Due to emergency storm response and beach nourishment operations, Santa Barbara County officials say they will close the eastern end of Goleta Beach Park and Goleta Pier beginning Feb. 20.
Public access to the west end of Goleta Beach will remain open. Site preparation is expected to begin on Feb. 13, and operations will start on Feb. 20. There may be intermittently closed areas of the park during site preparation between Feb. 13-20 but the park will remain open for weekends of Feb. 10-11 and 17-19.
When full operations begin on Feb. 20 the east end of the Park and Goleta Pier will be closed to public access. Work will continue until the storm response is complete and could occur 10 hours a day, six days a week (Monday-Saturday).
More specific park hours and closure information will be updated at the County Parks Department website.
The February 2024 beach operations involve sediment from the Goleta Slough watersheds only. The flood-control channels surrounding the Santa Barbara Airport, Old Town Goleta, and parts of the Eastern Goleta Valley have accumulated excess sediment due to winter storms.
The channels and basins are designed to capture sediment and floodwaters to protect the community; however, the sediment must be removed to regain flood control protection. Goleta Beach is the designated transport site for the sediment to be re-purposed as beach nourishment.
On Wednesday, Jan. 31, the County of Santa Barbara initiated an emergency response in anticipation of the Sunday, Feb. 4 storm. The State of California proclaimed an emergency on Feb. 4 due to the impacts of the 2024 Winter Storms. Goleta Beach Park is an emergency response site activated by the County under the state and local emergency proclamations.
For more information on the County's response to the local emergency, visit readysbc.org.
