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Malibu’s richest

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The past year may have been a bust for many mere mortals, but for most of the 50 richest moguls of Los Angeles County, it was a year of bounty. Together, their net worth at the end of last year was $75 billion, nearly 20 percent higher than the year before.

Eleven of the county’s richest are Malibu residents, or at least own residential property here. Their total net worth was reported as slightly more than $22 billion.

The figures come from an annual survey conducted by the Los Angeles Business Journal.

Tops among Malibu’s wealthy was Eli Broad, second only to Kirk Kerkorian in the county as a whole. Broad’s net worth was reported as $6.5 billion, up more than 18 percent from the year before. Broad founded the extremely successful residential development company Kaufman & Broad, now KB Home, as well as financial services giant SunAmerica, Inc. Broad is also highly active in civic affairs and philanthropy. In 1999, the Eli & Edythe L. Broad Foundation donated $100 million for education programs.

Other billionaire Malibu homeowners on the top 50 roster are:

  • David Geffen, $3.3 billion (4). Founding partner of DreamWorks SKG, with Stephen Spielberg and Jeffrey Katzenberg. Started show business career in the mailroom of the Philip Morris Agency. Founded Asylum Records in 1970, sold it to Warner Communications, Inc. and became vice chairman of Warner Bros. Pictures. Founded Geffen records in 1980, sold it to MCA in 1994.
  • Jerrold Perenchio, $2.8 billion (5). Rose from family vineyards in Fresno to Hollywood talent agency MCA and to Embassy Communications with Norman Lear, which they sold to Coca Cola for $485 million. Now chairman and controlling shareholder of giant Univision, the nation’s largest Spanish-language TV network and principal owner of the Malibu Bay Company, Malibu’s largest landowner.
  • Stephen Spielberg, $2.2 billion (8). One of the first of modern Hollywood’s young director phenoms. Youngest ever to be signed to a long-term contract with a major studio. Studied film at California State University, Long Beach in 1969. Directed first movie, “The Sugarland Express,” in 1974. Best picture and best director Oscars for “Schindler’s List.”
  • Haim Saban, $1.5 billion (12). First time on the billionaire’s list. Created children’s TV programs based on Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. Owns 49.5 percent of Fox Family Worldwide network.
  • Donald Sterling, $1.3 billion (14). Owner of the Malibu Beach Club, the Beverly Comstock Hotel, the Los Angeles Clippers basketball team, and many apartment buildings in Beverly Hills.
  • Bradley Wayne Hughes, $1.2 billion (20). Owns one-third of Public Storage, a company he founded in 1972.
  • Arnon Milchan, $1.1 billion (22). Early success in Israel with family fertilizer business and later as an arms dealer in Israel. Turned to film and stage production in France. Movies included “The King of Comedy,” “Brazil,” and “Once Upon a Time in America.”

Other Malibuites who made the county’s top 50 list, but who missed the billion-dollar mark are:

  • Jeffrey Katzenberg, $890 million (29). President of Paramount Pictures at age 31, joined childhood friend Michael Eisner at Disney as head of studio division, became DreamWorks SKG partner after breaking with Eisner, who passed him over for the number two spot at Disney.
  • Marcy Carsey, $660 million (42). Only woman among the top 50. Started as a tour guide at NBC in New York, came to Hollywood with husband, John Carsey, a writer for Rowan & Martin’s “Laugh-In.” Went to ABC as vice president for prime-time programming, but left when ABC rejected her idea for a sitcom with Bill Cosby. Huge success with “The Cosby Show” at NBC, produced by Carsey-Werner Productions.
  • Michael Eisner, $585 million (47). One of the few net losers on the list, down 17.4 percent from last year. Head of Walt Disney Co. since 1984. Came up through the ranks of ABC Entertainment and Paramount Pictures, where he oversaw “Saturday Night Fever,” “Raiders of the Lost Ark,” and “Beverly Hills Cop.” Loss in net worth caused by 25 percent slump in Disney stock last year.

