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Construction is underway at the site of the former Ocean Meadows golf course in Goleta. The new Ocean Meadows housing complex will include 32 single-family homes and six condominiums. The development team, a property management company named Cardinal Group, broke ground last fall, nearly four years after receiving approval from the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors. 

Located near UC Santa Barbara’s Sierra Madre Student Housing, the development sits on a small portion of the former Ocean Meadows golf course. The conservation nonprofit Trust for Public Land purchased most of the land in 2013 and donated it to UCSB. That portion is now the North Campus Open Space, a protected estuary. The other two lots – the site of the current development – were retained by the golf course owner at the time of initial sale, with the intent to develop it. The developers said the sale of these lots was finalized in October 2023. 

The single-family homes, which are between 2,560 square feet and 2,659 square feet, are two stories in height. Nine will contain accessory dwelling units with kitchenettes. Cardinal Group expects to rent these homes at market-rate. 

The developers plan to rent the condos as low-income housing. The condominiums, which are expected to be 875 square feet and two-bedroom each, will be available for those making 60 percent of the area’s medium income. In 2024, the county classified its medium family income as $119,100 yearly. 

The condos’ affordable housing status qualifies the developers for a density bonus, as per California’s density bonus law, which allows developers to increase the density of their projects if they provide affordable housing units. 

The project, which does not include but is near to environmentally sensitive habitat, has a mitigated negative declaration, or a statement that indicates it will not cause environmental harm. The evaluation for this declaration is conducted and certified by the county.