Malibu Surfside News

The Race Is On: Candidates Tackle Issues in First Public Forum

2010-03-10T20:22:00.000-08:00

• Voters Get Opportunity to Compare the Eight Who Are Actively Campaigning for Council Seats

BY BILL KOENEKER

Eight out of the 10 city council hopefuls showed up last week at the first candidates forum, which was jointly sponsored by the Malibu Chamber of Commerce and the Malibu Association of Realtors, Kofi and Jan Swift were no shows.
Moderators from each group asked a series of questions of interest to the business and real estate communities.
The auditorium at HRL Labs was filled to capacity as onlookers listened to the candidates first talk about themselves and then answer questions.
Candidates were first asked their position on the Civic Center septic prohibition ordered by the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board.
Speaking first, Ed Gillespie said it was another example of the problems faced by Malibu due to an outside agency. “They are forcing us to address dirty water in the bay. We need to explore options. The water is still dirty. We have to do something about our water. Could we tie into Las Virgenes Municipal Water District? We need to look at options. I don’t know,” he said.
Harold Greene explained there is no prohibition, it is still in process. “The bottom line, there is stuff going into the ocean making people sick. Yes. But where is it coming from? My conclusion is the [RWQCB] decision is wrong. It is based on old science. What the city is proposing along with Legacy Park will help. The city should continue to fight and litigate the state board,” he said.
Matthew Katz said that septics work and there is proof of that, much of it found in Europe. “The problem is upstream. Legacy Park should be a wastewater plant,” he said.
Lou La Monte said there are efforts underway to try to clean the pollution of Surfrider Beach. “The city’s plan is more viable. The RWQCD’s is a bad idea. What could happen to us happened in Los Osos. The city’s plan can be done responsibly and would resolve the problems,” he said.
John Mazza recalled the city submitted its plan to the regional board late after the comment period. “The business owners want a plant. Let’s try to negotiate the houses out of the moratorium. We just cannot afford to say it is the sea gulls,” he said, referring to city testimony at the regional board meeting.
Laura Rosenthal said she does not support the ban. “I hope the state board will send it back. I support a smaller area. Some areas do not flow into the lagoon. I am excited about building a smaller facility utilizing recycled water,” she said.
Mike Sidley said something needs to be done about wastewater and noted the $56 million price tag is not viable or affordable. He said there are legitimate issues. “We need to deal with a comprehensive solution city-wide,” he said.
Steve Scheinkman said the ban puts a cloud over Malibu. “All of the people in front of me should go collectively before the board and tell them we are serious about cleaning up Malibu. I can’t tell you how this is going to be done. We need to look at the details,” he said.
The council hopefuls were also asked what they would do to improve the relationships between the city and the California Coastal Commission and other agencies that exert a strong influence on Malibu.
Lou La Monte said the real problem is that those agencies do not listen to Malibu. He also said Malibu does not speak with one voice. “We have become a series of tribes. We are talking with different voices. They divide and conquer. We need one voice, a unified voice,” he said.
Matthew Katz said he agreed with La Monte and acknowledged the Coastal Commission has a certain power.
“I don’t know if we can get rid of the Coastal Commission. We have to prove we can govern as a group or family. The Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy and the Coastal Commission believe we are difficult. That we are considered elitists,” he added.
Harold Greene said he would consider a strategy much like he does as a trial lawyer. “We need a consensus to compromise. There are some issues that we can’t resolve now because there is a lack of consensus,” he added. Right now, he said, the citizens are driven by emotional issues, such as the overnight camping and the fire risk. “Putting camping at the Bluffs Park is easier, safer and less risky. We are trying to reach consensus,” he said.
Ed Gillespie said citizens were at the mercy of the coastal panel and the Conservancy. Gillespie said he promised to put together a meeting with Attorney General Jerry Brown, who plans to run for governor, for a town hall meeting to hash out the problems Malibu has with other state agencies.
Gillespie said such political strategy could show the heads of the state agencies that Malibu’s viewpoints are valid. “They treat us like total fools. Let’s show them we are not,” he said.
Mike Sidley answered that voters have to first recognize that those agencies and panels have jurisdiction. “We don’t act like a 20-year-old city. We act like we are five years old. We tell them our way or the highway. They have lost trust in us. We need to develop that trust and confidence. We are governed by the Coastal Act. We are stuck with the Clean Water Act,” he said.
Steve Scheinkman said it is important to understand those agencies, but at the same time he said there should be no compromise concerning public safety issues and children. “We have a $20 million budget and legal expenses are a million per year. We need to find a responsible approach,” he said.
John Mazza spoke about the past fight with the Coastal Commission that turned into a de facto building moratorium while municipal officials legally fought over the Local Coastal Program. “There are consequences to battling,” he said, but added there are some items, such as public safety that cannot be compromised.
Laura Rosenthal said it is important to be proactive rather than reactive. She also talked about utilizing a cooperative spirit to get things done. “We need to be an adult,” she said.
The candidates were then asked what legislative steps they would take to improve the business climate of Malibu.
Katz said he was against the city getting into the real estate business. “We don’t need Rodeo Drive. Go back to the old Malibu,” he said, adding he would like to see Malibu become the healing arts center for the planet.
La Monte said to improve the business climate, there needs to be businesses that serve the residents. He said he thought the hot dog stand at the Malibu Lumber Yard probably makes more profit than all of the rest of the other stores in the shopping center.
Gillespie said businesses need to be attractive to the locals. “How do you do that? I am not sure. The tourists are not spending money. How can you force the landlords to lower rents? Some kind of incentive program for landlords?” he said.
Greene talked about either creating or bringing more “world class” events to Malibu and gave examples of existing programs such as Chumash Day, the Arts Festival and suggested possibly putting on a Hot Rod show.
Scheinkman said it is important to look at the needs of the residents and what can be supplied. “What do residents need? What do they want?” he said, adding that at the same time it is important to keep Malibu’s identity in focus. “We are not a suburban community. We are a rural community. It is important to keep that identity,” he added.
Rosenthal said she applies what she calls the residents’ litmus test. “What would be the effect on residents? Traffic? Is it fiscally sound?” she said. “I want to be able to buy a screwdriver. I want to be able to shop for my family.”
Rosenthal talked about possible tax abatements. And that maybe development agreements could be designed with kinds of businesses rather than other kinds of public amenities.
She said the city-owned Lumber Yard center has not really worked as a place to put local businesses.
Mazza explained that, as a planning commissioner, he pushed for a specific plan. “It will happen when I get elected,” he said, adding the biggest burden for residents is traffic. He also said there must be something for the tourists to do after they visit the beach. He gave as an example the list of 100 secret places of Malibu, currently a promotion of the Malibu Chamber, noting that visitors could go to his surfing museum.
Mazza said right now space for retail outlets is not the problem but high rents. “We need to make permitting easier. Cut the red tape. We are in very rough economic times. We need to promote tourism,” he added.
Scheinkman said there has to be an even playing field and charged that the deferred loan to the developers of the Lumber Yard was not fair. “There is a disconnect. The rents are high, the city has to show sometimes the highest price does not make the highest profit,” he said.
Sidley said the city could create enterprise zones as a way to subsidize the rents for local businesses. He said there are other things that a city could do to boost the local economy. “You also need to change the mind set of people. They have to use goods and services [offered locally],” he added.

First of the Required Campaign Financial Statements Are Filed

2010-03-10T20:06:00.000-08:00

• Seeking a Council Seat Is Expensive with a Number of Candidates Making Loans to Themselves

BY BILL KOENEKER

The first financial filings—for the period of Jan. 1 to Feb. 27—for the 10 city council candidates in the 2010 election were submitted to Malibu City Clerk Lisa Pope last week.
The filings, which are required by state law, show how much money the candidates took in, who they received their campaign funds from, and list their expenditures.
Individuals are limited to contributions of $250 or less to a candidate.
One of the top recipients of individual donors is Lou La Monte, who took in $17,094, and reported spending $14,198. Seasoned observers say the list of his contributors, besides his Big Rock neighbors, reads like the mailing lists of Mayor Sharon Barovsky, who is supporting La Monte, and former Councilmember Ken Kearsley, who is the treasurer for La Monte’s campaign.
Just behind La Monte in total cash contributions is Laura Rosenthal, who gathered $9725, most of it from individual contribution, except for a $100 loan. She spent $8262. Many of her donors are recognizable as school parents or education activists.
Kofi indicated he has taken in no money and has not spent any on his campaign. He has told city officials and the media that he is not planning on formal campaigning, however, he has set up an account for donations on his website..
Mike Sidley reported total contributions of $17,124, which includes $10,000 he loaned himself. He claimed expenditures of $8169. Many of the cash contributions came from donors outside Malibu, including family members.
Harold Greene reported taking in $19,304. But he has also loaned himself money, specifically $16,805. He collected $2499 in cash contributions. A high percentage of those cash contributions also came from outside the community.
Greene spent $7111 on a campaign consultant, enlisting the services of Freeman Public Affairs.
According to the first filing, the only other two candidates who appear to be utilizing campaign consultant services are Steve Scheinkman and John Mazza, who are running on a slate. The pair reported paying over $16,000 dollars to John Alford for consulting, mailing lists, literature and web design.
Scheinkman, who reported collecting $5920 and made a loan to himself of $13,000, ended up so far spending a total of $15,999.
Mazza loaned himself $15,000 and collected $5100 in cash contributions. He claimed $11,795 in expenditures.
It appears that both men garnered the most money from the entertainment industry, with rock musician Don Henley and his wife donating money, as well as producer Irving Azoff, and local activist and philanthropist Ozzie Silna.
Record producer Lou Adler contributed to Mazza, as did Richard Lawrence, the president of a talent agency.
Ed Gillespie reported collecting $7280 in cash contributions and to date has spent $5223.
Gillespie’s notable contributors were from the Prentiss family who own a drug rehab center in Malibu; some Koss family members, which include the owners of the Malibu Country Mart; Dan Bercu, who oversees three shopping centers in Malibu, including Trancas Country Market; currently seeking expansion permits, and actor Vince Van Patten.
Matthew Katz, who is a record producer, filed incomplete paperwork, according to the city clerk.
The city clerk also indicated that Jan Michael Swift has not turned in the required statements.

