I don’t know about you, but the battle over Measure R leaves me perplexed. With this in mind, I gave the arguments another reading, wearing the spectacles of a former urban affairs reporter for The New York Times, design critic for the LA Times, NPR commentator, best-selling author, academic and longtime resident, with an abiding love for Malibu.
My conclusion, I know, will anger some of my good friends and neighbors, but based on my planning knowledge and experience, I am voting “no.”
Here are my reasons why. It:
– Is badly written and narrowly focused.
– Fractures Malibu further.
– Fails to address other city planning problems, such as the proliferation of rehabilitation clinics and over-scaled residences.
– Misstates the allowable buildings scale in the Civic Center.
– Will prompt frivolous, inflated lawsuits.
– Will result in a feeding frenzy among lawyers.
– Will jeopardize the construction of a special needs playground and youth garden, a new urgent care facility, new location for the movie theater and desired Whole Foods Market.
Development in all of Malibu needs to be better guided, but as well intentioned as it is, Measure R, I fear, will only confuse and frustrate residents and cloud the city’s future.
Sam Hall Kaplan