Members of the public submitted more than 430 comments in response to the Santa Barbara County Draft Housing Element.

Lisa Plowman, Planning & Development director, presented the 19 new sites and other changes proposed for the housing element. The county submitted the document, which proposes the rezoning of agriculture land to build housing, to the state for approval last Friday.

The county’s original draft Housing Element released in February relied primarily on the rezoning of agricultural land around the city of Goleta to meet the South Coast’s allotment.

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

The proposal to rezone Glen Annie Golf Club, at 405 Glen Annie Road in Goleta, two San Marcos Growers sites along the north side of Hollister Avenue west of South Turnpike Road and St. Athanasius Orthodox Church property at 300 Sumida Gardens Lane near La Sumida Nursery angered Goleta city officials and some residents.

About two-thirds of the 4,500 potential South Coast housing units mandated by the state were proposed on agriculture land near Goleta.

The latest version of the document includes 19 new sites, a significant shift in direction from the original document. The new sites total 2,151 new units.

Among the new locations on the table for possible housing include the downtown Santa Barbara County Probation Office at 117 E. Carrillo St., the parking lot next to Friendship Manor at 6647 El Colegio Road in Isla Vista, three UCSB faculty housing site proposals, and two sites in Montecito, including the Four Seasons Resort The Biltmore parking lot and tennis area.

Of the new sites, 518 units would be for low-income residents, 666 would be for moderate-income residents and 967 of the units would be rented at market rate.

“What this does is it really expands the range of options that the board can consider when you are looking to rezone properties,” Plowman said.

The county also has added three faculty and staff housing projects by UCSB on Ocean Road, which totals 540 units, another 120 units near Devereux and 70 units along Ocean Walk.

Student housing cannot be considered as part of the county’s numbers to meet the state demand for new housing.

Second District Supervisor Laura Capps raised questions and noted some concerns about what’s happening in Isla Vista.

“The impact of student housing and UCSB’s inability and negligence in not living up to the goal that they established for student housing has really impacted, students are now living in Goleta and in Isla Vista, in complexes that were traditionally families,” Capps said.

She asked whether student housing could be considered as part of the housing units that the state accepts since so many of the apartments in Isla Vista house both students and families. Plowman said it is worth considering making that request to the state.

“I’d like to work with your office on doing that in an appropriate way,” Capps told Plowman. “I do think there’s merit to that.”