Defunct for more than five years, an idle asphalt refinery is on track for revival thanks to a recent Santa Barbara County permit transfer. On Aug. 12, the county Planning Commission greenlit a change of owner, operator, and guarantor on a permit to process crude oil into asphalt at a Santa Maria Valley-based 1930s-built refinery […]
Santa Barbara County Planning Commission
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County Planning Commission cleans up ‘discrepancy’ in oil well ban
Members of the Santa Barbara County Planning Commission recently revisited some language tied to the proposed ban on drilling new oil and gas wells due to a staff oversight. “In April, we should have identified this amendment,” County Long Range Planning Division Manager Alex Tuttle said at the commission’s July 1 meeting. While the commission […]
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County Planning Commission approves 99-unit affordable apartment complex in Orcutt
Described as a win-win project by some local officials, an affordable housing development set for East Foster Road in Orcutt will cause the surrounding area to lose its “overall character,” in the eyes of one homeowners association. “We absolutely understand the need for more affordable housing. Our concern isn’t about who will live there,” Edgewood […]
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Santa Barbara County upholds a Ballard homeowner’s permit to build new bathrooms, delayed by a neighbor’s appeal
Fire hazards. Height violations. Improper noticing. Claims tied to a Santa Ynez Valley resident’s appeal of a neighboring family’s permit to add two new ground-floor bathrooms—together totaling 150 square feet—to their home didn’t hold water during a Santa Barbara County Planning Commission review. “When I first got this, I thought, why is this even before […]
