SUPERVISORS TO 'STREAMLINE' ZONING: TRANSLATION — WEARING YOU DOWN ON DEVELOPMENT!

The esteemed Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors, in their infinite wisdom and boundless generosity, are once more tackling the Herculean task of 'ministerial streamlining.' For those not fluent in government-speak, that’s fancy talk for making it easier for their favored developers to build things without all that pesky public input or environmental review. It’s truly heartwarming to see them dedicate 45 whole minutes to such an ‘administrative activity of government,’ as detailed in their latest agenda item.

They'll be 'receiving and filing a report from the Planning and Development Department' – likely a tome of bureaucratic prose designed to induce narcolepsy in anyone foolish enough to actually read it. This, of course, is a prelude to 'providing direction to staff regarding the proposed amendments' to land use codes from Montecito to the coast. Rest assured, this 'direction' will undoubtedly involve greasing the wheels for more concrete and less trees, all under the guise of efficiency.

But fear not, concerned citizens! They've already determined that these recommended actions are 'not a project that is subject to environmental review under CEQA.' That's right, bypassing California’s bedrock environmental protection law is now just an 'administrative activity' that will miraculously cause 'no direct or indirect physical changes in the environment.' It’s a magic trick worthy of Houdini himself! One has to wonder if the supervisors attended Hogwarts or just a particularly exclusive donor picnic.

The real angle here, conveniently missed by the mainstream dailies, is less about 'streamlining' and more about sidestepping. Every 'streamlined' process for development means fewer eyeballs on projects, fewer opportunities for the public to question decisions, and more leverage for those with deep pockets to push their agendas. It’s not efficiency they're after; it's acquiescence. Your local government is just making it easier for large developments to appear, whether you like it or not, and then absolving themselves of environmental oversight – what could possibly go wrong?