The City Council is set to discuss and vote on a hotly debated proposal to regulate the size and number of chain stores allowed to open in Malibu’s Civic Center.
The polarizing issue has pitted a grassroots Malibu coalition against influential shopping center owners in the Civic Center, and the fallout from Monday’s meeting is likely to include either a court battle or a ballot measure in 2014 depending on which side does not get its way.
The law, formally called a formula retail ordinance, would require chain stores with 10 or more franchises to obtain a conditional use permit (CUP) from the City of Malibu in order to lease a commercial space in one of the Civic Center shopping centers in central Malibu. Grocery stores, banks, real estate offices and gas stations are among 10 exempted business types.
For more on the proposal’s trajectory, read here.
The City Council meets Monday at 6:30 p.m. at Malibu City Hall. Check back with The Malibu Times for full coverage of the meeting.