School District Expects Pink Slips and Program Cuts Even If $195 Tax Passes

2010-03-10T19:58:00.000-08:00

• School Year to End Five Days Earlier Than Scheduled

BY SUZANNE GULDIMANN

Sixty-one teachers, nurses and counselors will be receiving pink slips from the Santa Monica Malibu Unified School District on March 15. An additional 22 have agreed to take early retirement, bringing the number to 83 instead of the 92 authorized at last month’s board of education meeting.
“This will be a sacrifice made by families for the greater good,” boardmember Oscar de la Torre said at the March 4 board meeting where the cost-saving plan was finalized. “A lot of people, real human beings, this will have a real impact on their lives.” He added that teachers will be asked to do “more with less.”
Names have not yet been released, but all 10 elementary school music teachers are expected to be on the list, despite numerous passionate pleas from parents who called the move “outrageous,” and “heartbreaking.”
One speaker questioned why music was targeted: “You did not decimate any other areas,” she said. “Music is a language that needs to be learned early,” another speaker said. “The music department is a huge part of what makes the district stand out,” said another.
The board was also presented with 212 letters—many from representatives of Los Angeles' music and arts organizations, including the Los Angeles Master Choral and the L.A. Philharmonic—protesting the loss of the elementary music program, but the cuts, deemed necessary to keep the district solvent, were passed.
The board prioritized student athletic programs over music programs, and it made no cuts in any of the sports classes and activities on the district campuses.
The board of education also approved a plan to cut the school year by five days this year and next, for an estimated savings of $4 million.
As a result of the furlough days, school will end one week earlier for all district students this year.
The official end of the school year at all district schools will be Friday, June 18, instead of the following Friday, June 25.
The graduation date for Malibu high school seniors will be Thursday, June 17.
The new eight grade promotion date will be Friday, June 18.
In 2010-11, the five furlough days will reportedly be spread throughout the calendar year.
The board also passed an amendment to its contract with Superintendent of Schools Tim Cuneo, decreasing his salary by six days—a 2.73 percent reduction.
The superintendent, whose salary and bonus package has drawn criticism, has agreed to not accept a performance bonus for the 2009-10 and 2010-11 school years, and has accepted a 10 percent decrease in his automobile, phone and housing allowance.
The districts other three top administrators, chief administrative officer Chiung-Sally Chou, and assistant superintendents Jan Maez and Mike Matthews, will also take a six-day salary cut.
The reductions are part of the district’s ongoing effort to cope with a deficit generated by cuts in state funding that is projected to reach $14 million.
The board received assurances from Matthews, who led the district’s negotiations with the unions over the staff reductions, that some or even all of the 61 certificated staff set to receive pink slips could potentially be rehired if state budget projections are less dire than currently forecast, or if the district passes Measure A, the newly named $195 emergency parcel tax that is set for a May 25 mail-in vote, and could raise a potential $5.7 million per year for five years, starting in 2011.
“We can at any time bring a position back,” Matthews said. “You can always add a position.”
Maez, who serves as the district’s chief financial officer was less sanguine, warning that, even if the parcel tax passes, additional reductions will be necessary by 2012.
“If we do all of the deduction plan that’s in place right now, we have the furloughs that have been negotiated and we continue at the same pace, we will be looking again in the 2011-12, 2012-13 year for additional reductions. Even with [Measure A’s] passage some reductions [will] be required.”
Even the immediate future appears bleak, according to Maez, who predicted more cuts from Sacramento. “[It’s] almost for certain that some additional reductions will come to education in the next month,” she said.
“This is a hard vote to take,” Boardmember Ben Allen said, summing up the mood of the evening. “Nobody likes passing a measure like this. We’re facing some great unknowns.”

Councilmembers Play Politics at the Podium; Show Stake in Election

2010-03-10T19:51:00.000-08:00

• Supporters of Malibu Lumber Yard Bailout Defend the Action

BY BILL KOENEKER

Though there are no incumbents in the 10-person race for the two vacant seats on the city council, that has not stopped council hopefuls from offering their own critiques of the council performance during the past two years.
One of the main targets has been the Malibu Lumber Yard, which sits on city-owned land. Some candidates have opined that the shopping center is not working in terms of attracting local businesses.
Another quipped that the hot dog stand was the only outlet making a profit. One council hopeful said the city should not be in the real estate business. Others have talked about the $1.5 million bailout in more general terms.
However, at Monday night’s regular meeting. some council members fired back at the candidates’ statements about a certain aspect of the Lumber Yard deal.
“It is complete lies about the Malibu Lumber Yard,” said Councilmember Andy Stern, regarding statements made by some of the candidates about the interest free deferral of $1.5 million that the council approved for the shopping center’s developers.
Stern said the city continues to get the base rent of $925,000 and the money that was deferred came from rent above and beyond the base rent. “It will be paid back,” said Stern, who explained the hookup of the veterinary hospital to the shopping center’s wastewater treatment plant agreed upon by the developers made for an even exchange.
“That could cost the city one million dollars. It is completed. We are not deferring the base rent. They are lying,” he added.
Councilmember Pamela Conley Ulich said candidate Steve Scheinkman had said the city gave away a million dollars.
“It is confusing to the community to say the city flat out gave away $1.5 million. That is not true. We will have City Manager Jim Thorsen put something together,” she said.
Thorsen said the agreement is on the website and he could put something together in “simple terms.”
Although several candidates have offered their critique of the Lumber Yard, only Scheinkman was called out by name Monday night.
Scheinkman was not allowed to defend his statements when he tried to do so while speaking on another agenda item.
But he managed to tell the council, “I stand by my comments.”
The council hopeful was contacted after the meeting for comment. “I find it disconcerting that the city council still does not seem to understand why the $1.5 million amendment to the lumber yard lease was a poor business decision. Far more troubling however, is the council’s confirmation that their failure to perform proper due diligence on the new city hall has now burdened the city with another unplanned $3 million dollars in additional debt. That a council meeting confronting such serious financial problems can exhaust its time with name-calling rather than addressing these issues directly only underscores the need to elect council members with both the financial expertise to avoid these problems and a common sense of public decorum,” he wrote in an email reply.
Council members didn’t let up the criticism. Mayor Sharon Barovsky, calling the campaign the “silly season,” scoffed at some of the candidates and said, “What great business men they are,” referring to some of the candidates’ questions about the city’s continuing use of Certificates of Participation to finance more and more expenditures. The total amount of the COPs and their costs is nearing $65 million.
“I’m going to buy a building with a $17 million mortgage and not a dime of taxpayers’ money,” said Barovsky, apparently re-ferring to the new city hall acquisition.
Talking about another aspect of the Lumber Yard deal, the mayor said the developer put in $24 million of improvements in the city-owned building. “It will be paid for. That is also true for city hall at the end of 30 years,” she said.
Barovsky concluded by saying the council also retired the 19 acres that could have become a much larger shopping center under a different scenario. “Leave us out of it,” she said.

Publisher’s Notebook

2010-03-10T16:02:00.000-08:00

• Malibu 2010 Election: Up and Running •

ANNE SOBLE

Even though many of the candidates for the two open seats on the Malibu City Council in the April election have already put up signs, sent out several mailings, taken part in numerous coffees and faced head-on the ever increasing cost of running for local office, the election season doesn’t kick into full gear for me until all the candidates are together in the same location for the first public forum.
Some of the candidates are placing heavy campaign emphasis on social media, and it will be interesting to see whether this is now a major political battleground for Malibu’s current voter demographics. There’s no denying the electronic reach on the state and national level for the new and under-30 voter, but whether Malibuites make going online a major determinant of their political decision-making process will be one of the aspects of this election that everyone will be watching closely.
One trend that Malibu has clearly adopted in ever growing numbers is voting by absentee ballot. When the absentee process kicks in and ballots start being mailed out next week and returned, there might be a sufficient number of votes cast to determine the outcome. March could be the critical juncture in an election that is decided weeks before the polls actually open.
Malibu is small enough and most Malibuites are not political junkies or policy wonks, so there still is a strong personal component in local elections. The sizable turnout at last Thursday’s forum bodes well for voter interest in the candidates. There are more forum options in the 2010 race, with three scheduled for this week and another two the week after.
Although one occasionally hears a resident describe attending a candidates forum as more painful than root canal surgery, most Malibuites try to get to at least one, and if they don’t make it in person, they watch the videos on the local municipal channel.
There will be 10 names printed on the 2010 ballot, but it appears likely that there only will be eight, or possibly just seven, candidates really hitting the campaign trail, unless those who have not responded to forum invites, filled out questionnaires and done media interviews decide to get involved.
Interesting also is the increased professionalization of local campaigning. Those who ran for the first council after Malibu incorporated must look at the mounds of literature, the signs, the banners, the websites, the consultants and the price tag for the media mix and are grateful they ran when they did.
Whatever the medium, elections at their most visceral level hinge on an affective human connection between voter and candidate that is based on communicating trust, respect and mutuality of interests. Those who do this best usually come out on top.

