Board of Supervisors will consider adopting agricultural business ordinance – edhat

Public comments continue to be welcomed until the November 5th hearing If approved, expands the scope and diversity of permitted uses of Agricultural Land

On Tuesday, November 5, 2024, the County Board of Supervisors will consider adopting an Agricultural Business Ordinance. The Agricultural Business Ordinance would provide new opportunities for local farmers and ranchers to increase income and improve the economic productivity of their agricultural operations, as long as the primary land use continues to be agriculture, including row crops, orchards, vineyards and livestock. /pasture.

If adopted, the Agricultural Business Ordinance will help sustain the economic viability and diversity of agricultural operations in the unincorporated areas of Santa Barbara County by expanding the range and diversity of uses permitted across all unincorporated rural lands in Agricultural Zone II (AG-II), including in the Coastal Zone.

The Agricultural Business Ordinance would allow land uses that support agricultural activities, such as small-scale agricultural processing, aquaponics, composting, farm stands, firewood processing/selling, wood processing/grinding, and pecan shelling, as well as rural recreational/recreational uses. agritourism such as small-scale camping, farm stays, educational experiences and opportunities, fishing/hunting operations, horseback riding, incidental food service, and small-scale special events.

Standards and limitations are proposed for these uses and activities to ensure that impacts to the environment are minimized and remain compatible with agricultural operations and the surrounding community.

The Board will also consider amending the Uniform Rules to address the compatibility of agricultural businesses’ proposed uses on lands subject to an agricultural conservation agreement.

The county’s outreach efforts included mailings, emails to more than 500 members of the public who expressed interest in the project, four public workshops, meetings on the Program Environmental Impact Report prepared for the project, and public meetings with the Agricultural Advisory Committee (AAC) and the Agricultural Reserves Advisory Committee (APAC).

The County Planning Commission (CPC) held eight public hearings over ten months. The County Planning Commission voted unanimously on August 28, 2024, to recommend that the Board of Supervisors approve the proposed Agricultural Business Ordinance amendments. A summary table of the Planning Commission’s recommendations to the Board of Supervisors is available here.

The Board of Supervisors will consider the Agricultural Business Ordinance at its hearing on November 5, 2024. The hearing will begin at 9 a.m. and will be held in the County Administration Building, Board Hearing Room, Fourth Floor, 105 East Anapamu Street, Santa Barbara, CA.

Written materials for the Board of Supervisors hearing will be available on the Board of Supervisors website the Thursday before the hearing, link available here.

Public comments continue to be welcome. Please email comments to the Board Secretary at [email protected] by 5pm the day before the meeting. You may attend the Board of Supervisors hearing in person or watch via live stream on (1) Local Cable Channel 20, (2) online at: https://www.countyofsb.org/1333/CSBTV-Livestream; or (3) YouTube at: https://www.youtube.com/user/CSBTV20.

Individuals who wish to participate virtually and provide public comment during the Board of Supervisors hearing may do so via the Zoom webinar. The webinar link and ID will be available on the Board of Supervisors website one week prior to the hearing, link available here.

Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors meetings are available in Spanish. Watch live on our Spanish YouTube channel, or cable subscribers can access Secondary Audio Programming (SAP) in the language settings.

Advance requests are still required to interpret public comments originating in Spanish. To provide public comments in Spanish, contact the Board Secretary at (805) 568-2240 before 4:00 pm on the Friday before the Board meeting.

For more information, visit the Agricultural Enterprise Planning and Development Ordinance website: https://www.countyofsb.org/728/Agricultural-Enterprise-Ordinance

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