On its face, there’s little in common with the current outrage over the Charmlee Wilderness Park land swap and the controversy over Malibu High School’s stadium lights. On closer examination, the underlying issues raised by both council-approved actions are stunningly similar.
The proposal for 70-foot stadium lights was approved by the City Council after midnight, based upon information provided almost exclusively by the sales rep selling the lights and without a hearing before the planning commission. The Planning Commission hearing did not occur for reasons that were not legitimate, and which enabled the approvals to be rushed through the City Council. A Planning Commission hearing would have vetted whether these types of lights were appropriate for an equestrian-rural neighborhood such as Malibu Park.
As in Charmlee, the council was apparently intent on approving a deal without undertaking an independent investigation of viable alternatives to 72,000 watts on 70-foot poles. For those who attended the June 25 hearing, it was simply stunning that such an important decision would be made with so little information, in such an offhand manner and in complete disregard to the council’s duty to preserve the rural beauty of Malibu. Indeed, it would appear that the approvals were a done deal before the hearing even began. This scenario is disappointingly similar to the Charmlee controversy.
Cynthia Kesselman