A collection of Santa Ynez-area special interest groups is continuing efforts to protest a land annexation proposed by the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians.
On Aug. 26, members of Santa Ynez Valley Concerned Citizens, Women’s Environmental Watch, Preservation of Los Olivos, and Preservation of Santa Ynez will hold a town hall meeting called “Goodbye, Santa Ynez Valley, Hello, Casino Town?” at the Solvang Veterans Memorial.
At the meeting, presenters will discuss the tribe’s intentions to annex approximately 1,400 acres of land at the corner of highways 154 and 246. The groups are concerned tribal members plan to annex the land through the fee-to-trust process so they can develop additional gaming and resort facilities.
“Fee-to-trust would take the land out of the community plan and outside of the purview of government oversight,” said Gerry Shepherd, a board member of SYCC and WEWatch. “The homeowners are very, very worried.”
One major concern is the amount of stress such a development would place on the valley’s public safety agencies and water sources, as well as the loss of agricultural land.
Tribal leaders have gone on record saying they intend to only develop tribal lands on the property. Chumash spokeswoman Frances Snyder didn’t return requests for comment as of press time.
“The goal of this meeting is to educate the public on fee-to-trust and what the impacts of the community could be,” Shepherd said. “It’s not aimed to be negative toward the tribe.”
The tribe bought the acreage in April 2010 from Fess Parker Enterprises for a reported $40 million. Before selling the land to the Chumash, Parker had planned to develop it into a hotel, upscale homes, and two golf courses, but the deal fell through in 2005, after Parker received complaints from valley residents.
Additional scrutiny fell on the tribe last year when leaders asked U.S. Rep. Elton Gallegly (R-Thousand Oaks) to introduce a bill to Congress—a decision that continues to incur criticism from 3rd District Supervisor Doreen Farr and other county officials.
“The tribe has told some people they need more housing for tribe members, but they’ve also mentioned a project that sounds very similar to the project proposed by Fess Parker,” Farr said.
“Fee-to-trust proposals certainly have situations where they’re absolutely appropriate, but it’s my understanding that that process is for tribes that are struggling financially and can’t make money off of their existing land,” she said. “The Chumash are able to make a profit off of their existing property.”
The fee-to-trust process, Farr continued, takes the acreage out of the local land trust control and off of the property tax roll.
She said she hopes the tribe will choose to develop the land through county channels or at least through the Bureau of Indian Affairs so the community has some kind of say in the project.
“Just because they’re not proposing gaming on this location doesn’t mean it won’t happen in the future or they won’t expand gaming at their existing location by moving tribal housing,” she said, adding that extensive development of the area would “change the character of the valley forever.”
The town hall meeting is scheduled to begin at 6 p.m.
This article appears in Aug 25 – Sep 1, 2011.
