It is not known what plans the private buyer has for the Crummer property, although city officials are still hopeful there is a possibility of putting ball fields there.
By Jonathan Friedman / Assistant Editor
Real estate investor Richard Ackerman, a Malibu resident, has purchased the 24-acre vacant property located along Pacific Coast Highway next to Malibu Bluffs Park from the Roy E. Crummer Trust. Escrow on the property closed on Aug. 16. The sale price and other terms of the deal have not been released. The property had been on the market since last summer for $26 million.
Ackerman is a partner at Apollo Real Estate Advisors, a private real estate investment firm that conducts multibillion-dollar transactions and has offices in Los Angeles, New York, London and Chicago. It is not known if Apollo was involved in the Crummer property acquisition. Ackerman could not be reached for comment.
The Crummer property had originally been the focus of city officials and activists as the eventual destination for ball fields when it was believed the California Department of Parks and Recreation was going to kick Malibu Little League and AYSO off Bluffs Park. But earlier this year, a deal was reached among Malibu, State Parks and the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy that will allow the city to purchase the portion of Bluffs Park containing the ball fields. However, the Crummer Property still remains a desire for municipal acquisition because many people say the city needs to build more ball fields.
“It [Ackerman’s purchase] doesn’t really change anything,” Councilmember Jeff Jennings said. “We had been negotiating with Mr. Crummer about obtaining a portion of the property for ball fields. It now appears that Mr. Ackerman owns the property, and that possibility [of the city obtaining a portion of the property for ball fields] remains. Those conversations have been going on for years and I expect they will continue.”
The Crummer property is zoned for one home per two acres. Paul Grisanti, the Realtor who sold the home, told The Malibu Times last year that he believes the property could be divided into about eight or nine residential lots. Councilmember Sharon Barovsky said she would like to see what kind of amenities Ackerman would be willing to give the city in exchange for extra development rights.
“I would have preferred if we could have bought [the Crummer property], but if someone else has it, I would like to see what they are willing to give the city,” Barovsky said.
A meeting took place in April for those hoping the city could buy private land for ball fields and a dog park. The meeting was hosted by Barovsky and Mayor Andy Stern, and it was determined that the Crummer property would be the best location. The people involved in the meeting said they would like to help raise money for such an acquisition. But the group has not met again.
Mona Loo, an advocate for the city buying land to build a dog park, said earlier this month, when it was revealed that the Crummer property was in escrow, that a private purchase did not rule out the possibility of a dog park being built there. She said the new owner could donate some of the land to the city for a dog park. Loo said there are also other areas in Malibu where a dog park could be built.
Crummer property purchaser Ackerman is the head of Apollo Real Estate’s Los Angeles office. He has been with the firm since 2000. According to his biography on the Apollo Web site, Ackerman co-founded Crocker Realty Trust, which specialized in the ownership and development of office space in the Southeastern United States. Prior to that, he co-founded and was president of Crocker Realty Investor, which specialized in the ownership and development of office space.
Ackerman is also the director of Summerville Health Care, which owns adult assisted-living facilities throughout the country. He holds a law degree from Tulane School of Law.