Article taken from the Santa
Barbara News Press
Published with permission
Environmentalists
oppose Gaviota bridge
Some say
project will alter wetland area permanently
By
BARNEY McMANIGAL
NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
10/01/05
 |
|
| A group of environmental activists is challenging the county's plan to install a bridge15 feet above Gaviota Creek. |  |
A plan to install a $5.5 million concrete bridge 15 feet above Gaviota Creek on state park land has some environmentalists riled over its potential damage to a wetland area.
"It's just too huge," Gaviota Coast Conservancy spokesman Mike Lunsford said of the bridge that will replace an existing span that runs level with the creek's water line.
"It's going to alter the wetland area of Gaviota Creek permanently," Mr. Lunsford said.
Along with the proposed bridge, the 15 mph speed limit on the two-lane roadway would double, Mr. Lunsford said.
The addition of two 5-foot shoulders would widen the stretch to about 34 feet.
The route is the main entrance to the beachfront Gaviota State Park and the sprawling Hollister Ranch, a multiparcel cattle ranch with more than 1,200 owners.
 |
|
|
The project -- which has been on the county's wish list for years -- came to fruition when officials secured funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which funds projects designed to fight serious flooding.
Winter rains have flooded the bridge and left Hollister Ranch residents stranded on several occasions in recent years.
The only other access road is an emergency route that feeds into Jalama Road in the North County.
Ranch residents have worked with the county on the plans for the bridge.
"The roadway and bridge are basically in the floodplain," Public Works Department spokesman Scott McGolpin said.
County-led crews plan to break ground on the project next July and complete work in December 2007.
Before construction can begin, staffers must obtain permits from the county Planning Commission, Board of Supervisors, state Department of Fish and Game, Coastal Commission and other agencies.
Planning commissioners will review the proposal in November. Mr. Lunsford said his group will oppose the new bridge when it comes up for review.
At any point in the review process by these agencies, the bridge project could be shelved or stopped.
But Mr. McGolpin said all environmental effects have been addressed and the project is ready to move forward.
Mr. Lunsford questions whether a large-scale bridge is necessary for the site and whether it is an appropriate use of public funds. He notes that many Hollister Ranch residents could cross the creek with four-wheel-drive vehicles or could use the emergency route.
"Somebody pushed the right buttons and the money flowed. We should be saving money for real emergencies, not convenience emergencies," he said.
He also argues that the project does not follow FEMA guidelines that require proposals to resemble existing local structures.
Because the Gaviota coast lacks a similarly styled bridge, it is not compatible with the area, he said.
Mr. McGolpin said Mr. Lunsford should take up the matter with FEMA.
"FEMA has been a tremendous partner from Day One," he said. "Our hope is to deliver a successful, safe project for the public."
A spokesman for Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's Office of Emergency Services said an array of local, state and federal agencies have reviewed the project.
"We haven't received any negative feedback from those agencies," said information officer Greg Renick.
e-mail: bmcmanigal@newspress.com
LEN WOOD / NEWS-PRESS PHOTO