What is More Mesa?
More Mesa is one of the most outstanding scenic and environmentally sensitive pieces of undeveloped open space remaining on the Southern California coast. Its open grasslands provide valuable wildlife habitat and more than 10 miles of natural surface trails, including over 2 miles of dedicated public trails. With sweeping views of the Santa Ynez Mountains and the Pacific Ocean, More Mesa fronts one of the largest and most pristine sandy beaches on Santa Barbara County’s South Coast.
This coastal bluff-top mesa is located in the Eastern Goleta Valley, bounded by the community of Hope Ranch to the east, More Mesa Shores to the west, and other residential neighborhoods to the north. Just two miles east of Goleta Beach County Park and UCSB, it also provides the only publicly accessible coastal access trail (informal, not yet officially dedicated) for nearly five miles of coastline between Arroyo Burro Beach County Park and Goleta Beach. Remarkably, despite its highly desirable location, surrounding growth, and numerous past development proposals, this unique site remains undeveloped. Still, the future of this coastal jewel is uncertain—it could be lost to, or severely damaged by, potential development.
More Mesa consists of approximately 330 acres of private and publicly owned land. The largest portion is 265 acres of privately owned land, which includes most of the level mesa and canyons as well as the entire coastal bluff-top (see aerial map below). The County of Santa Barbara owns an adjacent 54 acres, designated as the More Mesa Open Space, which includes roughly 30 acres on the northwest portion of the mesa (north of the historic railroad cut), along with 20 acres of oak and riparian woodlands and wetlands along Atascadero Creek. The final segment consists of 12 acres of privately owned land at the west end of the mesa near Orchid Drive. This area includes level bluff, oak-covered slopes, riparian habitat along Atascadero Creek, and two major unofficial access trails.
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