Santa Barbara County officials this week approved carrying out special conditions attached to the California Coastal Commission’s decision to dole out a conditional permit to keep the Goleta Beach Park rock revetment in place.
The county Board of Supervisors unanimously voted Tuesday to satisfy special conditions the commission placed on its May approval of the county’s request to retain the un-permitted sections of revetment at Goleta Beach.
Two of those conditions required standard written indemnification agreements, essentially making the county assume all risk and waiving the commission of any liability should the rocks or beach erode further.
All of the conditions must be satisfied by Nov. 13 before the commission’s final issuance of the permit.
After years of heated discussions on the topic of Goleta Beach, the supervisors asked the Coastal Commission last year to keep the 1,200-foot rock revetment along the beach, which was installed to protect park facilities and utilities from erosion, particularly during winter storms.
The 20-year conditional permit includes an ongoing maintenance plan to keep the rocks covered with sand, and a monitoring system so potential environmental impacts can be re-evaluated over time, according to a staff report.
There is also a midterm assessment after 10 years, and the conditions include certain triggers that can require the county to re-evaluate alternatives to the rock revetment and get a new coastal-development permit.
Other notable permit conditions include keeping vehicle parking free at the county’s most popular park and maintaining access after significant storm events.
According to conditions, a new coastal development permit would also be required if 200 linear feet of revetment is exposed for 24 total months from the date the permit is issued.
— Noozhawk staff writer Gina Potthoff can be reached at gpotthoff@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.