The Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians cleared a hurdle in removing a 365-acre property near their current reservation from county and state control, expanding tribal sovereignty.
Santa Barbara County Supervisors voted Tuesday to not challenge the tribe’s application to the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
The tribe has applied to place a 365-acre lot called the San Carlos property into a federal trust, allowing the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians to govern the area.
This has raised concerns that the tribe would develop the land, since county zoning codes would no longer apply.
Kenneth Kahn, chairman of the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians, said at Tuesday’s board meeting that his tribe doesn’t have any current development plans.
“We intend to continue grazing and hosting community events, including our annual powwow and the San Ynez Rodeo,” Kahn said. “For our tribe, what makes those acres important is where they sit.”
The San Carlos property, also sometimes called the “triangle” property, is located between the Santa Ynez Band's reservation and another large lot called Camp 4.
Kahn says the tribe has built infrastructure for over a hundred homes at Camp 4 — bringing the San Carlos property into a trust would allow them to care for all of their land as a whole.
Supervisor Joan Hartmann said she hopes the county and tribe would continue discussions if their plans for the property change.
“I know that the county was in discussions with the tribe about some development options that could occur there,” Hartmann said. “We find that when we hear from people, we can adapt, we can change to accommodate.”
The Board of Supervisors chose to outline in their letter the county’s positive relationship with the tribe, as well as some of the predicted downsides to the move, like a loss of more than $141,000 in tax revenue.
