Opinion: A Time for Gratitude

By Joe Irvin, Malibu City Manager · Sat Nov 14 2026

With Thanksgiving approaching, I want to take a moment to reflect on how grateful I am to be part of this community and to recognize the people who make Malibu such a special place. I am grateful to our residents for being engaged, caring, and compassionate, and for putting in the work, sharing your ideas, concerns, and needs for the future of Malibu. Without that, the City cannot achieve anything. Your willingness to speak up, listen, collaborate, and contribute guides our work and strengthens our community's bonds. 

I am grateful to our City Council for its informed, thoughtful, and professional leadership — for working together with civility and a collaborative spirit to address our community’s most pressing needs, pursue its aspirations, respond to emergencies, and support the work being carried out at City Hall. 

I am grateful to our City staff. They bring professionalism, passion, empathy, integrity, and a forward-looking commitment to public service every day. Your responsiveness and genuine desire to help make a difference in people’s lives are at the heart of this organization. 

I also want to express my gratitude to the LA County Fire Department for its swift, effective response to the Bryson Fire, bringing it under control before it threatened homes and lives, amid difficult terrain, powerful winds, and bone-dry conditions. And I am grateful to the Malibu/Lost Hills Sheriff’s Station for keeping our community and roads safe, addressing crime, and coordinating with the City, community, and our partner agencies on emergencies large and small. Their dedicated service helps keep Malibu’s overall crime rates about 40% below the national average, with year-to-date violent crime down more than 19% compared with 2025, among others.  

As we gather with family and friends this Thanksgiving, I encourage everyone to take time to appreciate the people who make a difference in your lives and the community we share. I am deeply thankful to serve alongside all of you.