Malibu’s city council reverses itself … on the issue of hotel valets running back and forth across P C H.
The city has spent 2 million dollars on a Sacramento political consultant … who has not sent one e-mail back to Malibu in 13 years.
And Agoura Hills and Calabasas seem determined to put major developments … at the gateway to the Malibu mountains.
This is Malibu’s only local daily news.
It’s the Tuesday edition … from Radio Malibu …. 97 point 5 K B U
Good morning Malibu!
——
In a bit of a turnaround … the Malibu city council last night rejected the proposed hotel offsite valet ordinance .. just two weeks after giving preliminary approval to it.
Three council members said they had problems with the ordinance … which would allow hotels in the C-V 2 zone to have their parking down the highway and across the road.
The council acted after it found out there is only one hotel in a C-V 2 zone … which would be affected by the citywide ordinance.
City staff had come into criticism … for bringing the proposed ordinance up for a vote without providing any details on how it would affect traffic on P C H.
The Malibu Beach Inn wants to move its parking lot across P C H and down the road a bit … so it can put in a swimming pool.
City staff said that needs a citywide zoning change … but the city council then limited it to the zoning category … C-V-2 …. that is occupied by only one hotel … the Malibu Beach Inn.
And since the citywide zoning change will now effect exactly one hotel … the city councul says they want to see exact details.
And one councilman … Rick Mullen … said the whole concept of valets running up and down P C H makes him worry.
CART 77235 VALET MULLEN :12 QQQ: here and there.
“Man o’ man have we opened up a can of worms with allowing people to build parking structures elsewhere and shuttle buses racing here and there.”
By a 3-2 vote … the city council tossed the whole issue back to the Planning Commission.
The swing vote was Skylar Peak.
And he said the Malibu Beach Inn won’t get its valet parking lot approved unless it sweetens the pot …
It gets to build its swimming pool in its parking lot …. if it increases parking spaces down the street by 20 percent.
——
A fairly serious charge came up from the call to the public at last night’s city council meeting.
Longtime Malibu resident and not-retired journalist Sam Hall Kaplan presented the results of a public documents request.
Several months ago … Kaplan asked to see the city’s records from its 12 thousand 5 hundred dollar a month political consultant firm … California Strategies.
What kind of advice and direction is the city council getting from California Strategies for the nearly 2 million dollars in Malibu taxpayer money that has gone to the Sacramento consulting firm.
Kaplan wanted to see memos … records … et cetera.
Kaplan told the council …. he got precisely nothing …. other than copies of the firm’s 2 million dollars in invoices to the City of Malibu.
CART 77236 SAMHALL 26 QQQ: nearly 13 years.
“Malibu has paid nearly $2 million over the last decade to a gladhanding Sacramento consulting firm with minimal accountability, contrary to commonly accepted governmental practices.
“The firm, California Strategies, and the City of Malibu stated when queried that there have been no written reports or evaluations in the nearly 13 years…”
13 years and not one memo …. letter … email or anything from the consulting firm.
2 million dollars and it’s all secret … behind closed doors.
Kaplan was given the pro forma 3 minutes at the podium and then cut off.
Two city council members later thanked him for his time and effort.
But the question will take a lot more than three minutes to answer.
What is Malibu getting from a consulting firm that has charged it nearly two million dollars,… that is so secret that it can’t be reduced to writing???
Kaplan is an independent journalist who writes a political analysis column for KBUU Radio … and KBUU assisted him in preparing the public documents request.
——
Malibu swore in a new mayor last night.
Skylar Peak is back in the rotating position… for the second time.
No big speech … there was a big agenda.
The outgoing mayor … Lou LaMonte … had a bit of controversy on his last day as mayor.
It was over the sign … installed yesterday … the proclaims Malibu to be 21 miles of scenic beauty.
That’s a downgrade from the signs that were up for three decades … which proclaimed 27 miles of scenic beauty.
Lamonte addressed that issue.
CART 77234 ——- 21 MILES LAMONTE QQQ not in Malibu anymore.
“So now we have an entry sign on the east side of town … an entry sign on the west side of town.
