Former chair of the California Fair Political Practices Commission says city is in violation
The former Chair of the California Fair Political Practices Commission says Malibu is in violation of the California FPPC Regulations on Financial Conflict of Interest rules. Attorney Ann Ravel from Los Gatos claims two Malibu planning commissioners’ work as local contractors creates a conflict of interest “specifically in matters in which they have a reasonably foreseeable material financial benefit.”
Ravel is referring to Planning Commission Chair Skylar Peak and Commissioner Dennis Robert Smith. In a letter Ravel sent to Malibu City Manager Steve McClary and City Attorney Trevor Rusin, Ravel states that as licensed contractors in a position to bid on projects within city limits, Smith and Peak have voted on development applications before the commission which violates state regulations that mandate their recusal.
The attorney demands that both commissioners immediately stop voting on any development applications in which they might have the opportunity to bid on a contract for work and make any financial gain. She’s asking the councilmembers who appointed them to appoint “new, non-conflicted commissioners in their place.” Peak, an electrical contractor, was appointed last January by Marianne Riggins. As a former city employee, Riggins enjoyed a long tenure in the Malibu Planning Department. Smith is a local building and grading contractor appointed in January 2021 by Paul Grisanti, who has been a longtime local real estate agent.
Grisanti’s LinkedIn profile states that his “first hand knowledge of the individual councilpersons … and the City’s staff has proven to be of great value to his clientele and [realtor] coworkers” and indicates his current position with Coldwell Banker includes being land director, assisting “clients and the agents in my office with questions relative to land use, permitting, infrastructure, and local conditions.”
Ravel may have been alerted to Planning Commission voting by Malibu residents who attended a City Council meeting May 22 where Mayor Bruce Silverstein initiated conversation about possible conflicts of interest, noting, “Many of the Planning Commission decisions are 3-2 approvals with Peak and Smith voting yes.”
At that meeting Silverstein also said, “Anyone whose livelihood depends on development, a developer or contractor, has an inherent conflict of interest. It has nothing to do with whether they know the owner or intend to get work on it. That troubles me.” When Silverstein asked aloud whether it was a conflict of interest, Rusin answered, “No, I don’t believe so. You need to have either a specific financial interest as defined by the Political Reform Act or it would fall under common law.”
Silverstein, also an attorney, disputes that answer.
Silverstein wrote to McClary and Rusin: “The conflicts posed by these planning commissioners is not only generally problematic, but it is specifically problematic with respect to the numerous 3-2 votes in which a recusal by any one of the three would have produced a different outcome. Whether or not this is a legal conflict — which it may well be — it seriously erodes the public’s confidence in the fairness and integrity of the Planning Commission. That, in turn, erodes confidence in Malibu’s entire government — from the City Council and the city manager down to the rank-and-file staff. In that regard, I regularly hear from residents that they have no confidence in our local government to honor the Vision Statement and Mission Statement of Malibu, which establishes our important responsibility to protect and preserve the fragile rural coastal village that is Malibu.”
Silverstein has requested the City Manager address the Ravel letter at the next council meeting and noted, “Ms. Ravel is no lightweight when it comes to the law in general, including the law of conflicts of interest in particular.”
The Malibu Times asked for comment from the city. The city acknowledged our request and indicated a response would be forthcoming, but TMT has yet to receive one. TMT also sent requests for comment to Peak and Smith with no replies.