Construction work at Lake Cachuma’s RV area (California) is underway, with Santa Barbara County officials expecting the project to be completed by December.
The ongoing improvements are part of a multimillion-dollar upgrade aimed at enhancing the camping experience at the lake.
The county’s General Services Department has proposed extending the project contract to June 2026, primarily to allow additional time for payment processing.
The extension would raise the total cost of the project to $14,103,617.95. An additional $500,000 in funding is also being requested for the effort.
Kirk Lagerquist, director of general services, said construction delays stemmed from a series of unforeseen challenges that set back progress. He noted that the county remains committed to finishing the project by the end of the year.
“Once the rains came in and we had that ground opened up, things got really soggy out there, and that took months to dry out,” Lagerquist said, referring to heavy storms at the end of 2023 and into early 2024 that hindered earthwork operations.
He added that construction crews found several undisclosed septic tanks and systems at the site, a remnant of the property’s former use as a mobile home park. These systems were not included in the original project plans and had to be removed before work could continue.
The park, originally built in the late 1950s, is undergoing major modernization to accommodate RV camping needs. Labor shortages also contributed to project delays, a challenge shared by other county infrastructure projects.
Lagerquist said the goal is to have all major construction completed by December, weather permitting, with park staff expected to begin taking reservations in January.
“It’s going to be a really nice facility when it is done,” he said, as reported by Noozhawk on October 6. “So, hopefully it’s worth the wait.”
Construction began in December 2023 and was initially slated for completion in summer 2024. However, multiple setbacks led to timeline extensions. Earlier this year, the county pushed the project’s completion deadline from May to July and raised the total cost to $13.6 million.
Another extension approved on August 19 set the project’s completion target for December. The Lake Cachuma RV area project includes installing new concrete parking pads, full RV hookups with water, sewage, and electricity, and upgraded bathroom and shower facilities. Landscaping improvements are also part of the development plan.