‘Paparazzo’ Trial Postponed

2010-03-10T16:00:00.000-08:00

• Two Longtime Local Residents Accused of Assaulting Photog

BY BILL KOENEKER

The long-awaited trial of Skylar Peak and Phillip Hildebrand on charges of misdemeanor battery scheduled to start in a Malibu courtroom this week has been continued until March 23, according to the district attorney’s office.
A clerk at the Malibu courthouse said the trial was postponed because there is already another trial in progress.
The longtime Point Dume residents and surfing buddies are accused of throwing a photographer and his equipment into the water as he was attempting to take pictures of Matthew McConaughey when he was surfing off the Point.
Peak and Hildebrand maintain that they responded in self-defense after a large and aggressive pack of paparazzi stormed the private beach after being told they were trespassing.

City Council Urges a Yes Vote for the $195 School Tax

2010-03-10T15:58:00.000-08:00

• Support Voiced from All Quarters But Many Say They Want Assurances Malibu Gets Its Fair Share

BY BILL KOENEKER

The Malibu City Council unanimously endorsed what is called a temporary parcel tax proposal by the Santa Monica Malibu Unified School District. Council members were told it will be called Measure A.
The $198 parcel tax will be put before the voters with a special mail-in ballot election on May 25.
Parents, council candidates and a school district official all came to the council chambers to urge members to endorse the tax.
The only issue on most minds was that Malibu would get its fair share of the taxes collected.
Councilmember John Sibert said he was told there are 6000 parcels in Malibu and at $198 each, that would garner about $1.2 million for Malibu.
The school district’s Assistant Superintendent of Human Resources Mike Matthews, who is a Malibu resident, assured the council Malibu would get its fair share.
He said the district is in dire straits and is losing $10 million each year, He said he has begun giving layoff notices.
Council candidate Mike Sidley, whose wife is the Malibu High School PTSA president, said the “doomsday scenario” painted by district officials is very real. He urged support.
Councilmember Pamela Conley Ulich said everybody is concerned that Malibu get its fair share and that message should be sent to district officials.
Council hopeful Steve Scheinkman said he too wanted assurances that Malibu gets its fair share. “What is Malibu’s share? Will the Point Dume School stay open?” he asked.
All of Malibu’s PTAs, through a joint letter, pleaded with the council to endorse the tax measure, which includes a senor exemption.
Cynthia Torres, the chair of the school district’s financial oversight committee, also wanted the city council’s support for the five-year funding measure, saying Measure A “is absolutely essential to ensure the financial integrity of the public school system.”
AD HOC COMMITTEE
It was Conley Ulich’s idea to seek approval from a majority of the council for the formation of an ad hoc council committee to explore cost savings options for the new city hall to work with the architects on determining possible dollar saving measures for the design plans.
But the council member got squeezed out of being appointed to the panel when the mayor made a motion for Sibert and Councilmember Jefferson Wagner to serve on it. Conley Ulich said she knew how busy the two men were and she would willingly take their place. Neither man relented and both were tapped to serve on the subcommittee.

New Field Searches for Mitrice Richardson Are Planned

2010-03-10T15:55:00.000-08:00

• Missing Woman Has Not Been Seen Since Sept. 17

BY ANNE SOBLE

Tragic stories about missing young women have dominated the news recently, but the family and friends of 24-year-old Mitrice Richardson remain hopeful that her saga will not end the same way.
A series of citywide field searches for the woman who has now been missing for six months are scheduled to take place on Sunday, March 28.
Richardson’s mother, Latice Sutton, and a circle of relatives and friends plan to send seven search teams in groups of five or more to Malibu, Calabasas, Santa Monica,Venice, Hollywood, Skid Row and the South Central area on the same day.
According to a family spokesperson, “We have been searching these areas, but never all at once. So this will be the biggest volunteer one-day search yet.”
The group says additional volunteers are welcome and needed. Those who want to participate can email: mitricefund@gmail.com for further information.
On the law enforcement front, the mother has written to the Los Angeles Police Department, the lead agency in the missing person investigation, and asked that the case be returned to Detective Kristin Merrill, the missing person/homicide detective who was first assigned to the case.
This request was made on Feb 15, but Sutton says she has not received a reply yet from the LAPD.
Richardson’s mother also noted that she has still not received the video of her daughter taken at the Lost Hills Sheriff’s Station “that Capt. [Tom] Martin promised us in our meeting with [Sheriff Lee] Baca.”
The group also reports being told about an encounter of a person from Monte Nido running near Las Virgenes Road last week with a sheriff’s deputy “who said that [the Lost Hills deputies] have been told the reason [Richardson] is missing is that her mother did not want to come and pick her up.” They add that “even now they do not get the straight story.”
The tight-knit circle of relatives and friends says that it shares the grief of the families who are coping with the violent deaths of their teenage daughters.
Family members want to try to get the dogs used on the two Southland cases involved in their search efforts.
They stress that they “are very upset with the lack of communication, interest and action by the LAPD and the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department” that first took the woman, now believed to have been mentally ill, into custody on two normally field citable misdemeanor charges and released her at 12:35 a.m. alone, on foot, without her purse or cell phone, despite recorded telephone assurances from sheriff’s deputies that her mother would be able to pick her up later in the morning.

Three Forums within the Next 10 Days Introduce Council Candidates to Voters

2010-03-03T19:56:00.000-08:00

• Groups Focus on Concerns that Affect Them Directly

BY BILL KOENEKER

As is the tradition in Malibu City Council elections, the pace of the public candidate forums and panels picks up in the month of March.
The forums kick off this week with the Malibu Chamber of Commerce and the Malibu Association of Realtors, who are holding a joint effort at Hughes Research Labs Auditorium on Thursday, March 4, from 6:30 to 9 p.m.
So far, eight of the 10 candidates in the race for two open seats have indicated that they are going to participate in the free public event.
The 10 candidates are Ed Gillespie, Harold Greene, Matthew Katz, Kofi, Lou La Monte, John Mazza, Laura Rosenthal, Steven Scheinkman, Michael Sidley and Jan Andrew Swift.
A panel composed of members of both organizations will ask questions that are viewed as “important to business and real estate interests.”
The chamber and the realty board have indicated that they are considering the endorsement of candidates based on the results of the forum.
The next forum will also be a Thursday night program. The Point Dume Community Association will host a public forum on March 11 from 6:30 to 8:45 p.m. at the Point Dume Marine Science Elementary School located at 6955 Fernhill Drive.
The organizers’ press release indicates that all Malibu and Point Dume residents are invited to attend the event, which “is specifically tailored towards Point Dume and its over 2300 residents.”
As was the PDCA practice in the past, residents are asked to submit written questions in advance of the meeting for the candidates. “The purpose of the meeting is to have the candidates running for city council address the issues facing Point Dume and Malibu,” the press release goes on to state.
The Point Dume Community Association is a non-profit organization that addresses the interests of Point Dume residents. The March 11 meeting is also the annual meeting of the organization.
Next, the Malibu Township Council is holding its forum on Saturday, March 13, from 10 a.m. to noon. This year, the candidates forum is scheduled to be held at the Malibu Performing Arts Center, the home of the future city hall on Stuart Ranch Road.
A press release issued by the group says, “Traditionally, the event is taped and replayed on local TV during the last few weeks of the election.”
In addition, candidates who wish to do so, can set up booths outside the MTC forum room to distribute literature and meet with voters in one-on-one conversations.
Beginning March 15, registered voters in the City of Malibu may request absentee ballots. Many candidates are also providing the forms. March 29 is the last day to register to vote. The window for requesting absentee ballots closes on April 6.
The canvass of the April 13 election results and the formal council reorganization meeting takes place on April 26.