The one-year rise in net worth for most of these wealthiest of Malibu denizens helps account for the fact that income for the top one-third of households in Malibu was more than $150,000 last year, 10 times the percentage for California as a whole. According to figures published recently by the City of Malibu, the average income of all the city’s 6,704 households as of last March was $149,795.

Actor Joe Mantegna turns activist for autism

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There is a terrible fear that all parents harbor before the birth of their child: What if my baby is handicapped, disfigured, or limited in some way? Will I be able to handle it? Do I want to handle it?

For Joe Mantegna, gifted and successful actor, that fear became a reality when his daughter was born 14 years ago with autism. He and his wife were placed in a daunting and terrifying position, raising their child with a mental disability. Mantegna said they felt very alone.

“There is not a lot of [information] out there,” he said. “It’s not out in the mainstream so that people know about it and know how to deal with it.”

Achievable Foundation, a fundraising arm for H.O.M.E, an organization set up to assist people with autism to lead independent lives, approached Mantegna to host its golf tournament fundraiser on May 7 at the Malibu Country Club.

Organizers may have known that he was father to a child born with autism; they may have known he had previously lent his name to several fundraising events; but there is no way they knew the compassion and energy he would bring along with his clubs to the course.

He was all over the place, talking with other celebrities about the Dodgers, joking with fat-wallet-golfers about the hazards he expected to drop in and doing interviews with journalists. He shifted gears seamlessly, the way he does in the movies.

For Mantegna, a Tony and two-time Emmy award winner, it was less about “celebrity responsibility,” the supposed debt that a famous name owes to society, less about his personal relationship to autism, and more about the problem itself.

“I don’t do this for, you know, the personal side of it,” he said. “It’s gotta be done. There is this hole, and if I can add to the solution by coming to play golf, or making phone calls, putting my name on whatever, then, great, that’s what I’m here for.”

But Mantegna is resolved to the truth that there is currently no cure for autism and probably no way to prevent the disease. He understands that and still finds hope.

“For my daughter, who will never see the end of this thing, the scientists working on all this [research for cures] aren’t going to help. It is about finding for her an independent life, getting her into the mainstream so that she can live just fine when I’m gone.”

Bob Steiner, a board member for both Achievable and H.O.M.E. organizations, and also a father to a child born with autism, agreed with Mantegna.

“It is the mainstream that we’re going for here with this event, and those like it,” said Steiner. ” We’re trying to get these kids to a place where they can function in society as independent people. And organizations like H.O.M.E. are the best avenues toward that.”

The pragmatic approach Mantegna and Steiner are championing is also a hopeful one, a theory that takes into account the harsh realities of any handicap and the limits one must live with under those circumstances.

Mantegna, subtly highlighting his own personal ties with autism, pushed this point throughout his conversation: “It would be so great to get the information into the mainstream, of course, with opportunity for help,” he said. “But especially the information, so that people know that there is some help that exists, so that they know they’re not alone.”

Steiner said that he hoped Achievable could raise upwards of $60,000 and noted, “There is no absolute goal we’re shooting for. And there is no ceiling on what we would like.”

The ceiling disappeared at $85,000 in donations to spread the word about autism.

School district readies strategic plan to deal with fiscal abilities

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While the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District (SMMUSD) faces budget shortfalls on many fronts, including increased utility costs, over-budgeted construction due to escalating building costs and inadequate state funding, the school board attempts to prepare a strategic plan as they simultaneously tackle current fiscal dilemmas.

Art Cohen, assistant superintendent of business and finance, said the board would begin to address fiscal issues when they meet tonight.

“A lot of things are still up in the air,” said Cohen. State funding has remained consistent, but not enough to help the schools, he said.

To prevent fiscal problems in the coming years, the SMMUSD school board has decided to work on a long-term strategic plan that will connect the needs and priorities of the school district with its financial ability to accomplish those goals.

“It’s a transition time,” said school board member Mike Jordan, who hopes to work on plans for the district.

In the past the district developed goals, mission statements and the like. “A strategic plan,” said Jordan, “is something the district has never done before.” The district will need to start from scratch and figure out what an excellent public education system looks like from the foundation on, he said.

One of the board’s priorities is to stop the cycle of having budget shortfalls every year, said Jordan. “That’s a big endeavor.”

