County officials alert Montecito homeowners that they face prosecution, including daily fines of $850 if stones are not removed

County officials alert Montecito homeowners that they face prosecution, including daily fines of $850 if stones are not removed

Montecito, California, is known for being home to Oprah, a former royal family, and a stunning stretch of coastline. It’s also home to miles of trails, some of which are being blocked by residents hoping to stop people from accessing public hot springs.

Santa Barbara county has been watching encroachments on East Mountain Drive and Riven Rock Road in Montecito since at least 2022, when they sent letters to residents warning them to remove large stones.

Last month, county officials sent letters again to at least six homes alerting residents to remove the stones by 28 March or face civil or criminal prosecution, including daily fines of $850. The county insists that these roads are a public right of way.

The issue seems to be with parking at the trailhead, where a tiny lot allows for just eight vehicles. When that fills up, hikers have to park on roadsides. The hot springs contain six bright blue pools that are located 1.3 miles from the trailhead in the San Padres Forest, surrounded by a deep forest and rocky hills. It became popular during the pandemic when hiking surged in the area, and has also taken off on social media as a destination.

  • IamSparticlesEnglish
    410·
    8 months ago

    I’m trying to understand the situation, because the article is a little confusing. It doesn’t sound like they were actually blocking access to the hot springs. It sounds like they were placing boulders to discourage people from parking along the road leading to the trailhead. There are only a few actual parking spots, and once those fill up people are lining the roads with their cars, possibly damaging private property in the process. I can understand the frustration. Though suing to stop the construction of additional parking seems counter-productive.

    • Hacksaw@lemmy.ca
      21·
      8 months ago

      Hmmm they’re blocking parking on the street and suing to stop making the parking lot bigger than 8 cars. Tell me again how that isn’t “rich fucks trying to stop people from accessing the public hot spring”

      • IamSparticlesEnglish
        11·
        8 months ago

        Well, that’s part of why I’m confused. The article doesn’t say if it’s the same people doing both. It might be completely separate groups. Like maybe one group doesn’t want people parking on the side of the road in front of their house, so they placed the boulders. Maybe a completely different group doesn’t care about that, but they don’t want construction crews making a bunch of noise while they create more parking.

    • TempermentalAnomaly@lemmy.world
      221·
      8 months ago

      The Guardian article links to the original SFGate article which gives a better description and picture.

      The obstructions in question include large boulders and plants placed along the sides of East Mountain Drive and Riven Rock Road in Montecito, blocking spots people would otherwise be able to use as parking before hiking to nearby Montecito Hot Springs.

      Encroachments

      The encroachments are on the right of way which allows for only certain encroachments:

      the county says that the only encroachments that can remain within 10 feet of the pavement include mature trees and “boulders historically situated onsite and partially buried 40% or more, particularly those boulders adjacent to a buried, high pressure gas line”.

      Edit: I don’t know why people get so worked up when someone parks on a public street in front of their house. It literally does not compute for me.

          • IamSparticlesEnglish
            1·
            8 months ago

            That actually varies quite a bit from state to state. In a lot of states, depending on the type of road, it’s illegal to park on the shoulder except for emergencies.