City Attorney Christi Hogin claims victory. The head Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy lawyer says Hogin has a “nice spin” on the ruling.
By Jonathan Friedman / Assistant Editor
The City of Malibu cannot sue the state on the issue of bringing overnight camping sites to the area until the California Coastal Commission has voted on the issue, a Los Angeles Superior Court judge ruled Friday morning.
The city had filed a suit in July. Judge James C. Chalfant’s decision invalidates the suit. Nevertheless, City Attorney Christi Hogin is claiming victory because of a technicality included in Chalfant’s ruling. When asked about Hogin’s reaction, head Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy attorney Laurie Collins said, “It’s a nice spin.”
The conservancy earlier this year submitted an application to the Coastal Commission for overnight camping sites and other enhancements at conservancy parklands in Malibu. The method the conservancy used to apply for its project required the OK from Coastal Commission Executive Director Peter Douglas before it could go before the commission voting body. He gave the application his blessing in the spring. The city then sued, claiming Douglas should not have supported the application because it did not qualify for the method the conservancy used for various reasons.
Last month, the state Attorney General’s Office asked the court to toss the city’s suit, claiming the issue could not go to court until after it went before the Coastal Commission because the commission’s vote, not Douglas giving the application his blessing, is the final step in the process. Judge Chalfant agreed. “I’m not surprised,” Douglas said on Tuesday about the ruling. “It’s what we were saying all the way along. It was just a confirmation of how this [the suit] was a waste of public resources. I though it was irresponsible when the city filed the lawsuit and I still think that. The judge vindicated our position.”
Malibu City Attorney Hogin was not shedding any tears Friday. She said after the hearing that Chalfant’s ruling made it clear it will have to be proven during the Coastal Commission hearing on the conservancy application that Douglas’ support followed the specific rules of the conservancy’s application method, known as a Local Coastal Program Amendment Override. And the state would have to prove this again at a court hearing if the city were to sue following the commission’s vote. Hogin said because of the ruling, the city will no longer have to continue fighting in court about whether the legitimacy of Douglas’ approval can be challenged. And, she said, when his approval is challenged, the city will have an excellent case.
“It’s good for the budget and good for the process,” Hogin said.
Collins from the conservancy said she did not see how Hogin could claim any sort of victory.
“She’s just spinning it because she is embarrassed she lost and wasted a lot of Malibu taxpayer money on it,” Collins said.
Douglas made a similar comment regarding Hogin’s reaction, “How does that save money? They already wasted money by bringing it to court in the first place. They could have dealt with the issue in front of the commission instead of going to court and doing the sensationalist kind of approach.”
Mayor Pamela Conley Ulich disagreed with Douglas’ comment on public resources being wasted. “This lawsuit, which the city attorney says cost about three to five thousand dollars, is far less than the burden on the taxpayers during the last few fires this city has had,” she said. “This lawsuit is really trying to protect and preserve Malibu from the dangers of campfires.”
The Coastal Commission voting body is expected to consider the conservancy’s application sometime early next year. Also early next year, and possibly at the same meeting, the commission will vote on a rival proposal from Malibu to ban overnight camping on public land within the city limits.
Douglas’ approval of the conservancy’s application did not necessarily mean he supports the content of the document, but rather just that the conservancy followed the rules in making the application. He has not given a public opinion on the content. But he has publicly stated several times that the city’s application to ban overnight camping is illegal because it violates the right to access public lands. Douglas does not have a vote on the 12-member Coastal Commission, but his opinion is highly influential.