In a memo to the board, newly hired superintendent John Deasy said, “I am fully prepared to lead the community through a rigorous strategic planning process and deliver a living and working document, which will serve as our strategic plan within the first seven months of my administration.”

Though he is still in Rhode Island district, Deasy is getting acquainted with the district’s issues in an effort to be prepared when he takes over as superintendent in July.

In his memo, Deasy urged the board to postpone discussion of the strategic plan process until he can join them on May 30.

But despite the challenges, Deasy said he is particularly pleased with what he has seen so far. “The depth of involvement from parents is exciting and encouraging,” he said.

The most pressing issue, said Deasy, is the fiscal issue.

“The strategic plan will help the district three to five years down the road,” said Deasy. But the district still needs to work on reducing the fiscal deficit in the meantime.

Though it’s fairly generic in nature, the approach of the plan will help the district understand and identify the needs of the schools and connect them with the community and businesses.

As for the funding, Jordan said, “Once we develop our priorities then we can match the funding and resources with the priorities of the strategic plan, putting budgeting in sync with the goal we’ll have set for ourselves.”

The board realizes they have to pick priorities. “You can’t be everything to everybody,” said Jordan.

“That doesn’t mean we are not going to try to expand and fund programs,” he continued, “but first we need to identify what is most important to us — then we will update it every year.”

Part of the process will include the academic plan. The board wants to align the curriculum and instructional materials with state standards. This is important because it enables students to learn what they need to, and to do well on exit exams, said Jordan. It’s a process and that means instructional materials also have to be adequate.

The board also has to investigate all fundraising avenues, such as at the ballot box, through public and private partnerships, grants from foundations and through a joint operating agreement with Malibu and Santa Monica.

“With ongoing dialogues we’re trying to set a foundation to open up possibilities,” said Jordan.

Tonight’s school board meeting will take place at the district offices from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Another meeting is scheduled for May 30, with Deasy attending.

Commercial overload

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The City of Malibu is in a really serious bind. The city owns little or no land for parks, ball fields, recreational use, a community center or open spaces in which the natural environment is preserved. Therefore, planning for these things is virtually impossible.

All the good reasons for delaying commercial development were used up in the last 10 years. Now we approach doomsday, particularly in the Civic Center. The Malibu Bay Company Development Agreement Plan, which gives us some land in exchange for development, has been talked about in three big neighborhood meetings in the past year.

Recently, the plans of at least five other Civic Center property owners were presented to the Malibu City Council. Some of us were so horrified by this specter of commercial overload that we requested the city show what this kind of vast commercialization would look like in a city like ours, which is so small it can’t possibly support it.

The resulting city guidelines are precisely that a worst-case scenario. Every one of us needs to be aware that this horrible possibility not only can take place, but will take place unless something is done.

One of the other options is the passing of a $15 million bond issue to buy land. Right now, the city is investigating land that is for sale, and state and government matching grants, which could be used to develop such land for public use. But without the money, we can’t buy the land. The bond issue is critical.

Georgianna McBurney

‘Bureaucrats are storytellers’

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13StarsManager
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A survey says that taxpayers work the first three hours every day just to pay their taxes. The years have passed and my memory has become bewildered, but as I recall, from the various news articles and my personal involvement, Malibuites spent in 1981 over $1,000,000 of their personal funds and volunteer labor to construct a six acre Malibu Bluffs Regional Park.

In the first several years this local park was run and maintained by the Malibu community service clubs with no funds from any governmental organization.

In 1989 the County of Los Angeles spent $2,500,000 of taxpayer money to rebuild the Malibu Bluffs Regional Park erecting a community building, parking lot, grounds keepers building, concrete walkway, new access road, general usage athletic and picnic areas and water and sprinkler systems. The entire park and general usage facilities was structured for persons with disabilities. Handicap parking, bathrooms, picnic area, meeting rooms, and play areas are fabulous features of this regional park.

The highlight of the park was the donation of a dolphin and whale watching station designed for the disabled by actor Pierce Brosnon in memory of his wife. This viewing stage area is the only one of its kind in the state of California.

