Residents Say Foul Balls From St. Joseph High School Are Causing Damage at Knollwood Estates
ORCUTT, Calif. (KEYT) - St. Joseph High School in Orcutt is under fire... for throwing a curve-ball at neighbors and the county.
Softballs are flying into yards at the adjacent Knollwood Terrace complex... and they're causing damage.
As it turns out, Santa Barbara County’s Planning And Development Department has confirmed, St. Joseph High School never applied for a permit to build the new softball field.
One resident of Knollwood Terrace has collected over 20 softballs, and another has collected at least 30.
“We have almost 20, and that's typical for any of us living, on this street,” says Andrew Philpot, a Knollwood Terrace resident. “This is probably about three months worth.”
Some spectators of the high school’s gameplay have been able to pet a dog who is secured in the backyard.
“The bleachers that were built extremely close to the fence line of our residents was so much so, it causes a privacy issue,” says David Whitham, a Knollwood Terrace resident and HOA board member.
Residents say these errant softballs have broken roof tiles and potted plants, one broke a window, and one grazed a young lady’s ponytail, a near-miss that could have been an injury.
“They call them soft balls, but… Not very soft,” says Philpot. “And coming from 20, 30ft, it's going to hurt somebody.”
The Knollwood Terrace Homeowners Association asked the school to hold gameplay until mitigation measures were in place, and say they were met with refusal.
“We keep getting responses from the county that they're working with Saint Joseph’s,” says Whitham. “But our point and our position is they need to cease activity on the field until the dangerous situation is resolved.”
The HOA has since issued formal complaints, and St. Joseph High School submitted an application for approval of the field in December, 2025.
The permit was simply to retroactively attempt to approve what they already built without a permit,” says Whitham. “And that process doesn't allow any of our residents any feedback, any public comment, any type of, feedback that would be helpful for them in this process.”
Knollwood HOA board member David Whitham says if the county had been part of the process, they would’ve required 15-foot setbacks from all adjacent properties, but some residents report a 3-foot setback.
“If the county retroactively approves their permit, it sets a very bad past practice and precedent to the rest of the county and anybody else that wants to build without a permit,” says Whitham.
Despite the complaints, St. Joseph High has no plans to cancel any games.
Whitham says the county did require the school to extend the safety net fences, but due to a delay in shipment of materials, they’ll be placed after the current season is over.
We have reached out to the Archdiocese Of Los Angeles for additional comment but have not yet heard back.
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