“There will be one on Malibu Canyon road, and one on Kanan Dume Road, that welcomes you to the 21 miles of scenic beauty.
“The other six are still beautiful, they’re just not in Malibu anymore.”
Malibu city councilman Lou LaMonte.
——
You are listening to the latest news from Radio Malibu … 97.5 K B U. ((( time ))))
——
In news from over the hill .. the weekly newspaper in Agoura Hills is excitedly running a list of all the major construction underway within a stone’s throw of major access points for Malibu … at the Kanan Dume and at Malibu Canyon interchanges.
Near Kanan … the Cornerstone mixed use development on a hillside corner of Agoura Road …
and two new hotels and a fitness center near the 101 Freeway … just west of Kanan.
On Las Virgenes Road … a 78-unit townhome development south of the freeway … and a new shopping center at the corner of Las Virgenes and Thousand Oaks Boulevard just north of the 1-0-1.
This is according to the Acorn newspaper.
Neighborhood groups have sounded the alarms bells about hillsides being graded … and oak trees being uprooted.
But pro-development city councils in Calabasas and Agoura Hills have greenlighted projects that are destined to greatly increase the urban atmosphere at what many people are used to …. as they gateway to the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area.
——
And in news from down the coast … Santa Monica Airport has been embroiled in controversy over jet planes using the airport.
And now comes news that a 37-year-old Irvine man was sentenced yesterday to 10 months in federal prison for flying private jets out of local airports … including Santa Monica … without having a valid pilot’s license.
Arnold Gerald Leto pleaded guilty last October in downtown Los Angeles to two federal counts of piloting a plane without a license.
He flew a Cessna Citation turbojet from Santa Monica to Phoenix … after his pilot’s license had been revoked.
He had no required co-pilot … and he was not certified to fly that type of aircraft.
——
Malibu has been invited to meet the new school district superintendent at a reception at the high school Friday.
Ben Drati will be saying hello on Friday afternoon … between 3:30 and 5 … at the Malibu High School Library.
The event is sponsored by the Malibu Schools Leadership Committee … each of the four public schools … the city and the school district.
Friday late afternoon … it may be your last chance to visit the old Malibu High library before it is torn down.
The meeting is in the new, temporary library, up behind the gyms.
3:30 to 5.
——
Traffic … in 70 seconds … first …
——
Weather for the Malibu ….
It will be (((( very windy, with a high near 71 )))) degrees today on the beach … (((( 78 )))) inland.
Winds will be strong … with mountain and canyon winds predicted at 35 miles per hour this afternoon … but we’re already seeing gusts well above that.
Sunset tonight is at (((( 7:32 )))).
After that … expect it to be ((( windy again )))) tonight … a low of (((( 56 )))) on the beach … down to (((( 52 )))) in the canyons.
Tomorrow should be (((( sunny and even windier )))).
Right now … it’s (((( 55 )))) at Trancas.
(((( 59 )))) in upper Malibu Canyon.
And it’s (((( 67 ))) at Civic center Los Angeles.
Extremely windy in eastern Malibu.
Winds gusting to 48 miles an hour at Las Flores Canyon.
39 miles per hour at Topanga.
But its calm in western Malibu right now.
In the ocean … it’s (((( 58 )))) degrees in the water at Zuma Beach.
The lifeguards say the waves today are (((( 4 to 6 )))) feet high ….
(((( WNW swell easing. New SSW/S swell builds. Conditions suspect. Wind expected in PM ))))
(((( fair )))) surfing conditions right now …. according to the lifeguards.
((((( There’s a 4-point-7 foot high tide at 9:32.
Low tide is at 3:22.
High tide is at 9:35 tonight. ))))
——
Our KBU Newswire is posted at midmorning at the Malibu Times dot com.
Remember… you can always get breaking news ….follow us on Twitter @975KBU.
We post breaking stories … on Facebook … search for Radio Malibu.
And we always cover breaking news … on the radio … at 97-5 FM in western Malibu.
Our web player is simple …. you can hear Radio Malibu in your phone or stream it to your car.
Navigate to k-b-u dot f-m. … press two buttons …. and we’re in your ear anywhere in the world.