The Fourth of July party held by “Big Mike” Straumieitis, known as the Marijuana Nutrient King, at a rented house on El Matador State Beach had an estimated 400 guests at the self-proclaimed “private beach,” food, drinks, marijuana products, sand castle building, acrobats and dancers, not to mention an airplane fly-by with a “Thank, You, Big Mike” banner and four planes flying in formation with colored trails.
As for the “private beach” signs, Craig Sap, State Parks district superintendent, with jurisdiction over El Matador State Beach, wrote, “We are aware of this ongoing issue and forwarded it to the Ventura office of the Coastal Commission.”
Longtime Malibu resident Pat Fourney and her husband, who live just feet away from the party house at 32062 PCH, spent the holiday defending their property from vehicles, partygoers and litter. The only way for guests or delivery trucks to get to the party house is through an easement over Fourney’s property.
“We had 400 people going back and forth over our driveway that day,” she said. “Thirty members of law enforcement were here.”
According to Fourney, party house owner attorney Peter McNulty let out the house to Big Mike from June 24 until the end of July “because if you rent a house more than 30 days you don’t have as many restrictions with parties,” Fourney claimed.
Some locals asked on social media why the city would ever permit a 400-person party in a rental house. The Planning Department told TMT there is no official upper limit on number of party guests: “The number of guests is limited by staff discretion while reviewing a Special Event Permit (SEP) application and the number of parking spaces a property owner can provide.”
Partygoers parked at Malibu High School, shuttled to the PCH entry gate and then rode golf carts to the party. A parade of golf carts came and went all day on July 4.
One of Fourney’s main objections is that the neighborhood isn’t just disturbed on the one day of the party—party prep and then tear-down goes on for two weeks. “On June 24, they started bringing in crews to install an extensive network of security cameras. They took all the furniture out and put new stuff in, including truckloads of decorations and plants,” she described.
Delivery trucks usually parked on the easement to make deliveries, blocking her driveway, because the party house’s low overhang makes it impossible for most trucks to enter that property.
The city, in an email to TMT, said that “deliveries should be made solely on the subject property” and “delivery trucks and other vehicles cannot park on the shared easement.” This means Fourney would have been within her rights to report these violations to the city.
Clean-up and tear-down lasted until July 8, Fourney said.
“They worked all night on our property the night before and the night after the party,” she described. Even so, Fourney pointed out a lot of paper confetti still littering the neighborhood even after clean-up.
The city described that the sheriff’s department should be contacted about any “criminal matters” during parties, which would include littering, trespassing, going to the bathroom outside or spraying graffiti—all of which has been reported by neighbors, although some may have been committed by beachgoers as opposed to partygoers. Violations of the noise ordinance should be reported to city code enforcement during business hours or the sheriff after hours.
“Special Event Permits” for parties in residential neighborhoods are processed by the City of Malibu Planning Department. “An application and $100 fee should be brought to the public counter at least 10 days in advance for any event with any of the following: 100 or more people (including employees), admission fee, public advertising, rented house, promotion of a product, or “actions intended to attract the media or paparazzi,” city staff wrote.
The applicant may be required to rent additional parking facilities, provide shuttles or valet, hire law enforcement, or get a permit from the fire department or other agencies.
The city also requires one temporary restroom for every 150 guests/employees, with at least one unisex disabled accessible restroom and hand-washing facilities. In addition, “Event guests shall not use onsite bathrooms” due to the possibility of septic overflow.
This wasn’t the only July 4 party in town—there were reports of an unpermitted party near Paradise Cove of about 200 people and a permitted party for 300 on Broad Beach. The city has penalties and fines for violation of certain rules or failure to get a permit.