The draft Long Range Development Plan (LRDP) that will help UC Santa Barbara plan its future to the year 2025 was released on March 20 and is now available for public review.

Called UCSB Vision 2025, the release of the draft begins a 45-day comment period on the plan’s elements and its accompanying Environmental Impact Report (EIR). This follows several years of work and presentations to around 40 area neighborhood, civic, and community organizations about UCSB’s future.

The LRDP identifies facilities and services needed to accommodate a proposed 1 percent annual student population growth rate projected to 2025. “This growth requires no additional land, and we can, in principle, house all of the additional growth in campus-based communities,” said Executive Vice Chancellor Gene Lucas. “This is an important sustainability element that mitigates the impact of housing and traffic on our community.”

Information about the LRDP, the EIR, and the Vision 2025 project is available online at <www.UCSBVision2025.com>. Visitors will find downloadable copies of the LRDP and EIR, summary information about the plan, and details about the approval process. Printed copies of the documents are in campus and local libraries.

The LRDP and the EIR will be the focus of a public hearing slated for 7 p.m. April 29 at UCSB’s Embarcadero Hall in Isla Vista. Embarcadero Hall is located at 935 Embarcadero Del Norte (south of Pardall Road).

Written comments on the plan must be received by 5 p.m. on May 9. Comments can be sent via email to info@UCSBVision2025.com, or by U.S. mail to University of California, Office of Planning & Design, c/o Vision 2025, Santa Barbara, CA 93106-1030.

A half hour TV program produced by Cox Media, “Community Connection on the Road,” offers a video summary of the plan hosted by David Edelman in conversation with Lucas and Associate Vice Chancellor Marc Fisher. The program is being carried in Santa Barbara on Cox Communications

The LRDP and EIR will proceed later this year to the UC Board of Regents and the California Coastal Commission for review and approval.