City staff recommends the city wait until talks with the regional water board are concluded until it proceeds with any work on a wastewater treatment facility. Also, the council will address appeals of the Malibu Inn entertainment and alcohol permit approvals.
By Jonathan Friedman / The Malibu Times
The City of Malibu could delay design work on a centralized wastewater treatment system for the Civic Center Area while officials wait for various water quality studies to be finished. That is the recommendation of City Manager Jim Thorsen in a staff report that will be presented to the City Council on Monday. The meeting will also include an appeal of the Planning Commission’s approval for alcohol and entertainment at the Malibu Inn and staff’s proposal for the city to vacate its portion of Rambla Pacifico.
The city is in the preliminary stages of work on a wastewater treatment system. At this time, the city and regional water board officials disagree on how wide an area that treatment plant should cover, with the city believing it should be smaller. The state water board in September approved a Civic Center Area septic system ban recommended by the regional water board. Since that time, Thorsen has been meeting with regional water board head Sam Unger on a compromise.
Thorsen wrote in the staff report that he is “working in supportive cooperation” with Unger “with the hopeful anticipation that we could make headway on possible … changes.” But he also wrote that he heard the regional water board members are unwilling to discuss any adjustments to the septic system ban until they believe “sufficient science has been produced that would warrant a revision.” Several water quality studies are being conducted that, Thorsen wrote, are several months from completion. Until those studies are finished, Thorsen wrote, it does not make sense to continue work on a treatment plant.
“During these uncertain economic times, it is not prudent to spend large public resources on a plan that is unlikely to garner support from the regional board … the city needs to have assurances that the design that is pursued is the design that is expected from the regional board and one that ultimately will be approved,” Thorsen wrote in the report.
He also said the city “may fail” to meet the septic system ban’s deadlines, which include phasing out of existing commercial systems by 2015 and residential systems by 2019.
Residents appeal Malibu Inn permits
The Malibu Inn appeal was filed by Klaus Obermeyer and Robert J. Allan, who live near the once popular hangout on Pacific Coast Highway across the street from the pier. The Planning Commission in September approved a parking permit and conditional use permit (CUP) for the Malibu Inn, which allows it to provide live entertainment, sell alcohol and to operate from 7 a.m. to 2 a.m.
“Appellants … do not believe that sufficient conditions were placed on the [permits] to mitigate the impact of noise, increased traffic and parking, potential danger, alcohol-related problems, nuisance and harm from the Malibu Inn’s activities to residents and visitors of Malibu,” the appeal states.
The city has received numerous letters about the permit application, most of them in opposition. Also, petitions for and against the Malibu Inn were submitted. City staff has recommended the council reject the appeal.
“After careful examination of the appeal statement and all of the evidence in the record, staff believes that all the required findings for approval of the project are supported by substantial evidence in the record,” Senior Planner Stephanie Danner wrote.
The Malibu Inn reopened last summer under new ownership, but it has only been allowed to serve breakfast and lunch. The CUP calls for a maximum of 94 restaurant seats and 340 patrons for entertainment events.
City to address Rambla Pacifico easement
The issue of the city releasing interest in an easement regarding the Rambla Pacifico road project was to go before the council last month. It was delayed because, City Attorney Christi Hogin said, city officials were working with the parties involved to find solutions.
City staff is recommending vacating the easement on a road where a private project 30 years in the making is under construction. Some area homeowners have requested the city delay the release until construction is finished. They have also asked whether the city can sell the easement, which city staff says is not possible.
The project is reestablishing a link between the northern and southern sections of Rambla Pacifico. The link was destroyed in a 1984 landslide, and this has made it a long journey to access the upper portion of the road.
Also on the agenda are discussions of public easement encroachment by property owners on Busch Drive and a possible creation of a pathway, as well as youth sports field usage at Malibu High and city facilities. Additionally, the council will recognize Deputy John Young from the Malibu/Lost Hills Sheriff’s Station, who recently received an honorable mention in Parade magazine’s annual “Police Officer of the Year” list.