Permitting in Montecito: Why It Is Unlike the Rest of Santa Barbara
Posted on June 2, 2026 by SB Permitting
Permitting in Montecito is unlike anything else in Santa Barbara County. Montecito is one of the most desirable places to own property in California, and also one of the most complex places to build in. There is an entirely separate layer of design review, a dedicated community plan, coastal zone requirements that affect most of the area, and a review board with real authority to shape what you build. If you are planning a remodel, addition, ADU, or new construction in Montecito, understanding this process before you start will save you significant time and money.
What Makes Montecito Permitting in Santa Barbara County Unique
Montecito is an unincorporated community within Santa Barbara County. That means it is governed by the County’s Planning and Development department, not a city planning department. But unlike most unincorporated areas of the county, Montecito has its own land use code, its own community plan, and its own dedicated architectural review board. The result is a permitting environment that is more layered and more scrutinized than almost anywhere else in the region.
Most projects in Montecito do not go through a single review process. They go through several, often running in sequence, which means a delay at any one stage pushes back everything that follows.
The Montecito Board of Architectural Review (MBAR)
The Montecito Board of Architectural Review, known as MBAR, was established in 2002 when the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors adopted an ordinance creating a dedicated architectural review board for the Montecito Planning Area. It consists of seven members, the majority of whom are licensed architects or landscape architects appointed by the First District Supervisor.
MBAR review is not optional. Zoning clearances, land use permits, and coastal development permits for any development requiring MBAR approval cannot be issued by the Planning and Development Department until final MBAR approval has been obtained. That means MBAR is not a parallel process you run alongside your permit application. It is a prerequisite.
All MBAR projects begin the design review process at the conceptual level. From there, projects move to preliminary approval, which is the most important step and determines the site plan configuration and design that must be followed in preparing final plans. Permits for actual development may not be issued until MBAR has granted final approval and the appeal period has expired.
The board evaluates projects against the Montecito Architectural Design Guidelines, which were adopted in 1995 and focus on how a project fits the visual character of the community. The guidelines require harmony of material, color, and composition on all sides of a structure, and mechanical and electrical equipment must be well integrated into the overall design concept. These are not rubber-stamp reviews. Board members ask substantive questions, request revisions, and occasionally require site visits before moving a project forward.
The Coastal Zone: Most of Montecito Is In It
The majority of Montecito falls within the California Coastal Zone, which adds another layer of review on top of MBAR and standard County plan check. Any project within the coastal zone requires a Coastal Development Permit in addition to standard building permits. The CDP process involves its own application, its own noticing requirements, and its own appeal window after approval.
What most homeowners do not realize is that the California Coastal Commission retains the right to appeal local CDP approvals for projects within its appeal jurisdiction. That means even after the County approves your project, there is a window during which the Coastal Commission can step in. Coastal Development Permits in complex cases can add months to a project timeline. Planning around this from the beginning, rather than treating it as an afterthought, is essential.
The Montecito Community Plan and What It Governs
Beyond MBAR and the coastal zone, all Montecito projects must comply with the Montecito Community Plan, a locally adopted land use document that sets density standards, design expectations, view protection requirements, and development constraints specific to this community. The Community Plan governs things like floor area ratios, grading limits, and how structures interact with public views and visual corridors — standards that go beyond what the standard County zoning code requires.
Projects requiring grading plan approval must complete conceptual MBAR review before a land use or coastal development permit can even begin processing. This sequencing catches many first-time applicants off guard. You cannot simply submit for a building permit and add MBAR review later. The process has a specific order, and skipping or misunderstanding that order means starting over.
What This Means in Practice
A straightforward addition in Goleta or Santa Maria might move from submittal to permit in a few months. The same project in Montecito, going through MBAR conceptual review, preliminary approval, final approval, coastal development permit processing, and County plan check, can take considerably longer. That is not a criticism of the process. Montecito’s character and property values are partly a product of this level of scrutiny. But it does mean that project timelines, budgets, and design decisions need to account for it from day one.
Working with people who know the MBAR, understand the Montecito Community Plan, and have navigated the CDP process in this specific area is not a luxury on projects here. It is the difference between a process that moves and one that stalls.
If you are also evaluating what is possible on your Montecito property before committing to a design, our feasibility and due diligence services are specifically built for situations like this. And if your project involves an ADU or secondary unit, our ADU permitting services cover the full process including coastal zone and MBAR coordination.
Ready to Start the Montecito Permitting Process?
Montecito permitting rewards preparation. The more clearly your project is defined before it enters the review process, the fewer rounds of revision you face and the faster it moves. Santa Barbara Permitting works with Montecito property owners through every stage, from initial feasibility through MBAR approval and final permit. Schedule a free consultation to talk through your project and understand what the process looks like for your specific property.