One of the best friends of the citizens in Malibu City Hall during the past four years has been Planning Director Joyce Parker-Bozylinski, who’s now leaving us to retire (too young). Having been very involved in community issues during that time, I’ve had dozens of meetings and interactions and 100 email exchanges with her and had the chance to appreciate up close how important it is to Malibu to have a good person in that role.
When Malibu had to create a “Housing Element” demonstrating that our zoning did not exclude the opportunity for people to develop low-income housing, I studied the issue as if it was my personal problem to solve — studying the law and the Housing Elements of other cities, and developing my own connections at two related state entities. During that time, Joyce graciously considered all of the ideas I perpetually proposed to her, and helped educated me about what was practical, given her planning knowledge. On other city issues, too, Joyce always welcomed real citizen involvement, as it should be, but as it too often isn’t in government.
I became involved in several city issues mediated by Joyce. In one situation where multiple parties had legal rights and differing interests, Joyce kept negotiations moving along constructively by utilizing that most uncommon quality: common sense. She would support what was reasonable to all parties and not be pulled off course by esoteric arguments, and if either party didn’t want to accept that, they could always make their case before the City Council. Faced with an opportunity to accept the common sense position or to take one’s chances making obscure arguments to the City Council, common sense prevailed.
The City of Malibu primarily exists, in my understanding, so citizens can collectively have their interests represented in planning and development issues that affect the future of Malibu and our quality of life, and the Planning Director’s position is where the rubber meets the road in Malibu. To this position, Joyce brought brains and empathy and, on top of that, always seemed to be in a good mood.
Lynn Norton