Andy Stern stands behind city council’s accomplishments and says fighting the location of LNG terminals near Malibu is a priority, as well as expansion of the city’s relationship with other government agencies.
By Jonathan Friedman / Assistant Editor
Until recently, Mayor Andy Stern was considered the quietest of the persons on the city of Malibu’s governing body. Although vocal when he needed to be, Stern often voted without comment and kept arguments to a minimum. But that has changed, especially in the past year since he became mayor, with Stern heavily involved in the Chili Cook-Off site acquisition and being a leading opponent to a proposed liquefied natural gas facility off the coast of Malibu.
The now vocal mayor said he is running for reelection because he wants to complete the things he and the other council members have been working on.
“We’ve made tremendous accomplishments and I want to continue with the progress,” Stern said.
The mayor listed the accomplishments as the likely municipal acquisitions of the Chili Cook-Off site and Bluffs Park, the approval of the construction of a storm water treatment facility in the Civic Center area, improved cooperation with state agencies and an increase in city support for the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District.
In 2003, the city and the school district signed a joint-use agreement in which the city donates money to the district in exchange for use of district facilities. The deal has been renewed every year and Stern said he hopes to expand it.
“My relationship with the outgoing superintendent and the interim superintendent is better than ever,” Stern said. “I also have a good relationship with the school board members. And that wasn’t always true for this city. Earlier councils thought the city was an island and didn’t want to deal with any other agencies.”
Stern said the city’s improved relationship with other government agencies, including state agencies, made possible deals like the agreement that could lead to the acquisition of Bluffs Park.
For more than 20 years, Malibu Little League and the California Department of Parks and Recreation battled over the league’s use of the ball fields at Bluffs Park, with State Parks several times threatening to evict the league. Then in 2005 it was announced that an agreement was made for a land swapping deal involving State Parks, the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy and the city. Included in the deal was the city purchasing for $2 million the 10 acres of Bluffs Park that includes the ball fields, the Landon Center building and a running path.
Stern said the $2 million has already been wired to the state and he expects the transaction to be completed soon. He slammed down the accusation by his opponents that the current City Council just happened to be in power when the deal came through and that it was actually the Malibu Little League that should be credited for it.
“My opponents have completely ignored the facts for their own political purposes,” Stern said. “Members of this council had a series of meetings with several government officials to put this deal into place.”
Another potential property acquisition about which Stern said his opponents have been misleading when discussing the city’s role is the one for the Chili Cook-Off site. The city currently has the property in escrow and it is expected to close on Wednesday. Malibu raised most of the money it needed for the acquisition through the selling of certificates of participation, which are similar to bonds but do not require approval from the voters, and by a public fundraising campaign. But council opponents say the city mishandled the process.
Last fall, the city acquired several grant guarantees from various state agencies to go toward the $25 million it needed to purchase the property from the Malibu Bay Co. But it soon lost $8 million worth of them because of a conflict with the state over the appraisal process. Although the city could have attempted to do another appraisal, city officials said they were no longer interested because of the state’s request for easements on the property.
“We came to the citizens and said we have a vision for the Chili Cook-Off,” Stern said. “There is no way we would give up our control to the state and let the state control it [the property]. How could we raise money from the residents and the state could say to us, ‘You can’t put that here and you can’t put this there.'”
To make up for the loss, the city increased the amount of certificates of participation it is selling by nearly $10 million. Stern added that the same state agencies that had previously offered the grants said the city could reapply for them to receive funding for building a park on the Chili Cook-Off site once the property is acquired.
An issue outside the city’s borders that Stern has been heavily involved in is the proposal to place two liquefied natural gas facilities off the coast of Malibu. Two Australian corporations, Woodside Petroleum and BHP Billiton, have the two offshore LNG ports. The idea of having large facilities containing possibly unpredictable material near the city has angered and frightened many Malibu residents.
“To my knowledge they are gambling with our safety with new technology,” said Stern in a 2004 interview. “If they want to build this facility, they can do it where there aren’t any people.”
Although the city does not have the final authority to decide if a LNG facility is built near Malibu, Stern has led the council in passing resolutions against the proposals, which have been sent to state and federal officials.
Continuing to fight the LNG proposals is one of Stern’s goals if he were reelected. Other goals include an expansion of the city’s relationship with other government agencies, a solution to the road sinking problems on Rambla Vista and the completion of the Chili Cook-Off site project.
Stern, 52, was born in Beverly Hills. He attended UCLA, where he received a degree in history. Stern then earned a law degree from San Fernando Valley College of Law. After law school, he became an entertainment lawyer. In 2003, Stern retired from law and became a Realtor.
Stern is married to Norma and they have a son, Alex. Stern said he has no hobbies or interests outside of his job and working for the city.