Las Paz-City Development Agreement Up Before Coastal Panel

2010-03-03T19:53:00.000-08:00

• Neighbor’s Appeal of City-Approved Trancas Country Market Expansion Plans Is Postponed

BY BILL KOENEKER

The California Coastal Commission had two scheduled Malibu agenda items next week on its March calendar when the panel meets in Santa Cruz next week.
An appeal by Hans Laetz of Zuma Impact, LLC of a decision by the Malibu City Council approving permits and entitlements for the remodel and expansion of the existing Trancas Country Market shopping center at Pacific Coast Highway and Trancas Canyon Road has been postponed.
Laetz, a Malibu Park neighbor who overlooks the shopping center, said he had not requested the postponement and it was his understanding that only the applicant or CCC staff could make such a request.
Trancas Country Market co-owner Dan Bercu successfully sought permits from the Malibu City Council after an appeal to the planning commission for the remodel and expansion of the existing shopping center that includes the addition of 25,728 square feet of commercial space, a new parking lot, new alternative onsite wastewater treatment systems, landscaping with associated variances/site plan review and conditional use permits.
When Bercu was asked to comment on the postponement from the March CCC agenda, he replied, “No comment.”
An agenda item that will be heard next week is the City of Malibu’s attempt to get approval from the coastal panel for the proposed development agreement it seeks with the developers of the La Paz office/retail complex in central Malibu and other changes sought to comply with the Coastal Act.
The city is using a Local Coastal Program Amendment to accomplish its goals. The item is set for a public hearing and action by the commission on a request by the city to amend its certified LCP to change the land use and zoning designation of two parcels in Malibu Civic Center area from Community Commercial to a new proposed designation of Town Center Overlay or TCO.
The TCO designation would have specific development standards for the new zone and a development agreement to permit an increase in allowable floor area ratio from 0.15 to 0.20 in exchange for a public benefit.
However, the commission staff report recommends that the commissioners deny the language used by the city and deny the proposed LCPA, but approve the amendment itself, subject to three modifications.
The CCC staff report indicates for the first modification it wants the commission to delete the city’s request to remove the Community Commercial land use designation from the two parcels to use a the new land use designation of TCO.
“The change in the underlying land use designation to an overlay designation is not necessary and would create an inconsistency in the LCP’s existing format for overlay districts.” the commission staff report states.
Consequently, the coastal staff’s recommended modification that is required would be to delete the proposed land use plan map change from CC to TCO.
The commission staff report also notes that the actual public benefits in the development agreement in exchange for the FAR increase are not formally spelled out in the LCPA.
The staff wants the inclusions of such language in the document.
The proposed language reads “Pursuant to a development agreement between the property owner and the City of Malibu, the allowable Floor to Area Ratio is increased from 0.15 to 0.20 for the following public benefits:
1) 2.3 acres to be conveyed to the City of Malibu for the purpose of a city hall or [other] municipal use;
2) $500,000 contribution to the city hall or municipal use infrastructure construction fund associated with the development of the 2.3 acre parcel acquired by the city;
3) a pedestrian and bike path from city hall [or other city use building] throughout the project connecting to Civic Center Way;
4) an Offer-to-Dedicate a public trail easement fronting along Civic Center Way [this would become a segment of the planned Malibu Pacific Trail-Coastal Slope Trail]; and
5) conceptual architectural plans for the city hall [or other city use building].
The third suggested modification includes adding a map showing the boundaries of the TCO district.

Planning Commission Wrestles with Limits on Athletic Field Lighting

2010-03-03T18:49:00.000-08:00

• One Panelist Says Some CCC Members May Have to ‘Die’ Before City Can Get Its Way

BY SUZANNE GULDIMANN

The City of Malibu’s Planning Commission appeared to indicate that the city has little intention of honoring a Local Coastal Program amendment that would permit limited nighttime athletic lighting at Malibu High School.
That seemed to be the message from three of the four planning commissioners present at the Feb. 16 meeting, when the resolution to amend the LCP to permit 16 nights of lighting to accommodate the school’s football program, that was approved 3-1 by the planning panel in January, was brought back for what should have been the simple formality of sending the resolution to the city council, but instead erupted into a furious debate.
At one point, it appeared that the resolution would fail entirely—the vote was tied 2-2, with Commissioners John Mazza and Joan House in favor of approving the resolution and Regan Schaar and Ed Gillespie opposed. Commissioner Jeff Jennings resides near the school and had recused himself on the issue.
“This whole thing is too restrictive,” Schaar said, reiterating her position from the January discussion, when she was the dissenting vote. “It gives all the power to the Coastal Commission. I don’t agree with it.”
Gillespie, who is running for city council, and had voted to pass the resolution in January, said that he had an epiphany while volunteering at a father-daughter dance. “As I watched these kids with their dads I thought about Commissioner Schaar, that our city is not kid-friendly. It’s clear that the Coastal Commission will not allow more than 16 nights, I think they made that clear. It’s also clear to me that we must do everything in our power to make certain that our city is kid-friendly. Whatever is in our power to make Malibu more kid-friendly, I’m for 100 percent.”
“I agree with everybody here, but I’m also being a realist,” Commissioner House said. “I think that to deny this is not in good stead. “We’re probably going to have to wait for some of the Coastal Commissioners to die off, the superintendent of schools to move away and things, just life, to move on.”
“Kids are the most important product of this city,” House continued. “ I’d much rather see football games there. Let some of the Coastal Commission die and the change will happen.” House described how she had created the city’s Parks and Recreation Department when she was on the City Council. “I wanted a Parks and Rec director and no one supported it. We’ve changed a lot.”
“I think the important thing here is that there was a lot of compromise made by the audience [at the January meeting],” Commissioner Mazza, who is also running for the city council, said. “There were two basic factions, but the one thing that what I will call the school faction wanted was to move the process along, and that if they didn’t hurry, there would be no season next year. What happens if we pass this resolution is it goes to the city council and they can make those same arguments again. If we don’t pass it tonight, I’m assuming it’s either dead or it gets put back on the schedule.”
The meeting briefly deteriorated into complete disorder at that point, with Chair Gillespie repeatedly calling for order and Schaar, who apparently had not watched the Coastal Commission meeting where approval of the lights was unanimously denied, continuing to demand that the 16-day limit be removed from the LCP. “I don’t know where the number 16 came from. We need more flexibility if we want to change it,” Schaar indicated.
“I understand what you are saying,” Mazza said. “But the only thing we can do is memorialize the resolution.”
The city planner confirmed that changing or eliminating the 16-day restriction would require a new publicly noticed meeting.
“It should be 365 days of lights a year,” Schaar said, continuing to object. “I think it should be every day of the year.”
“It would be devastating not to move this on,” House said to Schaar, offering to go to the city council meeting with Schaar and present the case for unrestricted lighting. “A half a loaf is better than none.”
“Malibu needs to be a sovereign city and not go to Coastal,” Gillespie said, but he voted to support the resolution, after Mazza reminded the panel that Schaar's position would be included as a minority report in the resolution and that additional discussion could take place at the city council meeting.
Malibu High School has used temporary lights for a small number of football games and practices during the past seven years. Plans to install permanent lighting that could potentially have been in use as many as 208 nights a year attracted massive opposition from West Malibu residents and revealed that neither temporary or permanent athletic lighting is permitted in Malibu, and that a special condition prohibiting lighting had been placed on the school property as part of the 1999 development permit from the Coastal Commission.
The school district opted to bypass the City of Malibu, passing a resolution in July of 2009 that exempts the district from municipal code, and took their request for lighting directly to the Coastal Commission, where it was unanimously denied.
The matter was then brought to the city, where the 16-night plan appeared to be viewed as an acceptable compromise by many of the interests involved in the debate.
The lighting LCP amendment will go before the city council its March 22 meeting.

Elementary School Libraries May Be Next on SMMUSD Chopping Block

2010-03-03T18:48:00.000-08:00

• Athletics and Administration Are Untouched by Cuts

BY SUZANNE GULDIMANN

Elementary school libraries may be the next target of cost-saving measures being threatened if the May ballot tax measure doesn’t pass, according to Superintendent of the Santa Monica Malibu Unified School District Tim Cuneo.
Cuneo recently hosted a meeting with members of the press to outline the district’s ongoing budget process and to promote the $195 temporary parcel tax that will be the subject of a May 25 special election.
The superintendent highlighted what he described as the district’s tremendous successes, including impressive advanced placement numbers, exit exam pass rates, and the strong relationship between the district and Santa Monica College, before addressing the budget issue.
Cuts in state funding have resulted in a growing district deficit, expected to reach $14 million this year. Cuneo explained that $4.5 million in cost cutting measures implemented in 2009, and money siphoned from the district’s reserve have slowed the deficit, but that it continues to grow, leading to a drastic plan to eliminate the entire elementary school music program, issue pink slips to 92 teachers, counselors and nurses, and increase class sizes for the second time in two years.
The district, which is facing a projected $14 million deficit, has already cut $4.5 million from its budget in 2009, and is planning to implement cost saving measures that will include five furlough days for all employees—reducing the school year from 180 days to 175—at an estimated savings of $2 million a year for the next two years.
The four members of senior management will take six days of reduced salary. Cuneo stated that he did not exercise the right to a bonus this year, last year or next year and added that, despite the furlough days “my work here stays the same.”
Cuneo explained that 71 percent of the district’s funding comes from the state, 14 percent more is restricted funding that can’t be reallocated and must be used only for specific programs. Local revenue from parcel taxes, PTAs and the community donations constitutes 10 percent. The remaining five percent comes from the federal government.
The budget crisis in Sacramento has caused state revenues to be reduced to 2003-4 levels, a net loss of 18 percent, or $8.5 million.
“The government is proposing another $2 million cut,” Cuneo stated. “We have to have a balanced budget by June. The state never does.”
The district is counting on passage of a $195 per property parcel tax that was initially described as an “emergency” tax but is now being called simply a “temporary” tax, to help bail it out.
“We’re actually running two budgets,” Cuneo said. One with the [parcel tax] measure and one without it.” Cuneo indicated that some recipients of pink slips could be rehired if the tax passes, and that cuts to programs could be mitigated.
“It took a very small amount of time to get here,” Cuneo said. “The recession will take a lot longer to recover.”
The communities of Santa Monica and Malibu have traditionally supported previous tax measures, however, response to the current parcel tax proposal has been described as “lukewarm.”
A large number of residents are already coping with the fallout from the housing and job market crisis and organized opposition to the measure is forming in Santa Monica.
“We have been very proactive,” Cuneo said. “We cut $4.5 million last year, but most of our money is all tied up.” Cuneo described the school board as “prudent,” and credited them with building a reserve that has slowed the budget decline but has not been adequate to stop it.
He explained that 49 percent of the district budget goes to salaries and benefits for certificated personnel.
An early retirement package offers some of the prospective teachers a less painful exit strategy but will do little to reduce class crowding and program cuts.
Cuneo revealed that in addition to terminating the elementary school music program, the district is also discussing shutting down elementary school libraries. No athletic programs have been cut, and administrators were not included in the current round of proposed pink slips.
The board of education has faced accusations from some parents that it is “holding elementary school music hostage” to the parcel tax. Classroom teachers union representative Harry Keilly has also been highly critical of the proposed layoffs, calling them premature.
“There are laws we have to meet, Cuneo explained. “Employees who are to be laid off must receive notice by March 15.”

