The document contains many elements of the 1986 Malibu Land Use Plan and the Santa Monica Mountains North Area Plan. It must receive approval from the County Board of Supervisors and the California Coastal Commission.
By Jonathan Friedman / Assistant Editor
A draft Local Coastal Program for a 51,082-acre area that includes unincorporated Malibu was released last month for public review. The Draft LCP, called the Santa Monica Mountains Local Coastal Program, was written by the Los Angeles County Regional Planning Department and is not associated with the city of Malibu’s LCP. A public meeting on the document is scheduled for Sept. 27.
If approved, the document would replace the Coastal Commission certified 1986 Malibu Land Use Plan, which covered unincorporated Malibu. According to county officials, the Draft LCP includes some of the policies of the LUP, new policies and many policies from the Santa Monica Mountains North Area Plan.
The major difference between this document and the LUP is that each parcel will be designated one land-use category. With the LUP, many parcels in the area contain more than one land-use category, because the LUP was not parcel-based. In some cases, a parcel contains three or more land-use categories. County officials wrote in the summary of the Draft LCP, “These split land-use parcels have created interpretation and implementation challenges.”
Another major change in the new document is the creation of two new land-use categories. One of them is called “rural villages” and, according to city officials, refer to “primarily the antiquated, small-lot subdivisions created in the 1920s and 1930s, many with lots that do not meet current subdivision standards for minimum lot size and access.”
“Creation of this new land-use category allows flexibility to meet the needs of these communities while protecting natural resources and neighborhood character.”
The other new designation is Mountain Lands 40. This category establishes a maximum residential density of one unit per 40 acres. “These lands can be distinguished from any other areas of the Santa Monica Mountains by being located in significant watersheds with exceptionally clean runoff and water quality, Arroyo Sequit and Cold Creek,” county officials wrote. “The lower density allowed by this category will help protect the water quality of these watersheds.”
As is included in the LUP, the Draft LCP uses a tiered system to designate what it calls sensitive environmental resource areas, or SERA. They are divided into four subcategories: environmentally sensitive habitat areas, significant woodlands and savannas, significant watersheds and watersheds.
Watersheds are a new SERA, “created in recognition of the importance of maintaining and improving water quality in the Santa Monica Mountains Coastal Zone and Santa Monica Bay,” county officials wrote.
Also, according to city officials, existing zoning code regulations do not address the unique land use and environmental concerns in the area. For this reason, a community standard district “will set in place development standards and regulations to ensure that new development is compatible with the existing communities and with the natural environment.”
The standards include restricting exterior lighting to preserve night skies, prohibiting outdoor advertising signs, establishing grading provisions, limiting the height of structures and protecting ridgelines, among other things.
The county’s regional planning commission will review the Draft LCP. It must be approved by the County Board of Supervisors and certified by the Coastal Commission.