President Joe Biden’s son, Hunter, was among the attendees

Malibu residents from all ethnic backgrounds gathered at the Malibu Pier last week to call for peace following Hamas militants’ surprise attack on Israel.

Blue and white flags were waved, and banners that read “We Stand With You,” were seen on Thursday, Oct. 12, just a little after a week after the surprise attack. President Joe Biden’s son, Hunter, was among the attendees. 

Rabbi Cantor Marcelo Gindlin of the Malibu Jewish Center and Synagogue and Rabbi Levi Cunin of Malibu Chabad were in attendance. Malibu City Councilmember Paul Grisanti also attended the rally. 

“We are in the presence of the great evil, so what are going to do about it,” Grisanti told NBC LA.

The restaurant that’s located across the Pier, Pita Bu’, was also seen giving out free meals to participants. 

Malibu resident and one of the organizers Ron Goldshmidt said he hopes the rally can bring people together.

“This rally was organized by a few Malibu families who have just been watching this event over the last few days in shock, horror, saddness, and anger, and we decided to put some of that anger to good use and bring the community together and have people connect with each,” Goldshmidt said. “You’re sitting at home and watching the news — it’s horrifying to see what’s going on in that part of the world, but when we connect, great things can happen.”

Goldshmidt said they received a great response from the community and bypassers from the rally that took place near the Malibu Pier.

“Whether they’re Jewish or not Jewish, just friends, everyone understands that this is a fight between good and evil, and we have to get off the sidelines and speak up for Israel, speak up for what’s right, and for our country, our values and to what we stand for here,” Goldshmidt said. “We believe that it’s a common denominator between everybody — Jewish, not Jewish — even for people who don’t really follow this conflict closely, some really great energy can come out of this if you come out of the sidelines and step on the right side.”

Malibu/Lost Hills Sheriff’s Sgt. Chris Soderlund said the “Stand with Israel” rally went smoothly.

“The Sheriff’s Department partnered with State Parks to ensure that it went smoothly and we had no issues,” Soderlund said. “There were approximately 120 participants at the rally, and everybody had a great time.”

The gathering held a vigil and prayer at the end of the night. 

Meeting adjourned in memory of Malibu’s first mayor, Walt Keller, who passed away on Oct. 13 at age 93

The Planning Commission and Department thanked Jeff Jennings for his dedication and term serving on the Planning Commission, as Monday night was his last meeting.  

Jennings served on the Malibu City Council from 1994-98 and 2000-08, including several rotations as mayor. For years, he’s also served on the Malibu Planning Commission as vice chair and maintains the private practice law office of Jennings and Associate.

Mayor Pro Tem Doug Stewart thanked Jennings for his dedication to the community. 

“There are few, if any residents in Malibu who have volunteered more, worked harder, or have been more dedicated to the betterment of our Malibu than Jeff,” Stewart said. “So Jeff, we will never be able to replace you, and all who follow you will hopefully try to emulate your wisdom, insight, and diplomacy.”

Planning Commissioner Dennis Smith also acknowledged and thanked Jennings for his years of service and guidance. 

“I’m truly going to miss you, you bring so much to this community, both you and Kris [Jennings wife],” Smith said. “I want to say thank you in my short term of 14 years, but to have this opportunity to be next to you, I truly appreciate it and all the best to you and the best to Kris.”

Planning Commissioner Kraig Hill started his commissioner comments by addressing the Ann M. Ravel letter, which alleged potential conflict-of-interest issues with his fellow Commissioners Skylar Peak and Dennis Robert Smith, but was told that the City Council is currently addressing the situation.

Hill moved on to thank Jennings for his time on the commission. 

“We will miss your legal expertise here and your institutional memory, and you occasionally laugh and my occasional jokes, and I’ll miss that too,” Hill said. 

Hill also said there is a discussion about naming Charmlee Wilderness Park after Walt and Lucile Keller.

“That sounds like a good idea, I think it’s worth talking to Lucile and seeing what her wishes are,” Hill said. 

Malibu’s first mayor, Walt Keller, passed away on Oct. 13 after a long illness. He was 93 years old. The commission meeting also adjourned in memory of Keller. ​

Vice Chair John Mazza agreed with Hill on the Ann Ravel letter and issue, and said he wished City Council held an open session vs. a closed session with the legal council on the anticipated litigation. 

Mazza also acknowledged Keller and said he was “truly the father of Malibu.”

