Ms. Sindell writes about her laments for the loss of Malibu’s eclectic character, and how we now have dictators of taste telling us how our houses should look. Has she noticed how much the current look-alike “in crowd” is affecting the look of Malibu? Expansive seas of Mediterranean houses with red tile roofs greet your eyes as you approach Malibu from Kanan Dume Road, and everywhere else. Profitable, but hardly “eclectic.”
What will we have when the trendy Malibu groupie decides that this is no longer in vogue but is as passe as lip liner and yesterdays’ hemlines and the proper status symbol is back to Craftsman, Tudor or possibly even “cozy?” Maybe energy-squandering, two-story ceilings will be too hard to keep warm. Could the price of water or electricity bother those who have more money than substance or common sense? Is style that important? To paraphrase Rick Wallace’s newspaper article — For some of us, living in Malibu is a trophy, a symbol of the achievement of success.
How sad that the elusive quality of life that Malibu offers is so challenged by a progressive “new moneyed” style of life where biggest is best, while the naive or self-interested driven are whining about “property rights.” How refreshing that a like-minded spirit in the same edition of the paper can be moved to poetry to proclaim appreciation for the simple joys of life Malibu can offer, but which will become subordinate to fame, grandeur and glory if all this continues.
Sadly, too, maybe the fiercely independent Malibu spirit needs to find room for some controls, before nothing is left but a memory for those privileged enough by opportunity and time to remember.
Tara Schwartz