Acting like a city
I find myself again in the state of disbelief over the recent revelation that our city council is planning to spend $42.5 million to purchase three parcels of land.
Somehow, our city council has found the money to purchase this property, yet they cannot find the money to pay for their residents to connect to the recently completed wastewater treatment facility.
The city council has chosen to ignore the fact that those residents and businesses required to connect to the waste water treatment plant have done nothing to deserve being saddled with this debt. They have treated their wastewater just like others similarly situated in other parts of Malibu. But now, because of where they live and because the city has ignored the need for more advanced wastewater treatment, these residents and businesses are being forced to spend tens of millions of dollars to make their now-required connection to the centralized wastewater treatment facility.
I have heard it too many times in this city: “I don’t live there so it is not my problem.” It is everyone’s problem. We are a city and we have a collective obligation to provide for the common good. There is no greater common good than clean water and a clean ocean. The city should pay for this service the way it pays for fire protection and public safety. What if the people in East Malibu did not want to pay for police or fire protection for those in West Malibu?
Wastewater treatment is a good idea, but it is a city responsibility—not an individual obligation. Providing the necessary funding for the residents and businesses to connect to the system is also a city responsibility. It is time for the city to act like a city and ensure that just because of where you live, you are not subject to unreasonable and unfair financial obligations. We are all in this together.
Mike Sidley