Publisher’s Notebook

2010-03-03T18:44:00.000-08:00

• Freedom Now: Can Marine Mammal Ethics Trump Profits? •

ANNE SOBLE

Less than a week after some of the nation’s most notable scientists and ethicists presented papers making a powerful case against the keeping of dolphins and other marine mammals in captivity, a six-ton orca largely kept in total isolation at a Florida amusement park was implicated in the death of a trainer. The animal had spent as much as 27 of his 29 years in solitary confinement except for occasional exchanges, such as the fatal one with the trainer, and his use in the breeding of 17 orca calves, whose value may have run as high as $2 million each.
Add other park breedings and the ticket take at these parks, and no one should be surprised that animals are not released despite possible implication in human tragedies as the orcas’ monetary value surpasses whatever costs the deaths involve. Despite any pretensions to the contrary, the enslavement of such intelligent beings as dolphins and orcas is predicated solely on profits from the sale of breeding stock and public attendance at shows that are today’s equivalent of the Roman “circuses.”
Malibu has long been in the forefront of making the case that dolphins and other marine mammals should be thought of as “nonhuman persons.” Scientists at the recent American Association for the Advancement of Science annual meeting in San Diego presented papers against the keeping of these animals in captivity, even for medical research. Animals that swim upwards of several hundred miles a day in the wild should not be confined in concrete tanks where they can only swim in limited circumference circles over and over again. The consensus is this leads to frustration, anxiety and depression.
It was but two days after the death before park orca shows resumed and the “accident” was explained away. The fate of all the marine mammals in captivity is sealed unless people consciously decide that they will no longer participate in the subjugation and confinement of intelligent and sensitive animals that flies in the face of their gregarious nature. There has not been a single documented case of an orca injuring a human in the wild. The so-called human tragedies have all been in confinement.
AAAS scientists called for an immediate halt to the capture of dolphins and other animals. One ethicist said the mammals’ behavior and neurophysiology suggests that they have “all of the traits that philosophers traditionally require for persons.” Researchers have conducted studies that verified self-awareness, prompting these scientists to state that they will not study the animals in captivity because it constitutes unacceptable torture.
To some of the scientists who have looked at the extent to which captive animals suffer anguish in confinement, amusement parks may be a worse fate than death.
Only the marketplace has the ability to force these marine amusement parks to rehabilitate and free animals that are now confined. Digital technology can replicate the experience of these animals in the wild with much more immediacy and drama than forcing them to do stupid pet tricks for food.
As a society, we have to develop an interspecies ethic that would mark a significant turning point in the relationship between humans and other intelligent beings on the planet. Doing this would also mark a turning point in the way that humans deal with each other.

Residents in Corral Fire Area Organize to Attend Court Date

2010-03-03T18:42:00.000-08:00

• Two Men Expected to Plead Guilty to Starting Malibu Wildfire on March 18

BY ANNE SOBLE

Motions to dismiss by the two men viewed as the most culpable in the starting of the Nov. 24, 2007 Corral Fire—William Thomas Coppock and Brian Alan Anderson—failed, and the pair are now scheduled to return to court on March 18.
The Operation Recovery group that formed after the disastrous Santa Ana wind-driven blaze that claimed 55 homes, is marshalling Corral Canyon residents to attend the hearing.
Operation Recovery coordinator Beverly Taki said the group is pleased with the court’s decision last week to rule against dismissing the two arson counts against the duo.
The third count, that the fire was started under a governor-declared state of emergency was dismissed because the original document lacked a necessary seal to be “official.”
Taki told her neighbors that their participation on March 18 is “imperative.”
She said she has been told the attorneys for the defendants have indicated that when the pair returns to court on March 18, they likely will plead guilty to both counts and be submitted to the court for sentencing.
Taki added, “Subsequent to that, the court will select a date for sentencing, and [at that time] it will finally be [the residents’] turn to address the court.”
Individuals going before the court usually prepare written statements that they then read to the judge.
Only a limited contingent of local residents attended last week’s hearing because OR was told to expect another continuance. Many of the local residents have attended numerous court sessions in Van Nuys that were continued.
According to a resident who went last week, “Judge [Susan] Speer determined Anderson and Coppock’s behavior that night to be reckless, based on the evidence presented at the preliminary hearings.”
As for the other two defendants, Eric Matthew Ullman and Dean Allen Lavorante, who had left upper Corral before the wildfire began, court observers expect them to end up with misdemeanor counts.
If Anderson and Coppock do plead guilty, Judge Speer is expected to send them to prison for 90 days and have them undergo psychiatric evaluation that might result in longer sentences or probation.
A fifth defendant, Brian David Franks, has already been convicted of starting the blaze as part of a plea bargain package that required him to testify against the other defendants.

Giant Coreopsis Really Is a Rare Local Specimen

2010-03-03T17:56:00.000-08:00

• Coreopsis Genus ‘Relatives’ May Grow in Other States

BY SUZANNE GULDIMANN

For most of the year, it’s an unobtrusive brownish shrub, or sometimes even a small tree, but for a few short weeks during the rainy season, coreopsis gigantea, the giant coreopis, covers Malibu’s coastal bluffs with a tapestry of golden flowers on a background of feathery green foliage.
There are 35 known species of the plant genus coreopsis, all are native to the Americas, most have showy flowers, and many are widespread wildflowers or popular garden plants, but the giant coreopsis that thrives along the local coast is found on the coastal bluffs from Malibu to San Luis Obispo County and on the Channel Islands and nowhere else in the world.
A smaller cousin, the sea dahlia, or coreopsis maritima, occurs as far south as Baja, according to the bible of California plant identification, Willis Jepson’s “Manual of the Flowering Plants of California.”
Rarely found out of sight of the ocean, the aptly named giant coreopsis can reach a height of eight or even 10 feet.
Malibu’s first residents, the Chumash, reportedly used the plant to produce a vivid orange dye. It may also have had medicinal properties or cultural significance now forgotten. It grows most thickly in the places where the Chumash once lived, including the ancient Chumash shrine site at Point Dume and the cliffs above what was once the Chumash settlement of Muwu, now Mugu.
Uncontrolled development during the 20th century threatened this coastal plant with extinction. It is now protected, and continues to thrive on the Channel Islands and on the remaining undisturbed mainland coastal bluffs.
For many contemporary Malibuites, the golden flowers of the coreopsis are an eagerly anticipated harbinger of spring.
Native plant horticulturalist Antonio Sanchez sells giant coreopsis as a garden plant at his native plant nursery called Nopalito, at 4107 E. Main Street in Ventura.
Sanchez says that the giant coreopsis can be grown as a garden plant, with a little coaxing. He recommends treating this unusual California native like a succulent.
“You can grow them in a pot, like a succulent, that lets you control the soil and the water. They’ll also grow on a hillside with good drainage, but they don’t like to be watered during the summer,” he told the Malibu Surfside News.
One of the best and easiest places to see the flowers are at the Point Dume Headlands—where visitors may be additionally rewarded with a view of whales, sea lions or dolphins, or the sound of meadowlarks singing.
They are also currently visible all along the undeveloped portions of Pacific Coast Highway in west Malibu, from Point Dume to Point Mugu. Flower enthusiasts are advised to hurry—this magnificent sea of gold is a fleeting and transient pleasure that should be enjoyed by many.

Mitrice Richardson Missing Person Case Is Cited to Help Pass Law in Congress

2010-03-03T17:53:00.000-08:00

• Measure to Increase Information Sharing Now Goes to U.S. Senate

BY ANNE SOBLE

Billy’s Law, named after a man who disappeared in 2004 and has not been found, would help expand the database of missing people and unidentified remains, as well as require the FBI to share what it knows about specific cases.
The measure was passed by the House of Representatives last week and now goes to the Senate where passage is also expected.
The effort to expand public information on missing people and unidentified remains follows a number of missing-person cases that have drawn major media attention, including that of Mitrice Richardson, 24, who disappeared after being released from the Malibu-Lost Hills Sheriff’s Station on Sept. 17 at 12:35 a.m. alone, on foot in an area with no public transportation, and without her cell phone or purse.
Rep. Maxine Waters, whose district includes Watts, where Richardson, an honors college graduate resides, was a co-sponsor of the bill, and cited Richardson in her statement on the House floor.
Waters said if the proposed system had been in place at the time of Richardson’s disappearance, she is “confident that we’d have a better understanding of what happened to [her].”

