From the Publisher/Arnold G. York
Practically every week I make the pilgrimage to Sacramento, and it always feels a little surreal. I get onto Southwest Air and it seems as if I’m leaving one world, the world of Malibu where very little changes, and entering the other world, the world of Sacramento politics, where everything is changing. The two worlds don’t feel remotely related. When I return I generally have some good fresh cocktail party talk, but it feels like I’m delivering news from another galaxy.
But soon that may all change. Think about it. We in Malibu have been fighting a war with the California Coastal Commission for a couple of years. In the main, they’ve been winning that war. They have far more clout in Sacramento then we have, and they’re fighting us with our own state government money, while we’re stuck with limited city funds or private donations. Just think of all the things we can’t do because of it.
-We signed a referendum to put the Malibu LCP onto the ballot, and the Coastal Commission sued us to keep it off the ballot and won in the trial court. Now we’re taking it to the Court of Appeals and it could be another year or more before we get an answer.
-In the meantime, the Coastal Commission is playing hardball and refuses to issue any coastal permits while the case is on appeal. They don’t have to do that, but they’re trying to bring us to our knees and force us to drop the lawsuit.
-They’re also telling us they won’t hear any amendments to the Malibu LCP as long we’re suing them, but if we drop the lawsuit (read that as cave in), then they might talk. To put it another way, if we say let’s sit down and talk and see if we can settle this conflict, their answer is we’re not interested. Again, they’re playing hardball.
-As a result, we have an unofficial moratorium in place. It’s not called that because it would be illegal to declare a moratorium, but that’s what it is. Soon a lot of local contractors and subs are going to be running out of work, a lot of local businesses are going to take major hits, and a lot of Malibu citizens will grow more and more frustrated.
Normally there isn’t much we could do about it. But these aren’t normal times and there is a recall election come Oct. 7, unless a court delays it, and there is every expectation that we’ll have a new governor.
As I write this I’m aware that tonight, Gov. Gray Davis is launching his charm offensive to convince us all that he’s really just a regular guy. I half expect his wife will wear a cloth coat and he may even find himself a puppy to hold, but I suspect it’s not going to work. He may pick up a few points because he’s so low in the polls now that the only way he could possibly go is up, but I don’t think it will be any more than a temporary hiccup. Unless Davis pulls the upset of the century on Oct. 8, there will be a new governor-elect. Whether it will be Democrat Cruz Bustamante from the central valley, or Arnold, or one of the other Republicans or Independents, there will most probably be four new appointments to the Coastal Commission after the election.
There is also a rumor floating around Sacramento that the California Supreme Court, which is currently hearing a major challenge to the California Coastal Commission in the case of California Coastal Commission vs. Marine Forrest Society, on which I’ve been told we could have a decision as early as late this year or early next year, could make some new law. Some are betting that the California Supreme Court may decide that since the Coastal Commission is an executive agency, the governor has to have the majority of the appointments on the commission. It’s possible that we may have the new governor appointing as many as seven of the 12 coastal commissioners.
If that sounds as appealing to you as it does to me, there is something you can do about it. You can e-mail your candidate and ask for a commitment to make major changes in the Coastal Commission if he or she gets elected. Right now this election is up for grabs and everyone is running scared and prepared to deal. It is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for change.
At a later date, I’ll print everyone’s
e-mail addresses so you can send those e-mails.