December 2014. Ellwood Mesa Coastal Trail and Habitat Restoration Project will be partially financed by the County of Santa Barbara's Coastal Resource Enhancement Fund (CREF), a partial mitigation of impacts from the following offshore oil and gas projects: Point Arguello, Point Pedernales, and Santa Ynez Unit.

The CREF funds will provide bridge funding to help complete final planning for the Ellwood Mesa Coastal Trail Enhancement and Habitat Restoration Project on the Ellwood Mesa in the City of Goleta. CREF funds will be used to complete final plans for trail and coastal access-way engineering design, revegetation, drainage improvements and erosion control as well as to prepare final Coastal Development Permit (CDP) applications, environmental document and wetland delineation study. Preliminary trail design, habitat restoration and drainage erosion control plans, CDP application, a draft environmental document, wetland and community outreach and public workshops delineation have already been completed using $150,000 provided by the Goleta Valley Land Trust and State Coastal Conservancy along with tens of thousands of dollars in-kind staff support from the Trails Council and City of Goleta. However, the additional funding was required to address requests by California Coastal Commission staff for additional information and more detailed engineering plans.