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KENNETH SONG / NEWS-PRESS PHOTOSPatricia Escalera, left, and Eva Inbar stand near some of the eucalyptus and canary palm trees that could be scheduled for removal on Modoc Road in Santa Barbara on Thursday.
In July, the News-Press reported on a petition to save 63 trees along Modoc Road that were in danger of being cut down by the Public Works Department for the construction of a class I bike path along Modoc Road. That class I bike path is now known as the Modoc Multi-Use Path. The petition and “Save the Modoc Trees” effort has been organized by the Community Association for the Modoc Preserve (CAMP). The path is funded by a grant awarded from the state of California to the county in 2019, known as the Active Transportation Program grant.
The Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors has pushed the vote on the Modoc Multi-Use Path from the Sept. 13 board meeting to November. A new Mitigated Negative Declaration (MND) draft will be published in September 2022.
“There will be an additional 30-day public comment period, and the updated MND will be considered by the County Board of Supervisors in November. The County is committed to minimizing the removal of trees,” according to a double confirmation from Lael Wageneck, PIO for Santa Barbara County Department of Public Works and Second District Supervisor Greg Hart.
The original deadline for the grant is Oct. 1. Supervisor Hart told the News-Press that the board would be applying for a grant extension with the state of California.
A view of eucalyptus and canary palm trees next to Modoc Road in Santa Barbara on Thursday.Earlier this week, the News-Press was alerted to a petition from the Santa Barbara Bicycle Coalition to support the completion of the multi-use path. At the time of this writing the petition has over 900 signatures.
Patricia Escalera, a CAMP volunteer and former bicyclist (due to an injury from a skiing accident) received a “Notice of Intent to Draft the Mitigated Negative Declaration For the Proposed Modoc Road Bike Path Project” from the County Public Works, Transportation division.
She is a direct neighbor of the preserve on Vista Clara Rd. Up until this year, due to her injury from a skiing accident, Ms. Escalara was a member of the Bicycle Coalition for five years. Ms. Escalera believes that she is the only one on her street who received the notice. Ms. Escalera also told the News-Press that the notice came to one of her rental houses and not her residence.
When she received the notice she alerted her neighbors. In 1999, she was one of the shareholders who “voted to save the land from selling it to Laguna Blanca and to keep it an open space,” Ms. Escalera told the News-Press in a text message . The La Cumbre Water Company Board of Directors contracted the land to Santa Barbara Land Trust in a conservation easement. The shareholders did not vote on that, according to Ms. Escalara.
“It is a great place to walk and bike with beautiful trees and shade. Once I found out about the proposal, I was shocked. I couldn’t believe that the county would do anything with the preserve. It’s been difficult for the last month and a half. We feel like we have been bullied by the county,” Ms. Escalera told the News-Press.
“The County of Santa Barbara failed to follow CEQA law by not providing all neighbors within 300 feet of the proposed work with a letter from the County of their Notice of Intent,” Ms. Escalara told the News-Press in a text message.
“The County did provide proper CEQA notice, as they posted it in the News Press and according to CEQA rules, that is one of the three ways notice can be given,” Shelly Cobb, CAMP volunteer told the News-Press in an email. CEQA is the California Environmental Quality Act.
According to “Guidelines for the Implementation of the California Environmental Quality Act” in Article 6 on pages 15-16: “The lead agency shall mail a notice of intent to adopt a negative declaration or mitigated negative declaration to the last known name and address of all organizations and individuals who have previously requested such notice in writing and shall also give notice of intent to adopt a negative declaration or mitigated negative declaration by at least one of the following procedures to allow the public the review period provided under Section 15105.”
One of the procedures is: “Publication at least one time by the lead agency in a newspaper of general circulation in the area affected by the proposed project. If more than one area is affected, the notice shall be published in the newspaper of largest circulation from among the newspapers of general circulation in those areas.”
“What bothers us the most is that the county is saying that this is for conservation purposes. They are doing away with conservation, to do conservation … I think a class I bicycle path is a good idea. I don’t have a problem with it. I just don’t like going through the preserve for it. It’s a beautiful area and has been worked on since 1999. I don’t see how the county would even consider going through a preserve. It’s our home, it’s where we walk our dogs all the time,” said Ms. Escalera.