“His main goal was to preserve a unique place like Malibu, not to make money, not to make shopping centers, not to add hotels, not to have short-term rentals, he went hiking practically every day on the trails around Malibu and he enjoyed what Malibu used to be, we still have some of that left in West Malibu, but he was the kind of leader that got things done by persistence,” Mazza said. “It takes work and it takes people like Walt to preserve a place like Malibu because there is no place left on the coastal California that has our weather, our ambiance, and our rural nature as it used to be. “

Jennings thanked the commission and community for their comments.

“The ability to be one of the five people having a voice and making a decision is a real privilege, and I appreciate the privilege; thank the people who have given me the opportunity to have that privilege, and I thank the staff,” Jennings said. 

The commission moved on to address and approve the “Extend Deadlines for Nonconforming In-kind Disaster Rebuild Projects” item, which will add three years to the deadline to initiate the planning application process and obtain building permits to rebuild a nonconforming structure that was damaged or destroyed in the Woolsey Fire and finding the action exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act.

After discussing the landscaping, width, and height, the Coastal Development Permit Amendment No. 20-017, the installation of landscaping in the city’s public right-of-way to visually screen the recently approved water tank at 5723 Busch Drive was carried with a 4-1 vote.

On July 20, 2020, the Planning Commission adopted Resolution 20-23, approving CDP No. 13-040 for the replacement of a public water tank and associated development. The application originally included landscaping in the public ROW to replace existing landscaping. However, a few months before the hearing, the applicant, the Los Angeles County Waterworks District No. 29 (WD29), removed the proposed landscaping from the scope of work. 

To view the entire report, visit malibucity.org/agendacenter.

The meeting adjourned in memory of Keller.

The next Planning Commission meeting is scheduled for Nov. 6.

Malibu interim city attorney claims charges of conflicts of interest at the Planning Commission won’t hold up 

The City of Malibu has responded to a conflict of interest charge complaint submitted to the California Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC). City Attorney Trevor Rusin wrote the FPPC that any charge of a conflict of interest against two Malibu planning commissioners “is a novel interpretation of the Political Reform Act (“Act”) that has not been accepted by any court.” Rusin adds: “the Complaint fails to cite even a single FPPC advice letter that would support this interpretation.” 

The complaint filed by former FPPC Chair Ann Ravel alleges Planning Commissioners Skylar Peak and Dennis Smith of having a reasonably foreseeable material financial benefit when they vote on development projects. Recent votes have been in favor of development on a 3-2 vote with Peak and Smith voting in favor. Stated in the complaint: “These Planning Commissioners were contractors who ultimately were employed to work on the projects on which they had voted.”

In his letter to the FPPC, Rusin states of the complaint: “It relies on an assumption that the City of Malibu has only a handful of electricians and building/grading contractors who perform work in the City. This is simply not true. Literally hundreds of electricians and grading contractors perform work in the City. 

“It also ignores the fact that property owners in Malibu have a right to develop their property in compliance with the City’s codes. The Complaint does not argue that the Commissioners have a specific interest in any project before them, instead it insists that the mere fact that an approved project will potentially involve electrical or building/grading work for someone requires recusal. It assumes the Planning Commissioners control whether development occurs in the City. They do not. The City’s codes define how much development may occur on a specific property. If the code allows a 3000 square foot home to be built, the planning commission cannot stop a property owner from building such a home. The Planning Commission’s role is simply to ensure that the 3000 square foot home is located and constructed in conformance with the City’s codes. 

As a result, while a Planning Commissioner can have a financial interest in a particular project which requires recusal, there can be no financial interest in “development” in general. Many professions gain work and income from “development,” including realtors, lawyers, insurance brokers, construction workers, interior designers, landscape professionals, business and real estate investors and many more. Prohibiting an individual from serving on a Planning Commission solely because their profession is involved in development is not supported by the Act, and would have wide-ranging implications if such a rule applied. 

Further, while Councilmembers Riggins and Grisanti and the City of Malibu are named in the Complaint, no conduct that violates the Act has been alleged against them. Councilmember Riggins appointed Commissioner Peak, and Councilmember Grisanti appointed Commissioner Smith, but the action of appointing them does not violate any provision of the Act. Even if the unsupported theories in the Complaint were the law and Commissioners Peak and Smith were not eligible to hear items that involved electrical or grading work, they would still be able to serve on the Planning Commission and participate in items that do not involve such work as well as legislative items that come before the Planning Commission. Again, even if everything stated in the Complaint were true, it would not constitute a violation of the Act by the City or Councilmembers Riggins and Grisanti.” 

