The Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District is on a winning streak. In the wake of the Measure S victory, the Malibu City Council approved a one-time contribution of $380,000 at its meeting Monday. This follows the Santa Monica City Council’s approval of a $2.25 million increase to its annual donation. The combined total will allow the district to bring back several staff positions and programs that were cut earlier this year, but not brought back by Measure S. Among them are the remaining nurses, all library staff, physical education aides and specialists and some custodial workers. Also, summer school will not have to be canceled. That restoration will go before the Board of Education at its meeting on Thursday.
The Malibu contribution was approved by a 4-1 vote, with Councilmember Jeff Jennings dissenting. But rather than being a vote against giving money to the school, his opposition was a protest against what he said was a shortsighted proposal.
“It’s a five-year problem (the district’s financial crisis) at least,” he said. “And we’re offering a one-year solution, which will mean that we’re all going to be back here next year arguing about the same thing.”
At the previous meeting, Jennings had proposed the city give the district $1.5 million over a five-year period. But the other councilmembers were unwilling to commit to that. Councilmember Sharon Barovsky said that even if the city did do that, it could be forced to later rescind the offer.
“I think it’s very unfair to say, ‘Oh we’re going to guarantee this amount of money,’ but if we have some disaster or something else,” then you’re out the money, she said.
Mayor Ken Kearsley encouraged people to support AB 1412, the half-cent sales tax currently moving its way through the Legislature. If approved by the state, it would then go before the voters. City staff estimate the tax could generate about $900,000 for Malibu.
“If we had a revenue stream increase of $900,000, then the future councils would be in a much better position to commit $300,000 for the next five years to the schools,” he said.
The SMMUSD received further good news with the council’s approval of the Windsail development agreement. It includes a commitment by the developer, Weintraub Financial, to donate $400,000 to the district over a six-year period in exchange for an increased floor area ratio (FAR) for the restaurant/spa facility. Although the city code requires most projects to have a .15 FAR, special consideration can be given for an increase of up to .05 if a community benefit is offered. In addition to the contribution, 500 square feet in the restaurant would be enclosed to create a community meeting room on Monday and Tuesday from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. and from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday through Friday.
Although he voted in favor of the community benefits, Kearsley voted against the agreement as a whole. He raised a concern about the project being too large; causing a tight parking situation that he feared could cause backup on Pacific Coast Highway. House voted against the financial contribution, because she said she could not support allocating funds to a specific designation when there was no way of knowing what the city’s financial situation would be at that time.
According to the agreement, Weintraub will begin the financial donation once it receives its coastal development permit. But the city could give some of the money to the district from its general fund before that time. If the city chooses to go that route, Weintraub would then reimburse Malibu.
Assemblyperson Fran Pavley was also in attendance at the council meeting to speak about the state of budget negotiations in Sacramento. This past week, all the Democratic assembly members have been meeting with local government officials. Pavley said she hoped to be able to vote on a budget by July 1, but added that it is a difficult task to get a budget done on time because of California’s rare situation that requires a two-thirds majority approval. She also said she would do all she could to help the city get the Prop 50 funds it needs to purchase the Chili Cook-Off.
Also at the meeting, City Attorney Christi Hogin said she expects to hear by the end of the week from the court on whether the city can issue coastal permits without affecting its case against the California Coastal Commission.