the sites for potential development.

The county has met either in person or virtually with all the property owners proposed for rezoning.

Lisa Plowman, the county planning director, said planners did not want to put property owners on the list for rezoning for housing unless they were interested in building housing.

“We worked really hard in talking to landowners because we didn’t want landowner opposition when we went to the Board (of Supervisors),” Plowman said.

“We don’t want to rezone properties and have them sit there. We want to see something happen.”

There’s another reason for the delay in releasing the document.

About 30 percent of the county planning staff has left in the past year, Plowman said.

Among them is Dan Klemann, the deputy director of long-range planning, who’s working through March.

When asked about the departure of staff, Plowman said: “They have been under a huge amount of pressure, and the pressures of the job are substantial.”

Klemann told Noozhawk that he left for a different reason.

“I got another opportunity,” said Klemann, adding that he is now teaching planning at UCSB.

Plowman said the county plans to hire a consultant on an interim basis to fill Klemann’s job and then find a full-time replacement.

In addition, the Housing Element team included two project managers, Jessi Steele and Selena Whitney.

Whitney also left for another opportunity working at an environmental consulting company.

There’s another issue that has arisen with the county missing the deadline.

On Feb. 16, developers will be able to submit projects on land currently zoned for housing and skip much of the discretionary review typically required of housing developments, as long as they propose at least 20% affordable units.

The county Board of Supervisors a week ago approved design standards for such scenarios, but Plowman said she doesn’t expect many projects.

“There might be some people who show some interest,” Plowman said. “I am not expecting a huge rush.”

Plowman presented Noozhawk with data showing the high cost of housing and gap between wages and rents home prices.

She said the discussion about the Housing Element should be about climate change and quality of life.

“We have a community that is very concerned about development and has often opposed new development,” Plowman said. “We do want to work together to solve the problem. Every person who is concerned about housing has a friend or family who can’t live here. It’s about making room for the people who serve us.

Capps also drove home that point.

“Too many people can’t afford to live where they work, and the ramifications of that reality are far-reaching,” Capps said. “It’s abundantly clear that we need more affordable housing; the state is requiring every county and city to plan for more housing.

“The numbers they set are a mandate, not an option.”

Plowman said the county will likely submit the Housing Element to the state in March. The state will then have 90 days to send it back.

She expects some back-and-forth over the document after that. The county Planning Commission and Board up Supervisors will then vote on the document.