I applaud the city council for its decision not to develop Bluffs Park. Two citywide surveys obtained during this process support this decision. Both the survey regarding priorities for all of Malibu’s parks, and a second survey regarding only Bluffs Park showed that the first choice was “trails and open space.” The decisive election of Skylar Peak, Rick Mullen and Jefferson Wagner affirmed that Malibu citizens support a preservation agenda. Bluffs Park was also purchased using state funds with the intention of regional use, not local use. This will hamper any proposal of new athletic facilities at the site.
It is not true that our current council does not value the needs of kids in Malibu. But the council knows there are choices of sites for sport facilities that do not require the sacrifice of increasingly rare coastal habitat such as Bluffs Park. They are actively pursuing these choices, which are also more likely to obtain the required approvals more rapidly.
One of the greatest benefits of sports participation is to learn to work as a team. I think we need some of this same spirit applied so that our community can work together to save our vanishing native habitat and provide needed programs for our youth. Both are clearly possible. Teaching our children to value our environment, preserve it for future generations, and to speak up for our native wildlife who cannot speak for themselves are also invaluable lessons. I thank our council for demonstrating those values.
Judy Villablanca