Rusin then goes on to state that the complaint does not describe an instance where Peak and Smith were ultimately employed on projects they had approved, but does note that Peak, an electrician, was hired to perform work at a Portshead Road site that was approved years earlier when he was a councilmember and after the property changed hands. 

“Then Councilmember Peak had no financial interest in the project at the time it was approved; the development of such an interest years later when the property had a new owner does not violate the Act,” Rusin said. 

Rusin’s response concluded, “The City is committed to ensuring compliance with all ethics and conflict of interest laws and regulations. City staff routinely coordinates with all of the Commissioners to assess their financial interests, and to ensure consistency with FPPC Regulations and ethical standards. In situations where the City Attorney’s office believes there is a conflict within the scope of the Political Reform Act (“Act”) or FPPC regulations, that Commissioner is advised of his or her legal obligations, which may include recusal.

“The City takes these matters seriously and has examined in detail the allegations contained in the Complaint. As stated above, and further described below, close examination of the Act shows that Commissioners Peak and Smith have not violated it, and are not required to recuse themselves from all applications that involves “development” as claimed in the Complaint that would cause a similarly situated person to weigh the advantages and disadvantages of the decision on the financial interest in formulating their position.” 

The FPPC is investigating the matter. It is not known yet when the commission will issue its findings.

Retired aerospace engineer and his wife of 67 years have lived in the same home in West Malibu since 1961

By Barbara Burke

Of The Malibu Times

​Malibu’s first mayor, who was instrumental in the formation of the city, passed away on Oct. 13 after a long illness. He was 93 years old.

​“I remember fighting for cityhood with Walt and Lucile. He cared about Malibu and only wanted the best for those of us who chose to live here,” Lonnie Gordon said. “He was a good example of someone who represented the residents of our city.”

​Keller retired from Northrop Grumman where he served for decades as an aerospace engineer. After helping to lead the effort seeking cityhood for Malibu, he

became the city’s first mayor because he was the top vote-getter for the City Council incorporation election in June 1990.

​Keller lost a re-election bid for council in 1994, but returned to the office in 1996. He was defeated again in 2000, only to emerge victorious in 2004. He helped to found the Malibu Committee for Incorporation, and served as its president, and remained active in the Malibu Township Council until the COVID pandemic. 

​Keller and his wife of 67 years have lived in the same home in West Malibu since 1961. The couple met when he was serving a two-year stint in the Army and Lucile was serving as a civil service worker. 

​Keller earned his engineering degree from Yale. While working full-time after graduation, he also earned an Master’s degree and Ph.D in engineering from UCLA.

Keller, an avid traveler, often went on international trips after he retired in 1987. 

“Until COVID, Walt was active in Malibu Methodist Church,” Lucile said. “After he retired in 1987, he immediately began working on the effort to make Malibu a city. The residents of Malibu had lost the first two attempts to do that in 1964 and 1976, but were successful in the third effort in 1990.”

She explained, “We incorporated because we did not want the county to build a sewer system that would have allowed for a large amount of development of hotels and resorts that our fragile environment could not support. We had to sue the county because at first, it refused to certify the election.” 

Malibu finally became a city on March 28, 1991. The residents celebrated with a parade, skydivers, and even a party, with the Kellers having the first dance.

“When the state and county governments looked at Malibu, they saw a land ripe for freeways, marinas, power plants, and hotels,” Keller told the audience, according to an article in the Los Angeles Times covering the meeting. “But the residents of Malibu had a different vision.” 

Lucile shared more details about Walt’s long, successful life of service to Malibu.

“My husband also worked hard in support of Charmlee Park and he made the boundary map for the park,” she said. “Because he knew full well that it was not good for the city to be responsible for anything that happened at the beach, he designed the Charmlee Park map based on the existing natural boundaries referring to the old Rancho Topanga Malibu Sequit, so the park ends right at the Leo Carillo boundary.”

Keller’s father, Walter, and his mother, Emma, predeceased him, as did his only sibling, his brother Donald. He is survived by Lucile; his son Tim, who lives near Northridge; his daughter Karen, who lives in South Carolina; two grandchildren, Jennifer and Hillary; and MacKenzie, a great granddaughter. He is also survived by many, many admiring friends in Malibu.

A memorial service is planned, with details to be announced in the near future. Lucile recommends that in lieu of flowers, those interested can donate to the Malibu Township Council or an animal rescue charity organization.