Economist Mark Schniepp predicted that as many as 400 new construction jobs, $100 million in wages, and as much as $14 million in taxable sales could be generated countywide, albeit temporarily, if the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians is granted permission to build 143 new homes on 1,400 acres of farm and pasture land, known as Camp 4, that they recently purchased in the Santa Ynez Valley. Schniepp, a paid ambassador for the Chumash, took his case to the Santa Barbara City Council — as he has to the county supervisors and the county’s six other city halls as part of an effort to generate support for an idea that’s sparked intense opposition.
