Encroachments along the road are a safety hazard, council says. The council also delays design work on wastewater facility.
By Melonie Magruder / Special to The Malibu Times
The Malibu City Council Monday night took action to mitigate encroachments on public easements by private citizens along Busch Drive. The council also prepared for further study to determine how to deal with wastewater treatment following a decision by the State Water Resources Control Board to uphold the regional water board’s septic systems ban in the Civic Center area.
Public Works Director Bob Brager presented a report on conditions along the two-lane Busch Drive, where residents have encroached on roadside easements with the placement of trash enclosures, retaining walls, mounted post boxes and landscaping.
The encroachments have obliterated possibilities for roadside parking, walking or equestrian trails, and present a significant concern for vehicular and pedestrian safety, Brager said. This danger, he said, is increased by the flouting of speed laws, despite a winding roadway and a posted speed limit of 30 mph.
Last month, city staff conducted a neighborhood community meeting with about 35 residents to discuss options to alleviate the encroachments. Suggestions from residents ranged from installing decomposed granite pathways to leaving all encroachments untouched.
Monday night, council members agreed that action must be taken swiftly to avoid a tragedy, starting with trimming vegetation back to show the reflective fog line and repainting the center yellow line.
Mayor Jefferson “Zuma Jay” Wagner, who drove the length of Busch Drive recently to get a feel for the problem, said he was alarmed by the blind spots around curves while being tailgated, even though he was traveling above the speed limit.
“We need to claim more than the eight feet of easement on each side of the road, which we are allowed,” Wagner said. “It is time to inform the homeowners that they must remove their infrastructure for safety’s sake. They won’t be happy but we have a bigger obligation to the community.”
Mayor Pro Tem John Sibert cautioned that they were “opening a Pandora’s Box” with any action since similar hazards can be found throughout Malibu, but voted along with the rest of the council to direct staff to prepare a preliminary design to clear easements on both sides of Busch Drive to be presented at January’s council meeting.
Council votes to hold off on wastewater facility design
One of the more complicated agenda items was the appropriate response to the State Water Resources Control Board’s decision to amend the state Basin Plan, prohibiting on-site wastewater disposal systems in the Civic Center area.
As it stands, commercial properties must cease discharge (into septic systems) by 2015 and residential properties must cease discharge by 2019. City Manager Jim Thorsen has been meeting with regional water board head Sam Unger to compromise on the size of a centralized treatment facility that could end up costing an estimated $30 million to $52 million.
Earlier this month, the council heard a comprehensive report from Stone Environmental, Inc about hydrology flow and the possibilities of piping wastewater to Winter Canyon and elsewhere. But until the scope of the project is entirely understood, which will not be clear until studies are completed and peer reviewed by diverse agencies, Thorsen said he was hesitant to recommend spending engineering dollars on further design work.
Elizabeth Crosson, executive director of Santa Monica Baykeeper, told the council she was encouraged by the city’s plan to build and connect to a central wastewater treatment facility, but was concerned about the ongoing delay. (Baykeeper has sued the city several times over water quality issues, including last year when it claimed the Legacy Park Project violated state law by failing to meet water quality standards and by failing to adequately treat sewage, or wastewater, generated in the Civic Center area. That suit, and another one against the city’s approval of the environmental impact report for the La Paz development, to be located at Civic Center and Webb Ways, were dismissed by Los Angeles Superior Court.)
However, Sibert and Councilmember Lou La Monte agreed that it was pointless to spend money on a plan until they know what exactly needs to be designed.
Ultimately, the council voted to cease design efforts of a Civic Center wastewater treatment facility, finalize city-funded studies for peer review and continue working with the regional water board to finalize a phasing and prohibition boundary plan acceptable to all stakeholders. At that point, the city can fully fund the final design and EIR components.
Donations needed for Thanksgiving dinner
In other business, the council heard public commentary about continuing difficulty for special needs students in negotiating the sidewalk along Morning View Drive. La Monte asked Bob Brager to investigate improving wheelchair access at bus stops.
Eden Ettenger asked for donations to the Malibu Methodist Church for preparation of its 14th annual Thanksgiving dinner prepared for the homeless, youth at probation Camp Kilpatrick and Malibu day laborers.
Marshall Thompson questioned the wisdom of spending $12 million on a project to dredge Malibu lagoon and Macon McIntyre reported on the Harry Barovsky Youth Commission’s toy drive and Youth Appreciates You award to local businesses.