“We’ve been greatly puzzled that the Land Trust is sitting in silence. They should be defending the deed of easement, that’s why people give it to them, they trust them and it is greatly concerning. If this goes and they don’t do anything then we can’t trust them at all with any of their projects,” Eva Inbar, a CAMP volunteer, told the News-Press.
“I understand their concern to save the beauty of nature. In time they will see the path will blend in and the beauty remains while still being a safe and useful path for generations to come. I believe there is room for everything in the preserve. Not all change is bad. The construction part won’t be fun but most of us have had to deal with that at one time or another,” Elaine Campo, Santa Barbara resident and outdoor enthusiast, told the News-Press.
“The existing multi-use path that took awhile to complete and yet the overall aesthetics and the usefulness far outweighs the construction time, and it is being used by bikers, walkers and runners of all ages we see an extension of that to the Obern Trail and would create a safe aesthetically pleasing multi-use path. I think some people are being short-sighted in what it will eventually be,” Wally Marantette, Ms. Campo’s husband, also a Santa Barbara resident and outdoor enthusiast, told the News-Press.
The Newspress asked Ms. Campo about her safety concerns relating to the Class II bike path currently along Modoc Road: “For hardcore bikers I don’t think there is any concern but for the leisurely bikers I understand that there is concern. There is no separation between the cars and the bikers. It’s generally not kids, it’s adults on their cell phones. I don’t feel protected there.”
“The multi-use path changes the mentality so you feel more relaxed and don’t have to be concerned about the cars. The existence of the multi-use path has been a gem in the city’s overall planning,” said Mr. Marantette.
“I just hope that people can see the bigger picture. I think it’s enhancing the area, honestly,” said Ms. Campo.
“All change does require some sacrifice. If you don’t live along the trail you won’t be as impacted. There might be some traffic delays. I see it as progress and it really is progress in this sense,” said Mr. Marantette.
When the Board of Supervisors votes in November, they will be considering alignments A and B. Alignment A affects only 49 trees. Of those 49 trees, 35 are adjacent to the preserve and zero of those trees are actually in the preserve itself. Alignment B affects only 22 trees; of those 22 trees, only three trees are in the preserve itself, according to the August 19th update from the County Public Works Department. Both of these alignments are compliant with the American Disabilities Act (ADA). Alignment C has been dismissed by the county for a variety of reasons including the fact that Alignment C would not be ADA compliant, Chris Sneddon, of the County Public Works, Transportation Division told the News-Press in an email.
After the Board of Supervisors votes in November, a proposal will be brought to the Board of Directors of the La Cumbre Water Company.
“The board of directors can say yes, no, or yes with changes to the proposal” Alex Rodriguez, President of the La Cumbre Water Company Board of Directors, told the News-Press. Shareholders are about 40% against and 60% in favor, or would like more information to make an informed decision, according to Mr. Rodriguez. He told the News-Press that it could take up to six months to a year for the Board of Supervisors to bring a proposal before the Board of Directors of the water company, still allowing plenty of time for shareholders to lodge complaints with the Board of Directors.
“The county has the right of way on Modoc Road. We cannot impinge on the county’s right of way. Alignment A means that they can take out every single tree along Modoc road. I get where the opponents are but I don’t think they get the full gravity of it. If we deny Alignment B the county will go with alignment A. My duty is to listen to my shareholders, and to contemplate what the county brings to us when they bring us something. I want to protect all shareholders, not just the ones that are vocally and visibly upset. The grant from the county would make it more inviting for people to walk along the path and it is ADA compliant. We have to weigh everything,” said Mr. Rodriguez.
On Saturday, Aug. 27, at 11 a.m., CAMP volunteers will be holding a protest march to “Save the Trees” at 11 a.m. Participants will meet at the intersection of Modoc Road and Encore Drive, at the crosswalk. For more information on this event, email modocpreserve@gmail.com or call (805) 696-5370.
The Santa Barbara Land Trust did not respond to a News-Press request for comment.
The News-Press will continue to pursue this story as it develops.
To sign the petition from Bicycle Coalition go to https://www.change.org/p/support-the-completion-of-the-modoc-road-multi-use-path?redirect=false.
For the most updated information on this project from the county public works department go to https://www.countyofsb.org/modocmup.
email: kzehnder@newspress.com
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