Our local stadium lights proponents would have you believe that there are just a few disgruntled neighbors who oppose the lights. Not true. People up and down the California coast have come together to push back against this version of “progress.” This is not a Malibu problem. This is a coastal problem. There are people who think this coast is worth fighting for and saving for future generations. In the past our former Mayor Laura Rosenthal agreed, as evidenced by her words from Jan. 19, 2010.
“I want to thank the Malibu community for coming out. I think this is a great example of how different groups in the community have come together to compromise. We have gone in the past year as we have been talking about this, there have been a lot of numbers thrown around 16 nights, 80, 203. Then it went down to 50 then back to 16. And when we were looking at the permanent lights and when the city was interested in being a part of this the nights went up to 203. “Because it was a very expensive project and the city wanted to be involved and at that time I supported that. And then when the community came in and started talking about how they felt, the local community, of which I am a member, I live in Malibu Park. It became quite clear that it was going to impact the community.
“So, many months ago, I said I was no longer in favor of 203 nights and I am in favor of the 16 nights. Been working on this for a long time and I think this is a really good proposal and it’s a wonderful compromise. I think the school community and a lot of neighbors have really done a good job. The school community has gone down to 203 nights of permanent lights to 16 nights of temporary lights which are always paid for completely by the football parent. No tax dollars are ever used.”
What changed?
Julie Tobias