Elected officials on Tuesday agreed to not challenge an effort by the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians to move a prominent open space into federal trust—and out of Santa Barbara County planning and development oversight.
In a 4-0 vote, the county Board of Supervisors instead asked the tribe to confirm its plans for The San Carlos Property in writing, forgo the creation of new gaming operations there, consider impacts to roads and traffic, and explore how the county might be compensated for lost tax revenue.
Also known as the Triangle Property, it’s 350 acres bordered by Highway 154 to the northeast, Highway 246 to the south and the town of Santa Ynez at Meadowvale Road to the west.
Tribal Chairman Kenneth Khan told the board that the tribe has no current development plans at the site.
“We’re seeking to place it into trust for non-gaming purposes,” Khan said.
Tuesday’s vote marked the latest twist in more than two decades of construction and expansion by the tribe across closely grouped properties in the Santa Ynez Valley. These include the tribe’s flagship Chumash Casino Resort and the Santa Ynez Chumash Museum and Cultural Center.
The tribe applied to the Bureau of Indian Affairs for the San Carlos title transfer on Oct. 14.
In a letter to the Bureau approved Tuesday, the supervisors cemented their position amid a backdrop of concern about the scale of any future construction at the site. Concerns include potential lost property tax revenue, competition with existing Santa Ynez Valley businesses and impacts to traffic, roads, law enforcement and emergency services.
Supervisor Joan Hartmann, whose Third District includes the property, described the tribe as a reliable partner deserving public trust—following a bruising years-long fight over a neighboring 1,400-acre span located across Highway 154 from the San Carlos Property.
Called Camp 4, the Chumash purchased it in 2010 from the estate of the late actor Fess Parker. The tribe has begun building foundations for homes there.
“The projects that they do are first rate,” Hartmann said. “I do hope we can have some additional conversations about the Triangle Property as plans are evolving about how that will change.
“In the darkness, fear grows,” Hartmann said, adding openness and transparency would help people stay informed about the tribe’s intentions.
The legal landscape has shifted since the Camp 4 fight, making it more difficult for the county to fight the property transfer if it wished to, officials say.
The federal government in 2024 revised regulations that govern how land is moved into trust on behalf of a tribe. Among other provisions, federal officials now presume the transfer will further tribal interests. Adverse impacts to local governments’ regulatory jurisdiction and property tax revenue are presumed to be minimal.
Prior to applying for the San Carlos title change, the tribe was in talks with the county about potentially creating recreational fields or glamping opportunities at the property, among other uses, Hartmann told the News-Press earlier this month.
Board Chair Bob Nelson, who represents the Fourth District, said Tuesday he was sorry to see those discussions end.
“There’s some disappointment that I have that we’re potentially losing the property off the tax rolls and for future opportunities to be developed within the county,” Nelson said. “There were opportunities there that would have been mutually beneficial. I’m saddened that we couldn’t get there.
“I don’t blame the tribe when they have another pathway to go,” Nelson said. “It could be easier to get through our development process.”
Supervisor Laura Capps, who represents the Second District, was absent.
The San Carlos Property flanks the route visitors and residents take past Gainey Estate Vineyards and the Santa Ynez Airport toward neighborhoods and attractions that include Solvang and the Chumash Casino.
The tribe grazes cattle and hosts the annual Old Santa Ynez Days Rodeo at the site purchased in 2015 from the San Carlos Land Company. In early October, the tribe held its annual two-day Intertribal Powwow there.
“We intend to continue grazing and hosting community events,” Khan said Tuesday.
Based on a 2026 valuation that put the value of the site at $13,393,418, the county would lose $141,958 in annual property and school bond tax revenue, according to the board’s letter to the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
“If retail, food or lodging uses are added, the county would not receive the sales tax or transient occupancy tax (TOT) those uses would otherwise generate,” the letter notes.
Khan told the board the tribe remained open to negotiations.
“We respect the county’s role in raising questions about taxes, land use and public safety,” Khan said. “We’re open to discussing our service agreements with the county, government to government, separately from the bureau’s decision.
“For our tribe what makes those acres important is where they sit,” Khan said, noting The San Carlos Property links the tribe’s original 99-acre reservation to Camp 4. “Bringing it into trust would help us plan for our community and care for those lands as whole.”