Conviction Includes 1977 Malibu Murder

2010-03-03T17:48:00.000-08:00

• Jury Finds Man Guilty of Five Grisly Murders in ’70s

BY SUZANNE GULDIMANN

An Orange County jury has convicted Rodney Alcala, 66, of four brutal murders—a 12-year-old girl and three women, including 27-year-old Malibu resident Georgia Wixted—that occurred in the late 1970s.
After six weeks of testimony, the jury took just two days to reach a decision of guilty on one felony count of kidnapping and five felony counts of murder. Prosecutors will seek the death penalty on the basis of a gruesome series of special circumstances that includes committing multiple murders, murder with torture, murder during the commission of rape, murder during the commission of kidnapping, murder during the commission of a burglary of an inhabited dwelling, and murder during the commission of a robbery. The penalty phase is slated to begin this week.
Alcala, who has twice before been sentenced to death for the murder of 12-year-old Robin Samsoe of Orange County and had the convictions overturned, is expected to receive a third and final death sentence.
Forensic evidence linking Alcala to the four other murders began to emerge in 2006, when previously unavailable DNA analysis was used to analyze evidence collected at crime scenes.
Wixted, a nurse who lived alone in an east Malibu apartment, was found dead on the floor of her bedroom in December of 1977. According to the forensics information, she reportedly died of strangulation and massive head injuries, and her corpse had been badly mutilated.
Sheriff’s detectives retrieved and retained biological evidence from the Wixted case, including samples containing DNA, and a partial palm print. Computer matching technology that did not yet exist when the crime was committed, subsequently connected the cold case to Alcala.
New analysis of forensic evidence also linked the other three victims, Jill Barcomb, 18, slain in November of 1977; and Charlotte Lamb, 33, and Jill Parenteau, 21, killed in June of 1979, to Alcala.
In what many legal observers have described as a bizarre move, Alcala refused legal council and served as his own attorney at his trial, cross-examining himself and the witnesses, including the mother of Robin Samsoe.
Alcala also presented as evidence video footage of himself as the winning contestant of a 1978 episode of the TV game show “The Dating Game.”
There is as yet uncorroborated conjecture that Alcala could potentially be connected to as many as 30 unsolved murders that took place in the same time period.
For now, Orange County Senior Deputy District Attorney Matt Murphy and Los Angeles County Deputy District Attorney Gina Satriano, who are prosecuting the case, are seeking the death penalty for the existing six felony charges.

Camping Remains a Hot Button Issue in SMMC Proposal to Increase Public Access

2010-02-24T15:49:00.001-08:00

• Several Dozen Malibu Speakers Focus on Fire Danger

BY SUZANNE GULDIMANN

More than a hundred angry Malibu residents packed the auditorium at Webster Elementary school to hear more than two dozen speakers address the Environmental Impact Report for the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy’s controversial Malibu Parks Public Access Enhancement Plan that includes trail connections and improvements, increased ADA access and camping at SMMC properties in Ramirez, Escondido, Latigo, and Corral canyons, and at Bluffs Park Open Space above Malibu Road.
The SMMC may have underestimated public interest in the issue—an October scoping session in Pacific Palisades attracted only a handful of participants—but observers criticized the physical set up for the meeting, which placed some members of the SMMC board—including Executive Director Joe Edmiston—with their backs to the audience. Less than a third of the room was allocated to the standing-room-only crowd, and a large area of empty space off to one side that could easily have accommodated the overflow was inaccessible.
The two dozen speakers included two city council members, three city council candidates, many residents of areas that burned in the 2007 Corral Fire, and representatives from numerous homeowners associations and organizations, all seemingly united in opposition to the SMMC camping plan.
Fire danger and public safety were the primary concern of almost all of the speakers, although the majority were supportive of the project’s proposed trail improvements. Plans to place campsites in Latigo and Escondido canyons continued to attract the highest level of criticism.
Many speakers told the SMMC board that they had not yet had time to completely review the massive EIR document, which is thousands of pages long.
Joyce Parker-Bozylinsk, the planning manager for the City of Malibu, stated that city staff believe the EIR is inconsistent with the city’s certified Local Coastal Program. “We disagree with conclusions reached in [the section pertaining to development in Environmentally Sensitive Habitat Area]. We [also] have concerns and disagreements with the findings as it relates to fire safety. We will be putting our comments into writing and submitting them to you,” she told the board.
“I’m sure you are all aware of the six campers who were lost last week,” Malibu Park resident and public safety commission member Susan Tellem said. “They put a campfire in Newton Canyon and no one saw it. This presents a real danger. People trying to get warm in a cold canyon.” Tellem also raised concerns over the SMMC’s contention that the improvement projects would have a less than significant impact on the environment. “‘Less than significant impact’ is hard to explain when you take a pristine area and put grading, parking, fire shelters, sheds, and so on,” she said. “This cannot be less than significant. Just dragging this stuff in is significant.”
“Trails going in is a good idea,” Corral Canyon resident Brian Weiss said, “but I’m worried about the potential impact of fire. Camping between Corral and Latigo is reasonable. It’s the hike-in camps I have problems with. The problem isn’t responsible people, it’s when irresponsible people show up. My concern is supervision.” Weiss asked that the SMMC work with Corral residents to find reasonable solutions.
“I want to talk about not the EIR but your process,” city council candidate Lou La Monte told the board, speaking as president of the Big Rock HOA. “You’re in danger of becoming a behemoth who doesn’t listen to people. We are one of the most environmentally friendly cities. This Conservancy has alienated neighborhoods just because of the process. Malibu residents are as ready and able of mounting battles as you are. I urge you to reach out to the residents of Malibu. We all live in the Santa Monica Mountains and we deserve that respect.”
“I’m an avid camper and equestrian, Malibu Park resident and city council candidate Steve Scheinkman said. This project is not in the backyard where I sleep at night but backyard where I spend a lot of time. It puts a lot of people at risk of losing their homes, their property and their lives. There is no budget for enforcement and no guarantee that it will be enforced. I ride my horse on these trails. It’s really insulting to say to these people who have lost their homes to fire that it’s safe, to think that everybody is going to camp by the rules, to think they’re not going to get lost, not light a fire like what happened last week. It’s common sense. “
“When you read the EIR, there are two things that stand out that scare the people of Malibu: fire and public safety,” planning commissioner and city council candidate John Mazza said.
“Your report says 90 percent of fires are caused by people. The 10,000 gallon water tank [planned for one campsite] is like pouring a Dixie cup on a wildfire,” Mazza continued. “In 1994, fire burned all of these proposed campsites. We want trails, we can work together to get trails, but we are putting a small amount of campsites in a highly dangerous area. If you can burn to the beach in eight minutes, you have an evacuation issue that you have not considered. The people of Malibu don’t want to fight you, but there are hundreds of millions of dollars in property at risk.”
“You’re supposed to be protecting the parks. Burning them up doesn’t qualify,” Malibu Township Council representative Lucile Keller said. “The SMMC plan is totally deficient in commitment to provide rangers. A walk through these campsites once a day will not be enough to enforce violations,” “It’s totally inadequate. No needs assessment has been provided. We’ve asked for it repeatedly. There are 1300 camping sites already [in Malibu]. If more sites are needed they should be placed at Leo Carrillo. The state has admitted that it does not have enough rangers. If a fire starts in one of these parks, it could reach residents in two minutes. The whole area is in an area of highest fire danger. There is no guarantee that users of campsites will be knowledgeable or responsible.”
“You don’t have a full understanding of what we deal with in Malibu,” another member of the Corral Fire Safety Alliance stated at the end of public comment, summing up the views of many of the speakers. “We want trail access, we support that. This is about fire safety. In Corral Canyon we have one way in and one way out. You are essentially blocking our only way out. People will die and it will be on your hands. We support trail expansion, we do not support camping.”
The comment period for the Environmental Impact Report for the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy’s Malibu Parks Public Access Enhancement Plan will remain open until March 22. Written comments can be submitted via email to eircomments@smmc.ca.gov. The EIR document is available at the Malibu Library or online at www.smmc.ca.gov

Engineers Still Investigating Cause of Latest Rambla Landslide

2010-02-24T15:44:00.001-08:00

• Tentative Assessment Focuses on Possible Impact of Private Downslope Grading in the Area

BY BILL KOENEKER

A landslide and subsequent failure of Rambla Pacifico Road that occurred on Feb. 5 between Azurelee Drive and Las Flores Canyon Road is being tentatively attributed to a work crew performing grading work below the roadway for a driveway and residence, according to Los Angeles County authorities.
“It is difficult to assess. It is currently still under investigation,” according to John Kelly, who is the deputy director for the county Public Works Department, which oversees the unincorporated area of Malibu where the slide is located.
The road collapsed and is completely closed. The impact to hillside residents is minimal since it does not block homeowners going south to Pacific Coast Highway, but provides an impediment to about 20 residences south of the slide who are going northward and must detour. However, the road provides an alternative route during disasters. The roadway is expected to be repaired by June, according to Kelly.
The public works spokesperson said the private party is expected to complete slide remediation and restoration and offer a fix for the road.
“Our first order of business is to deal with the slope failure. [The owner] is submitting plans to repair it,” Kelly said.
The construction crew was grading into the hillside in what is called a “back cut,” which is believed to have ultimately caused the failure, Kelly said.
The permit allowed 26,000 cubic yards of grading. There is still no estimate of how much slide material was involved, explained Kelly, who said the California Coastal Commission is also involved in overseeing the restoration. The applicant had permits from the county and the coastal agency.
The public works spokesperson said it no longer seems feasible that the water main was leaking and contributed to the problem as initially reported. The Las Virgenes Municipal Water District’s water main was under the road. The slide took the pipe with it and a bypass line had to be installed.
“All I can really say is the exact cause is being investigated,” said Kelly, when pressed to explain why leakage had tentatively been ruled out.

