Malibu Yogurt to add second location
Malibu Yogurt & Ice Cream, located in the Malibu Colony Plaza, will open a second location in Westwood.
Store owner Don Wildman Jr. confirmed that the lease for the additional store was signed last week, and that it will be located in Westwood Village near UCLA and BJ’s restaurant. It is not yet known when the second Malibu Yogurt & Ice Cream store will open for business.
Bicyclists hospitalized after crash on Caltrans construction site
A crash involving several bicyclists occurred the weekend before last on the northbound, downhill section of Pacific Coast Highway between Heathercliff Road and Zuma Beach after a CalTrans contract crew left the area cut away and strewn with gravel, Aron Miller, a field representative for state Senator Fran Pavley, said Monday in a telephone interview.
There were no cones or special signage in place to warn the bicyclists of the hazard, and several were hospitalized with serious injuries, Miller said. The hazardous area is the site of a PCH repaving project scheduled to run from Aug. 20 through Sept. 15 and covers a length of six miles, which will be repaved in sections from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. each day. Warning signs were placed in advance of the construction zone last week.
More information can be obtained by calling 310.314.5214 or by emailing aron.miller@sen.ca.gov.
Resident donates $10,000 to Juan Cabrillo Elementary
The Dolphin Club, the fundraising arm of Juan Cabrillo Elementary School, last week received its first major contribution of $10,000 from resident Steve Soboroff.
Soboroff, also a businessman, philanthropist and advocate for public education, in a written statement said, “I am proud to be making a contribution to Juan Cabrillo, a school that provides so many opportunities to the students of Malibu. I encourage others to help support the programs that Cabrillo offers.”
The Dolphin Club has developed a fundraising goal of $350,000 to compensate for the loss of teachers and school resources caused by the economic recession.
“We are extremely grateful for the generous contribution of Mr. Soboroff, who recognizes the need for the community to come forward and support our school,” Juan Cabrillo Principal Barry Yates said in a written statement. “We are optimistic that others in the Malibu community, whether they are alumni, neighbors, or friends of Cabrillo, will give their support and help us to continue to provide a top notch education for the children in Malibu.”
Mailers from Juan Cabrillo asking for financial contributions will be sent to all Malibu residents this week. Donations can be made by mail to Juan Cabrillo PTA, 30237 Morning View Dr. or by visiting www.thedolphinclub.org.
Great white shark captured off Malibu coast
An 80-pound, five-foot great white shark was captured last week off the coast of Malibu near Latigo Point. The female shark has been transported to the Monterey Bay Aquarium, where she will be showcased as a popular attraction throughout her stay, according to a report by the Los Angeles Times.
This great white shark is the aquarium’s fifth since 2004. The four previous white sharks, which were viewed by an estimated 2 million people, were tagged and released after stays of various length. Scientists tracked them as part of an ongoing monitoring project that also involves other white sharks that were tagged and released without spending time in captivity.
The last captive shark was released from the aquarium after only 11 days and tracked to the Channel Islands area. The previous shark, released after a five-month stay, was followed for an extended period as it swam to and past Cabo San Lucas, then up into the Sea of Cortez off Baja California, where it remained for weeks before its tag life expired.
It’s not clear how long the shark will remain at the aquarium; it could be weeks or months, depending on how well she adapts to her surroundings in the million-gallon Outer Bay exhibit.
Payments lowered for new city hall
High demand for the City of Malibu’s nearly $20 million in Certificates of Participation for its new city hall caused securities to sell within an hour and at interest rates low enough to save taxpayers an estimated $3 million over the life of the financing, Mayor Andy Stern said Monday in a press release.
The city on Aug. 20 sold the nearly $20 million in Certificates of Participation to finance the purchase and renovation of an existing building to serve as Malibu’s new city hall. The new City Hall will be in the approximately 35,000-square-foot commercial building adjacent to the existing city hall, formerly known as the Malibu Performing Arts Center.
“The high demand for these securities is recognition of the City of Malibu’s strong credit rating and diligent financial management,” Stern said. “Many of the top 100 municipal bond investment funds placed orders for the Certificates of Participation for the new city hall, as did specialized money managers and individual retail investors throughout the state. We are gratified by these votes of confidence in the management of our city.”
Before the sale, the city’s annual payments to investors in the Certificates of Participation were estimated to be $1.41 million. Stern said the high demand for the Certificates of Participation drove down the interest rates the City will have to pay to investors. He said the lower interest payments will save the City about $100,000 annually or about $3 million over the 30-year life of the Certificates of Participation, according to the press release.
The city has been renting space in the existing city hall and agreed earlier this year to purchase the former MPAC building as a permanent site for its operations. The city closed escrow on the new building on July 17, and plans to move within the next year.
The city also plans to retain for public and private use the new building’s state-of-the-art, 500-person auditorium and one-of-a-kind recording studio that has been used by such renowned musicians as Tom Petty, Bob Dylan, Sting and Barbra Streisand.
-Olivia Damavandi