Last summer, Santa Barbara County Public Works crews began repairs on West Main Street in Guadalupe, which suffered extensive damage from last winter’s storms and left the famous Rancho Guadalupe Dunes closed — until now.
“Guadalupe is the gateway to the Dunes,” said Guadalupe Mayor Ariston Julian.
County officials say every year, upward of 200,000 people visit the Dunes for fishing, biking and beach access. But from the January 9 storm of 2023, until this Friday, the park was empty.
“I feel good now. All this waiting and waiting to go fishing again,” said Guadalupe resident Ysidro De Leon.
“We have been waiting over a year to get back on the beach and ride our bikes to the beach,” added Diane Kilfoyle of Guadalupe.
Friday morning, De Leon and Kilfoyle were just two of the many Guadalupe community members who came out to the dunes for its reopening.
“We were hoping to get it open sooner, but the 2024 storms came and set us back a little bit,” admitted Chris Sneddon, Santa Barbara County Deputy Director of Transportation.
Sneddon says Public Works crews tackled the repairs in three phases, beginning with fixing washout damage on West Main Street near the entrance gate as well as other road restructuring throughout the park itself.
“The people I want to thank the most for making this happen is the community,” said Santa Barbara County District 5 Supervisor Steve Lavagnino. “You held our feet to the fire.”
Lavagnino says over the last nine months, his office received phone call after phone call from locals wondering when park access would be restored.
Friday morning, their wait came to an end.
“I am glad it is open, and I feel good!” De Leon said.
“It is absolutely beautiful. I just love it,” Kilyfole told KSBY,
Public Works officials say the total cost for the repairs was around $2 million and it was made possible through FEMA, state and local funds secured by Supervisor Lavagnino.
While the park is now open, Sneddon says more long-term repair work is needed on the roadway to the beach to help prevent future damage from storms to come.
