Editiors note: This letter was presented to the Malibu City Council at its Aug. 13 meeting.
Re:Possible postponement of Special Municipal Election Bond Measure from November 2001 until April 2002.
I want to make sure the Council understands why “Lily’s Cafe Malibu Steering Committee,” myself included, have taken a position of opposition to this Bond Measure.
In early April, I attended two Lion Club meetings where, individually, two council persons discussed various City issues including the Bond. Later, I met with another Council person and Parks and Recreation Commissioner on the City Hall steps, and all agreed that the individual projects for this Bond Measure would be ranked in priority order. At no time did we ever ask them to identify individual properties or assign dollars to them.
Three months later, imagine our surprise, when we read the text for a Bond approval by this Council on July 9. The Bond as written did not rank the projects as promised, but provided an expanded list of various uses which continues to grow per Letters to the Editor and still does not include restored wetlands or Las Flores Creek City Park. Because it is so poorly written and the Malibu voters cannot make an informed decision as to which projects will be funded from the limited dollars available by the Council or future Councils, we have taken this position of opposition.
When Council person Hasse called me last Thursday, I did agree that I would participate in drafting new language for a Bond election in April, 2002.
Giving some additional thought and the shortness of time until April, rather than form a new committee, this Council should hear directly from its Malibu citizenry and rank the projects themselves for a revised Bond Measure. This should be a Council’s decision and not filtered through a Commission or Steering Committee.
The Malibu citizenry, committee or commission, do not have the inside knowledge nor authority to determine what the terms or conditions should be with the various landowners that is available to certain members of the Council in determining how to rank these projects.
We believe the current Bond measure as written is at risk this November and suggest at minimum the following:
1. Before the April election, hold a minimum of three public hearings at various locations in Malibu.
2. Should the Bond dollars be increased?
3. Rank all the projects or reduce this list to reasonably match the total dollars available in the revised Bond Measure.
In short, tell the voters of Malibu what you will do with this money!
John Harlow