Council OKs $7 Million More in Debt for Work on the New City Hall

2010-02-24T15:40:00.000-08:00

• Two Candidates Tried to Hold Reins on Spending for Plans They Said Need More Vetting

BY BILL KOENEKER

Despite the urging by two council candidates on the April 13 ballot to either forego moving forward or revising plans, the Malibu City Council this week gave the go-ahead to the latest cost estimates for the remodeling of the new city hall and approved the indebtedness of $7 million to make the $5 million improvements.
The additional $2 million is to fund a debt service reserve fund, capitalized interest on the certificates of participation for three years and the costs of issuing the certificates. A portion of the certificates will be taxable debt.
Council hopeful Mike Sidley told members they should wait on taking on any more debt and let the reconstituted council after the election decide.
“I urge you to delay until the April election,” said Sidley, who added, “You should wait and see what happens to decide what we really need to spend money on.”
The council candidate said the Civic Center septic prohibition might cost the city as much as $56 million and that could be a deciding factor if the city was forced to take on more debt.
However, council members were quick to point out that the $56 million price tag referred to the costs that an assessment district might have to pay for a sewage treatment facility in the Civic Center area recommended by the Regional Water Quality Control Board. The city would not incur debt or be required to pay for such a public works project.
Councilmember Pamela Conley Ulich did get City Manager Jim Thorsen, who was explaining where the $56 million price tag came from, to acknowledge that the new city hall is in the septic prohibition area and would probably be part of any assessment district and obliged to pay into the district.
“That would be a utility bill,” said Thorsen.
Councilmember John Sibert, explaining his actions in response to Sidley’s challenge, said he was elected to make decisions and not to defer them. “This has nothing to do with April,” he said.
Earlier in the evening, the staff had delivered a new report estimating the cost of improvements to the new city hall.
Council members were told the latest preliminary construction estimate, which at one time was $1.1 million has skyrocketed to $4.6 million. The latest figure represents the preliminary costs for optional improvements at over $1.3 million.
The estimate was broken down by exterior site, building and interior elements, as well as base costs and optional costs. Elements that could be attributable to a sustainable design were indicated for council consideration.
Council hopeful Steve Scheinkman said he believes the council should call for a sustainability study, which could take a month, but could result in savings in the long run.
Mayor Sharon Barovsky said that sustainability concern is why the council chose LPA. Inc. “We choose this architect because of their sustainability [reputation],” she said.
Seven of the candidates took part in a tour conducted by Councilmember Pamela Conley Ulich last week (see page 13), which meant that they had an opportunity to go through the complex and look at plan specifics.
Scheinkman also raised the issue of mildew—a whitish fungal coating, or mold—in parts of the city building. This was the first public reference to the presence of mildew in the new city hall.
Assistant City Manager and Administrative Services Director Reva Feldman said that city officials are aware of the mildew.
“There is mildew. But it is leaking from [interior] plants. The smell is there, but [the mildew] is not throughout the building,” she said.
Councilmember Jefferson Wagner said he was prepared to support the report with a proviso. He said he wanted LEED silver certified (green building) interiors that would add $150,000 to the costs.
Other members agreed and the report was then approved by all five council members.
However, there was a dissenting voice when it came time to approve the issuance of the $7 million in certificates of participation to finance the improvements.
Conley Ulich, who had urged the council to wait until firmer numbers were in place, complained there are still only estimates for the city hall improvements and not a budget.
“We still don’t know [the actual costs],” she said as she cast a no vote.

School District Threatens to Cut 92 Staffers and All Elementary Music

2010-02-24T15:36:00.000-08:00

• Parents Say Actions Are Pressure for Yes Vote on Tax

BY SUZANNE GULDIMANN

The Santa Monica Malibu Unified School District Board of Education was blasted by representatives of the teachers union and arts and music advocates at its Feb. 18 meeting for a layoff plan that would cut $7.3 million from the budget by letting go of 15 percent of the district’s certificated staff—92 employees, including teachers, counselors and nurses—and completely eliminating the elementary school music program.
The self-described financially strapped Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District says it is facing a $14 million deficit.
The resolution contained a depressing litany of certificated staff reductions: three nurses, seven counselors, eight math and science teachers, two physical education instructors, 10 music teachers—encompassing the entire grade school music program, and 42 elementary school instructors, among others.
Harry Keilly, the president of the Santa Monica Malibu Classroom Teachers Association, was quick to point out that there are no administrative positions on the list. “15 percent of the membership of teachers union has skin in the game. We don’t see the administrative side having any skin in the game,” Keilly said. ”The association opposes each and every one of the layoffs.”
Arts and music advocates also cried foul, criticizing the board’s decision to tie the fate of the elementary music program to the success or failure of the May 25 parcel tax initiative. One speaker questioned whether the program will be spared even if the measure passes. Others stressed the importance of music as a core subject.
“It’s not only important, it’s essential,” said one parent. “We will lose too much by cutting these programs.”
“It’s very important to our children, Not fluff. It’s part of core curriculum,” said another, stressing that the cuts to the music program will have the greatest impact on the district’s poorest students whose parents do not have the option of placing them in different schools or providing private music lessons.
“The secondary music program would suffer irreparable damage at the middle school level [if the program is eliminated] said a third.
The cuts may not end up being as dire as predicted, because under state law the district is required to issue pink slips no later than March 15 and long before the state budget is finalized. If the state, which provides 70 percent of school funding comes through with more money than anticipated, some positions will be reinstated, according to school district superintendent Tim Cuneo.
The district is also counting on it’s May 25 parcel tax initiative to raise additional funds, although the measure, if it receives the required two-thirds vote, will offset less than half of the district’s projected deficit.
However, additional layoffs could still be on the horizon, and Cuneo stated that the district will be looking at reductions to the administrative staff.
A special early retirement incentive could offer a less traumatic alternative for up to 28 district teachers, but would do little to improve conditions for students facing larger class sizes and cuts to programs.
The board agreed to postpone voting on the layoffs until March 4, after boardmember Oscar de la Torre raised concerns. “It would be more beneficial to postpone the vote,” de la Torre said. “We’re contemplating making some very serious reductions. We can make some irreparable harm if we send this message out. Some of our employees might start looking for other opportunities just by putting this out.”
Ironically, the school district just announced this week that Santa Monica High School music students Emily Wong and Matthew Van Pelt, concertmaster and principal violist of the Santa Monica High School Symphony Orchestra, respectively, have successfully auditioned for and have been accepted to the 2010 National High School Honor Orchestra.

TV Pilot’s Producer Tries to Allay Parent Concerns

2010-02-24T15:24:00.002-08:00

• Says Program with MHS Students Will Be ‘Innocent’

BY SUZANNE GULDIMANN

A flurry of critical emails between Malibu High School parents who are concerned about a possible reality TV show that might present a slanted perspective on Malibu teens prompted the producer of a pilot program being made on spec to respond.
Lexi von der Leith told the Malibu Surfside News that parents who expressed those concerns last week “should not worry.”
“We haven’t even started shooting the show,” von der Leith told The News. “My partner and I both grew up in Malibu and want to make a great show about how wonderful going to high school was in Malibu.”
Von der Leith, a professional surfer who grew up in Malibu and attended MHS and Pepperdine University, says she envisions the show as a Malibu version of the popular 2004 MTV reality show “Laguna Beach,” which revolved around the lives of Orange County high school students.
However, that show came in for its share of criticism for explicit sexuality and profanity, as well as being embroiled in the debate surrounding nearly all so-called reality programming, that it actually was often scripted. The wealthy teens in the O.C. spent much of their time shopping and partying.
However, von der Leith said of her proposed series, “It’s a girl drama, but [it’s] innocent, no drinking or anything.” She said, “The production company, along with all the producers, want people to watch the show and remember how fun high school was.”
Von der Leith confirmed that auditions have taken place, and that there are 10 prospective student-actors, although she said that the final number is expected to be reduced to seven—four girls and three boys.
“We’ve been in contact with the parents,” von der Leith said. “I wouldn’t do anything to hurt these kids. We aren’t exploiting them. We have a great group of kids together, and I don’t want people getting scared that we’re taking advantage of them. These kids are like brothers and sisters to me, and I’m protective of them.”
Von der Leith explained that she plans to pitch the program to MTV once all of the pieces are in place, but that nothing has been signed yet.
“I hope that we can do a project that warms people’s hearts,” she said.

