City Council postpones big decision on EIR

By The Malibu Times · Thu Jul 20 2000

A.G. York/Publisher

The City Council postponed a decision about the Environmental Impact Report on the proposed Malibu Bay Company/Malibu Development agreement until July 24, to allow time to evaluate the recently received appraisal of value of the land involved.

Several members of the Malibu Right to Vote on Development Initiative recently submitted an initiative with signatures to the city, which are now being verified at the Los Angles County Registrar of Voters office. Several chided the council for not acting immediately on their initiative petition, demanding that the council place it on the November ballot and attacked the mayor for failing to respond promptly enough to all of their emails. They sought to prove it by minutely citing the dates and times of their numerous email correspondence. Additionally, Initiative Chair Marilyn Dove charged the council with being "ill-mannered" toward her.

The council heard the city attorney re-explain the legal process for handling an initiative and how the rules that are set by state law impact the time limits for each step.

Laure Stern, of the Boys and Girls Club of Malibu, who recently appointed their first Director Scott Robinson, told the council she will have an old-fashioned deck-raising in August and will open with the school year in September.

Sgt. Kevin Mauch, in charge of traffic at Lost Hills Station, described an auto fatality that had occurred at 4 a.m. Saturday, in the 21400 PCH block, when an auto, which left no skid marks, crossed the center lane and oncoming lanes and struck a pole on the opposite side of the road killing the yet unidentified driver. In another major Saturday traffic accident Mauch described a vehicle on Kanan Dume Road, allegedly being driven at 90 mph, that went out of control, flipped over and slid. The driver, a 31-year-old man, was driving on a suspended license, and was airlifted out in critical condition with an unknown prognosis.

The council approved the employment agreement of the newly selected City Manager Marilyn Leuck.

The Flood Mitigation Plan Committee and charter was adopted by the council. The committee's task will be to look into the possible flood plain problems of the Malibu Civic Center. However, the council balked at appointing Patt Healy, a west-end 'no growth' advocate and long time Keller/Van Horn supporter, to the open spot for a public member.

The council extended the contract with Burns-Pacific, the city's street maintenance contractor, whose equipment yard is in Las Flores Canyon, for another two years at no additional costs.

A contract to update the city's Housing Element of the General Plan, which relates to low and moderate-income housing and must, by law, be updated periodically, was approved by the council.

It was decided by the council to contract for consulting services with retiring City Manager Harry Peacock, principally so that he can continue to deal with the proposed MBC development deal, with which Peacock has been involved with from its inception.

The council Swore in the Harry Barovsky Youth Commissioners; Brighton McCloskey, Melissa Cardidad, Sky Shachory, Kurtis Major, Zachary Drapkin, Adam Androlia, Even Shoop, Caytlyn McCloskey, Jeremy Johnson, and Miles Jennings.