Santa Ynez Riders and CAMP talk to News-Press about ruling on Live Oak Trail
Superior Court Judge Thomas Anderle recently ruled that the Santa Barbara County violated environmental review laws after its efforts to expand use of Live Oak Trail to people besides equestrians.
Judge Anderle awarded equestrians who sued Santa Barbara County $300,000 in legal fees.
The ruling came after the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors sought to expand the use of the trail, which is on the north side of Lake Cachuma, to pedestrians, cyclists, hikers and joggers.
That prompted a group of equestrians to sue the county.
Santa Barbara County has a policy that trails should be open to all user groups, according to 3rd District Supervisor Joan Hartmann.
“That said, as an equestrian, I know that horses can be easily spooked by dogs and bikes (neither of which were allowed at Live Oak) and now especially e-bikes (not allowed on county trails),” Supervisor Hartmann told the News-Press. “So I am eager to see sharing of some trails with different times and days blocked out for different user groups.”
“I have been in ongoing discussions with the equestrians and hope that these discussions continue and that we can collaborate on some creative solutions to increase equestrian use at Live Oak, including a horse camp,” she said. “I am also eager to see a public process and environmental review that will allow for a wider range of people to enjoy the 3,000-acre wonder that is Live Oak.”
Kathy Rosenthal, president of Santa Ynez Valley Riders, told the News-Press that it’s unfortunate to see so much money put toward legal fees rather than the trails. But she added, “This ruling allows the public opportunity to take a hard look at any recreation uses that may be proposed at Live Oak Trail, and facilitates a transparent process as required by law to determine the future of the natural resources and level of recreational use on the grazing lands on the north shore of Cachuma Lake.
“The Live Oak Equestrian Trail, equestrian trail riding and grazing lease are all grandfathered uses at the camp and trail and have been compatible with the land use and have protected natural resources in the area for over 30 years,” she said.
The Live Oak issue comes on the heels of recent contention between the Board of Supervisors and the Community Association for the Modoc Preserve, concerning the Modoc Multi-Use Path. As proposed by the county, the path would require the removal of popular trees in the area.
The debate has led to CAMP’s lawsuit against the county and the Board of Supervisors for “violating California state laws governing environmental review under the provisions of the California Environmental Quality Act,” CAMP co-founder Warren Thomas told the News-Press. “CAMP challenges the county’s failure to conduct complete and accurate environmental review, prepare an Environmental Impact Report, as well as other procedural and substantive violations of the California Environmental Quality Act,
“CAMP members and volunteers are encouraged with the ruling of Judge Anderle in favor of the SYVR over the Santa Barbara County supervisors because there are a number of similarities between their lawsuit and ours,” Mr. Thomas said. “Judge Anderle’s ruling sets legal precedent for other path / trail / open space development projects in Santa Barbara County such as the Modoc Multi-Use Path at the Modoc Preserve.
“Judge Anderle is very experienced in environmental law and CEQA. He is known for fairness, and for the record, is the judge in our lawsuit,” Mr. Thomas said.
Ms. Rosenthal told the News-Press that equestrians support safe trails for all and that “the county should adopt an overriding goal to ensure safety on our trails before considering how much recreation activity can be exploited from an area.
“We believe the preferred option for the Live Oak area is to create a public, non-politically appointed committee to plan, develop consensus and mitigation for a master plan that will allow continued safe equestrian trail riding and determine if appropriate recreational uses should be expanded at the Live Oak Camp/Trail in the future.
“It’s a very special and wild place, but once it’s gone, it’s gone forever,” said Ms. Rosenthal
Mr. Thomas said CAMP looks forward “to joining forces to save our precious open spaces with folks like Kathy Rosenthal and the Santa Ynez Valley Riders, Ted Rhodes and Citizens for Carpinteria Bluffs, and other groups that are currently forming to help save open spaces in the Goleta Valley and elsewhere from succumbing to urbanization creep.
“Once open space is gone, it’s gone forever.”
email: kzehnder@newspress.com
