On one of the spectacular days we had recently, I stood at the overlook at Serra Retreat and took in the view, which reminded me of what a wonderful place we live in. I could see the empty fields of the Malibu river delta that would have become the shopping malls and office buildings proposed under the ill-conceived Measure M and wondered what lies ahead.
I remembered the battle to form the city of Malibu, which saved us from the planned city of 165,000 that the County of Los Angeles wanted to create with their plan to sewer Malibu. I remembered the Malibu freeway and the Coral Canyon nuclear power plant projects. I remembered the hundreds of hours that the city staff and the public put into developing a General Plan for Malibu that, at its very heart, expressed intent to maintain Malibu as a semi-rural beach town with the needs of the residents held foremost.
I also thought about the factions that try to dominate Malibu politics. There are the radical no-growth groups that try to control every little aspect of growth, the California Coastal Commission which developed a plan that did not understand the uniqueness of Malibu while at the same time showed favoritism and allowed Pepperdine and others to develop in a way prohibited to the average citizen, and the pro-growth city council that was in such a rush to run for reelection without Measure M on the ballot that they forgot to keep the best interests of the Malibu citizens in mind.
I then remembered that we do have a general plan for Malibu and that our zoning or finances are some of the toughest in the state. After all, the zoning requirement that prohibits off-site wastewater treatment (sewers) was enacted to limit growth. As Mayor Kearsley pointed out, there are new technologies that will clean sewage on site and there is no reason to enable excess growth in the name of clean water. We all want clean water and can have it without sewers.
The people of Malibu have spoken. They want rational growth for Malibu that serves the needs of the citizens of Malibu. They want a semi-rural environment that caters to their needs first before the needs of outside forces. They want real amenities such as parks and sports fields in exchange for development that is in excess of their general plan and zoning. They understand that Malibu only has one main road and that it is up to the City Council to protect them with real traffic mitigation, not phony traffic studies and gridlock. Most of all, they have stated emphatically that if the city council, as their representative, does not understand that Malibu is a special place with natural reasons to manage growth under the general plan, in accordance with strict zoning laws, and in the best interest of the average citizen, then they will act.
Malibu is a great place with citizens who moved here because it is special and unique. The recent expression of cooperation between the City Council and the groups that opposed Measure M is a great opportunity to go forward with a rational plan for Malibu. We all love Malibu. It’s our town. We have an obligation to work together and protect this very special place. If we don’t, I’m sure the citizens of Malibu will again say no as they did to the freeway, the sewers, the nuclear power plant and Measure M.
John Mazza