Local organizations and volunteers restore popular open space demolished in the mudslide

People are starting to enjoy the Ennisbrook Preserve in Montecito once again after volunteers and local organizations worked for nearly a year to restore it.

The 88 acre open space runs along San Ysidro Creek and is owned by the Ennisbrook HOA and conserved by the Land Trust for Santa Barbara County.

The area was pummeled during the Jan. 9 mudslide in Montecito.

The Santa Barbara Bucket Brigade, along with a horde of volunteers and organizations tackled this massive project in the hopes of returning the open space to its former glory.

“We’ve been working 8 months non-stop, in a collaborative with Ennisbrook homeowners, the The Land Trust for Santa Barbara County, and Mac Brown Excavating. All of us came together to figure out what to do,” said Santa Barbara Bucket Brigade Co-Founder Thomas Cole.

The groups not only removed truckloads of dirt and debris, hundreds of ancient Oak trees were also saved.

There is still more work to be done.

“The work right now is habitat restoration. We’ve done what we can to save the trees,” said Cole. “The work now is replanting native trees that were lost as well as taking out exotic non-native plants or species.”

The Santa Barbara Bucket Brigade still needs donations and volunteers.

The non-profit is also hosting Montecito Rising, a fundraiser on Jan. 12.

For more information, click here.