Public comment reopens on LNG port application
The California State Lands Commission said last week it has decided to reopen for public comment the application by Australian energy conglomerate BHP Billiton to build a floating liquefied natural gas terminal 13.8 miles off the Malibu coast.
The commission will also release an independent safety assessment, written by experts at the Sandia National Laboratories in New Mexico. The report will evaluate the risk to Malibu of accidental or terrorist disasters at the floating LNG terminal.
An earlier environmental evaluation of Billiton’s Cabrillo Port plan was deemed incomplete by federal and state officials, who said the company had left out important safety and operating information. Those data gaps have delayed evaluation of the project by two years.
After its release, members of the public will be allowed to comment on the revised project details.
The report will be released on the Internet on an undetermined date in March, and copies of it can also be obtained on a compact disc or in print. Details about obtaining it are available at www.cabrilloport.ene.com.
Malibu property owner’s media company could be for sale
Malibu landowner Jerry Perenchio and his partners said last week that they were considering selling Univision Communications Inc., the Spanish-language media company that includes 62 TV stations, 69 radio stations and a music division.
According to media reports, Univision could sell for more than $13 billion. Perenchio, who owns 11 percent of the company, bought the media conglomerate with his partners for $550 million from Hallmark Cards Inc. in 1992.
Perenchio is the owner of the Malibu Bay Co., which owns several vacant commercial and residential properties in Malibu, including the Chili Cook-Off site. The city of Malibu is attempting to buy the Chili Cook-Off site, the 20-acre property that stretches along Pacific Coast Highway from Webb Way to Cross Creek Road, and the property is currently in escrow.
John Muir Elementary School to hold fundraiser
Santa Monica’s John Muir Elementary School will host its third annual “Watch Us Soar” Dinner Dance and Silent Auction on Feb. 24 at the Victorian Heritage Square on Main Street in Santa Monica. The money raised from the event will help provide teachers and students at the school with materials needed to advance John Muir’s technology department.
The auction will include more than 175 items to bid on, including gift certificates for fine dining and spa services, tickets to sporting events and a chance to win a one-of-a- kind vacation.
Tickets are $45 before Feb. 17 and the price will increase to $50 after that.
General Fund Grant applications being accepted
The city of Malibu is accepting applications for the annual General Fund Grant Program, which provides funding for Malibu nonprofit organizations that provide a benefit to the residents of the community.
Applications must be submitted by March 31. The organizations eligible for the program will be considered for funding by the City Council for its 2006-07 budget, which will be adopted in June.
To obtain an application, contact Pamela Morgan at 456.2489 ext. 248 or go to the city’s Web site at www.ci.malibu.ca.us.
-Daniella Bosio, Hans Laetz and Jonathan Friedman