Publisher’s Notebook

2010-02-24T15:22:00.000-08:00

• Impasse Between Malibu and the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy Is Not a Solution •

ANNE SOBLE

Each and every Malibuite understands the fears of the local residents who packed Monday night’s meeting of the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy on its Malibu Parks Public Access Enhancement Plan. Many of us have personally experienced what they have gone through. I have endured multiple evacuations of not only family members, but also horses, burros and llamas from corrals ringed with flames, in addition to the usual menageries of dogs, cats, geese, ducks and other critters during the last two decades. Every wildfire is a frightening and humbling experience. We all want to do everything we can to try to prevent having to go through it again, even though we know that likelihood is high.
No one should deride or wag fingers at residents concerned about wildfire, especially those who have lost their homes and cannot bear to think of that happening again. But neither can anyone expect to unreasonably obstruct public agencies from making lands paid for by the public available to that public. None of us want to be told we are trying to keep those whose taxes paid for the open spaces that make our own lives so special from opportunities to enjoy outdoor recreation, especially in a faltering economy when these lands may be among the few joys still to be had. But it is also not unreasonable to insist that public holdings that are open to the public be adequately monitored, not just for the safety of those who live here, but for the safety of the visitors who venture out into these holdings.
Recently we saw how easy it is for lost hikers to remain lost, if they do not take the precaution of alerting others to their outdoor plans in advance. Tho
se hikers were in precarious circumstances until they were stumbled upon by accident. That is why the best locations for public facilities are those that are readily accessible in emergencies. It is not by chance that Leo Carrillo is one of the state’s most popular and safest campgrounds. It is located on the coast, close to a county fire station, patrolled by law enforcement and well staffed by rangers. Leo Carrillo draws families, boy and girl scout troops, and visitors from around the world. The camp registry is a living example of “we are the world.”
Instead of speaking past each other, as is too often the case, a committee of residents and city representatives might be formed that could meet with SMMC officials and explore options that address not only the very real fear of wildfire, but also the benefits to the public and to Malibu’s international image that could follow an agreement that results in more public campsites. If positive thinking doesn’t occur, the loggerheads will continue in meeting rooms, then progress to the courtroom, where the needs of the public will likely prevail unfettered.

Judge Denies Nearly a Million Dollars in Penalties to California Coastal Commission over Malibu Stairways

2010-02-24T15:17:00.000-08:00

• Controversial Case Involves an Enforcement Action on Property in the Encinal Bluffs Area

BY BILL KOENEKER

The California Coastal Commission missed out on a million dollars in civil fines and penalties that a Los Angeles County Superior Court judge refused to award the state agency over a highly controversial decision requiring a Malibu homeowner to build two stairways over a sea stack-like promontory below their bluff top home.
The property owners, the court ruled, should not be penalized for unpermitted development that was already present on their property when they purchased it. They were required to remove a gate, a stairway on a coastal bluff going down to the beach and a lawn that was growing on top of the promontory.
The commission had ordered Graeme and Brenda Revell to build the million dollar staircases that were part of a condition of approval in 1980 for a previous owner to build the house that the Revells purchased years later in 2004. The house was built, but the staircases were never constructed.
The matter was taken to court by the Revells after the commission insisted they pay the current costs of the staircases, but the Revells would only agree to pay what it would have cost the developer had he done the same work in the 1980s.
The coastal panel then slapped the homeowners with notices of violations of the Coastal Act, cease and desist orders, and non-compliance of CCC conditions.
In 2007, Judge David Yaffee issued what could be called a split decision, with the judge ruling that the Revells were obligated to furnish the stairways, but in lieu of that could meet their obligations with a monetary assessment. The CCC had earlier rejected that offer.
The Coastal Commission was told that it could neither order, nor require geological reports for the stairways that could turn out to be more expensive than the stairway themselves.
Finally, Yaffe ordered that nothing in the writ could prohibit the CCC from changing the design of the stairways to meet current ground conditions
Meanwhile, the Coastal Commission, through the state Attorney General’s office, filed a cross complaint seeking over a million dollars in civil penalties.
The Revells’ attorney, Alan Robert Block, a former commission attorney, said, “The Coastal Commission’s decision to take this case to trial reflects how poorly the commission has been managed for the past several years.”
A decision was rendered on the cross complaint this month by Judge Mark Mooney.
“Thus, Judge Yaffe’s order contemplated that the monetary contribution required of the Revells to build the accessway would be based upon the plans as approved by the commission in Aug. 1986. The costs attributable to any reasonable changes to those plans were not to increase the cost of or burden to the Revells. The plan submitted by the commission represents a substantial increase in cost from the plan originally approved. The court therefore finds that the Revells may discharge their obligation under special condition two by tendering to the commission the sum of $50,000,” Mooney wrote in his ruling.
Block revealed that the Revells had previously offered $500,000 to settle with the commission. Block said the deputy attorney-general assigned to the case recommended the settlement. However, the Coastal Commission rejected that offer, according to Block, and that legal counsel was subsequently removed from the case.
“At a time when the state is in dire financial straits, the commission has squandered hundreds of thousands of dollars in state funds, on a worthless bridge from nowhere to nowhere,” said Block. “This was bureaucratic waste and mismanagement in the extreme.”
When considering the civil penalties sought by the Coastal Commission, Mooney wrote in his 13-page opinion, “When the court considers the nature, circumstance, extent and gravity of the violation, the Revells’ conduct warrants the imposition of only minimal civil liability. The Revells did nothing more than purchase property upon which an unpermitted development was already present. They did not put in the landscaping, irrigation system, metal fence, locked gate or wooden stairs. Indeed, this unpermitted development may well have been present for more than 20 years before the Revells purchased that property. The fact that the commission did absolutely nothing regarding these unpermitted improvements, despite receiving complaints as far back as 1983, speaks volumes as to the low level the commission placed on the gravity of the violation.” Mooney concluded.
The judge then ruled that the court found the Revells to be the prevailing party and awarded court costs against the commission.

Mitrice Richardson’s Family Members Hope to Get Some High-Tech Assistance in Search Effort

2010-02-24T15:14:00.000-08:00

• There’s No Letup in Their Effort to Keep the Missing Woman in the Public Eye

BY ANNE SOBLE

Family members of 24-year-old Cal State Fullerton honors graduate, Mitrice Richardson, who now has been missing for almost six months, are excited that new search efforts may be undertaken, but express frustration on other fronts related to the case of the Lost Hills Sheriff’s Station’s release of the woman who has not been seen since last Sept. 17.
The unusual specifics of Mitrice Richardson’s booking on two field-citable counts, the issue of her mental state, the impounding of her car with her purse and cell phone inside, her pre-dawn release and subsequent disappearance, and her family’s allegations that Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department personnel have evidence—including videotapes—that they are not releasing, are the subject of a series of weekly articles that have appeared in the Malibu Surfside News (www.malibusurfsidenews.com).
The missing woman’s mother, Latice Sutton, and other family members and friends are hopeful that approval soon will be granted for the next LASD—and City of Los Angeles Police Department, the lead agency in what is still a missing person case—search to be assisted by a drone from San Diego State University’s Immersive Visualization Center, the Viz Center. The drone is a small unmanned aircraft that takes high resolution video and photos.
According to Charles Croft, a videographer who has been working with the mother’s family, “the [Viz Center] drone has the capability of going down into canyons and can search better than any helicopter. It is not affected by winds as much and can fly extremely low to obtain very high resolution, close-up images and video.”
Croft said the drone, also known as a “bird.” has already been used in a number of missing person searches, and law enforcement “and the drone people are set to use the aircraft soon.” He added, “The drone has discovered people and [skeletal] remains in about seven different instances when large searches failed.”
FRUSTRATION
Sutton expresses frustration that there has been no effort yet to get a petition with over 5000 signatures to Washington, D.C, to try to involve the FBI and possibly the U.S. Department of Justice.
The missing woman’s mother said she is unable to get any information from Change.org, the Web group that hosted the petition drive. Sutton said, “A lot of people worked really hard to get the signatures, and they are asking why there has been no action in getting the petition to the FBI.”
PROGRAM
The Friends Group of Pasadena (The Pasadena Commission on the Status of Women) plans a public conference on March 17 at the Pasadena Public Library from 6 to 8 p.m. to discuss nighttime custody release policies.
Among the panelists are Ronda Hampton, the psychologist who was Richardson’s college mentor and a family friend; LASD’s chief of field operations for the region that includes Malibu, Neal Tyler; and Deputy Chief Attorney Benjamin Jones of the Office of Independent Review, which has yet to announce the results of its investigation of Lost Hills procedures in the Richardson case that Sheriff Lee Baca has publicly stated was handled “by the book.” For conference specifics, see www.thefriendsgroup.org
INFORMATION
For general information about Richardson and public search updates, see Latice Sutton’s website at www. findmitrice.info; the father Michael Richardson’s website at www.bring mitricehome.org; contact Dr. Ronda Hampton at 951-660-8031; or LAPD Homicide Lt. Charles Knolls and LAPD Detective Steven Eguchi at 213-486-6900.