Third in a series explaining the Malibu Bay Company Development Deal, on which residents will cast their votes on Nov. 4.
By Jonathan Friedman/Staff Writer
The Trancas portion of the Malibu Bay Company (MBC) Development Agreement is unique because it is the only one that includes the construction of residential homes. Also, unlike the Civic Center area and Point Dume portions of the agreement, what is allowed at Trancas does not depend on whether the city purchases the Chili Cook-Off site.
The MBC owns four Trancas properties involved in the agreement. If the voters approve the deal, then a total of 20 homes could be built on three of the sites, while the company could expand its already existing commercial development, which includes How’s Market and Starbucks, on the fourth property. In addition, the MBC is offering a conservation easement of the Trancas Creek that flows through the area, so restoration could take place. However, the agreement states the restoration is “subject to (the) developer’s reasonable approval.”
The MBC has two options on what it could do with its Trancas commercial site, located on the north side of Pacific Coast Highway and just east of Trancas Canyon Road. It could either add an additional 33,261 square feet of commercial space to the 28,739 that exists there now, or it could tear down the existing structures and replace them with no more than 62,000 square feet of commercial development. The site includes sycamore trees and a portion of Trancas Creek. Whatever is built there cannot be placed within 50 feet of the trees and 100 feet of the creek. However, parking can be placed in that setback area next to the creek.
There is a gas station located across the property on Trancas Canyon Road. The company could install parking spaces there and it could replace the gas station with an equally sized commercial structure. In addition, the MBC could use that property for disposal, storage and treatment purposes for the wastewater coming from the commercial site.
As for the residential properties, the agreement allows for the most significant development at a 24.87-acre site located on the west side of Trancas Canyon Road just north of Pacific Coast Highway. On 15 acres of that land, 13 houses, ranging from 6,500 square feet to 7,300 square feet, could be built. That requires an amendment to the city’s general plan to change the area’s zoning classification, since it is currently eligible for just one home per five acres. The remaining 9.87 acres, located along Pacific Coast Highway, would be left as private open space.
Another residential Trancas property is a 2-acre site located on PCH, just east of the beginning of Broad Beach Road and the intersection of Trancas Canyon Road and PCH. The MBC would build five beachfront 5,400-square foot homes on this land. The development requires the creation of an overlay district, which means the area gets a special classification so development standards could be designated for it that differ from what is allowed by the zoning code. With the overlay district, the homes would be allowed a front yard setback maximum of up to 60 feet, as opposed to the 20 feet the code allows and a lot-width minimum of 40 feet, as opposed to the 80 feet minimum the code requires.
The final residential property involved in the agreement is a 5.24-acre piece of land located at the former Riders and Ropers site. The MBC could build two homes there, one being about 6,100 square feet and the other being about 6,800 square feet. Also, an easement would be created for an equestrian and hiking trail across a section of the land that would allow the continuation of an existing trail, in the process linking the Trancas commercial property with the Malibu Park neighborhood.
MBC Development Agreement
€ City purchases Chili Cook-Off site for $25 million within three years
€ MBC develops three of its Civic Center Area sites-the Ioki, Island and St.
John’s properties. The remaining three sites will be left as open space
€ MBC commits itself to building a new urgent care facility on the St. John’s site
€ MBC constructs a 5,000-square-foot community center at Point Dume
€ MBC develops its remaining Point Dume property under the current zoning laws
€ MBC builds 20 homes at its Trancas properties and develops the commercial
portion of its Trancas land
€ MBC donates $2.5 million to the city, of which $1.5 million must go toward ball
fields and up to $1 million for capital facilities for an urgent care center
€ MBC grants a conservation easement in Trancas Creek for creek restoration
and construction of a footbridge that will link trails from the commercial site to
a path leading to the beach
€ Also, there are plans for commercial and residential development on its Trancas
property. If the city fails to come up with $25 million in three years to
purchase the Chili Cook-Off site, then a new scenario comes in to play.
Alternative Scenario
€ 185,000 square feet of development is built on Chili Cook-Off site
€ MBC donates entire 18.87-acre Point Dume site for ball fields and community
center
€ MBC donates $5 million for ball fields and a community center
€ The Trancas and Civic Center area development other than the Chili Cook-Off
site remains the same in both scenarios