Councilmember Sharon Barovksy touts the council’s work in purchasing the Chili Cook-Off Site and Bluffs Parks, and further work to find ball fields, as major achievements made possible by the current council.
By Jonathan Friedman / Assistant Editor
For the first month and a half of the City Council election campaign, incumbent Sharon Barovsky was virtually the only candidate in the news as a citizens group worked its way through the court system challenging her ability to run in the race because its members said she would be violating the city’s term limits law. With the Supreme Court issuing the final word late last month, allowing Barovsky to seek another term, the six-year council member said she wants to put that issue behind her and talk about the accomplishments she and the council have made during her time in office.
“We have achieved a lot-the purchase of the Chili Cook-Off site and Bluffs Park is our most important achievement in the last four years,” said Barovsky, who added the acquisition of land for Las Flores and Trancas parks to the list of council accomplishments.
Barovsky said she is running for reelection because she wants to see the development of those parks completed. The city is expecting to complete the transactions to purchase the Chili Cook-Off site and the portion of Bluffs Park containing the ball fields by the end of this month. Minor work has already been completed on Las Flores and there is a plan to further develop the property. Also, Barovsky said, a design is nearly complete for the Trancas Park, which she said would be a dog park and a practice ball field.
“We didn’t have one city park when I came on the council,” Barovsky said. “By the end of this month, we’ll have four city parks.”
If the city is able to complete its purchase of the Chili Cook-Off site for $25 million from the Malibu Bay Co. on March 29, it will mark the end of a long journey that has had many twists and turns.
The Chili Cook-Off site was first offered to the city with the $25 million price tag in 2003 as part of the Malibu Bay Co. Development Agreement. The deal was supported by the entire City Council but rejected by the voters.
Malibu Bay then proposed to sell the property to the city in the fall of 2004 if it could come up with the money by the end of 2005. The offer was finalized in early 2005 and the deadline for the acquisition has since been extended to the end of this month.
The city is acquiring most of the money for the purchase through the selling of certificates of participation, which are similar to bonds but do not need voter approval, but also money was received through the city’s General Fund, grants, Santa Monica College Measure S bond money and nearly $3 million in donations from the public. The council members, community activist and hired fundraiser Susan Shaw worked to get private citizens, businesses and community groups to make the needed donations.
“I think one of the most touching moments was when a homeless woman came up and gave me a dollar and insisted that we keep it so that she could be a part of creating the park,” Barovsky said. “It was the first time I’ve seen the community really centered with virtually no criticism until, of course, the [City Council] campaign.”
Council critics, including the three challengers running in the race, have said the city government did a poor job in raising the money. In the fall, the city acquired several grant guarantees from various state agencies but lost $8 million worth soon after because of a conflict with the state over the appraisal process. The city increased the amount of certificates of participation it is selling by nearly $10 million to make up for the lost funds.
But Barovsky said the critics had missed the point. She said the city could have attempted to do another appraisal of the property to satisfy state concerns, but she said the various state agencies wanted conservation easements on the property as a condition of the grants.
“This would give them [state agencies] the right to manage it [the Chili Cook-Off site],” Barovsky said. “And this council did not feel that after the community made its donations, that they wanted to give up local control.”
Also, Barovsky said, those same state agencies have said the city can reapply for the grant money to receive funding for building a park on the Chili Cook-Off site once the property is acquired.
Barovsky said city officials continue to seek other properties for acquisition to achieve Malibu’s long quest for more ball fields, with discussions having taken place with the new owner of the Crummer property.
Other accomplishments the city has made during Barovsky’s tenure, the council member said, include putting the city’s “financial house in order” and increasing the amount of money it gives to the local school district. The city gives money to the district through a joint-use agreement in which the city is allowed to use district facilities. And earlier this month the council designated $20,000 for the repairing of tennis courts at Malibu High School.
As for the constant staff turnover that her challengers have been vocal about in their campaigns, Barovsky said that is mostly due to people wanting to find jobs that pay more money or are closer to where they live. She said making the Planning Division its own department as challengers Ryan Embree and John Mazza have suggested would not be a good solution. Barovsky said this is because with the planning manager not having to head a department, he is able to focus just on planning issues and not administrative matters.
“If our budget increases, I’m hoping perhaps we can raise some of these salaries,” Barovsky said. “But until then, people are going to take jobs for more money closer to home. That’s just a fact of life.”
Barovsky, 67, was born in Michigan. She attended Michigan State for two years, but then moved to Los Angeles and earned her bachelor’s degree at Cal State Los Angeles. She went on to receive a master’s degree in English at that school.
While raising four children in the early ’60s, Barovsky taught high school English. She later wrote features for Associated Press and magazines. In 1988, Barovsky wrote a novel, “The Perfect Family,” which was published by E.P. Dutton. She said she is working on her second novel.
Barovsky served on the General Plan Task Force shortly after Malibu became a city and served on it for two years. She later participated in the Civic Center Specific Plan Advisory Committee.
Harry Barovsky, who Sharon Barovsky married in 1971, was elected to the City Council in 1998. After her husband died in 2000, Barovsky was appointed to fill his spot. She then won an election several months later to secure her place on the council. In 2002, Barovsky was elected to a full term.
In her spare time, Barovsky plays tennis and spends time with her two grandchildren.