In 1999 the City of Malibu spent on the Malibu Bluffs Regional Park an additional $300,000 of Proposition “A” monies, which in fact had cost the Malibu taxpayer a supplementary $4,000,000 in a 20-year property tax bond. The City of Malibu used an additional $238,000 from their general budget to complete the project.

Bureaucrats are storytellers. I’m an algebra storyteller. I figure two good lies make a positive and the numbers look positive. Let us see, positive $1,000,000, plus positive $2,500,000, plus positive $238,000 in over runs equals…equals…equals, $5,038,000 of local taxpayer dollars to establish a six acre regional community park for the enjoyment of the whole West Los Angeles County area.

Thus when the California State Parks director, Rusty Areias, whose department was at each and every dedication and re-dedication of the Malibu Bluffs Regional Park, writes the City of Malibu and expounds, that it is time for the City of Malibu to take the initiative and select new sites for their recreation programs. I am bewildered. With its unique setting on Santa Monica Bay and the California coast and special needs facilities for the disabled, director Areias says that the Malibu Bluffs Regional Park must remain in the hands of State Parks and returned to a more natural state for the use of all Californians. His intent is to tear down and un-develop the entire locale with additional taxpayer money.

Gone will be the Michael Landon Center, general recreational area, whale and dolphin watching station, parking, picnic areas and general use walking paths.

I wonder if Areias’ memory of who employs him is as confused with age as mine is bewildered by his actions? On the other hand, I could spend quality time with my grandchildren at the California Ano Nuevo State Reserve and watch the massive 3-ton northern elephant seals battle for mates and breed. Yea, right.

Doug O’Brien

Lower Topanga acquisition delayed

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13StarsManager
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The State Parks and Recreation Dept. intends to schedule a new hearing in late June on the state’s plan to purchase 1,659 acres of Lower Topanga land now owned by the Los Angeles Athletic Club, a subsidiary of LAACO, Ltd.

This means the scheduled July 14 closure date for the deal will be postponed, according to Warren Westrup, manager of acquisitions for the Parks Dept. All parties involved have been told that that date is “wholly unrealistic,” said Westrup.

Meanwhile, Assemblywoman Fran Pavley and state senator Sheila Kuehl have affirmed their full support for state ownership of the Lower Topanga property. The two joined forces to get an additional $8 million included in Gov. Gray Davis’ revised budget for May. Westrup said the extra budget item was put forward at the governor’s suggestion.

The land is to be purchased for the state by the American Land Conservancy (ALC), a private organization hired by the state to negotiate the deal, at an agreed-upon price of $43 million. But the state budget had designated only $40 million for the land. The extra $8 million, said Westrup, will make up the $3 million shortfall and pay for such things as excise taxes, insurance for the state, and “potential relocation of tenants.”

Relocation is one of the major sticking points in the deal. Forty-nine residents and 10 businesses have been notified they are to be relocated from the property. Most have been there for 30 years or more on month-to-month rentals and are resisting their removal. They are threatening to file a lawsuit that would force the state to grant them long-term leases.

The threat of that suit may be a reason for calling a new meeting to hear the views and air the complaints by those residents and business owners, as well as those in favor of removing them from the property.

But it is not clear how long that may delay the final transaction. “After the meeting we will compile a summary of all that we have heard at the meeting -the pros and cons-and submit it to the Legislature,” said Westrup. That could take a week or two, he said.

In announcing her support for the acquisition and the extra $8 million to complete the transaction, Kuehl said, “The wild beauty of Southern California is an irreplaceable treasure that each generation is responsible to preserve for the next. I’m proud that we are doing our part.”

A question yet to be answered, however, is exactly what use is to be made of the land once it is in state hands. Speculation has ranged from reviving a wetlands preserve on the property to creating an artist colony where buildings now stand. One suggestion current inhabitants are sure to pursue is an extension of their leases to as much as three years while the land-use questions are being settled.

Information, please

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13StarsManager
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First I would like to send my condolences to the Carmichaels. Losing a sweet pet whether you have had it for six weeks or six years is heartbreaking. We live on Dume and have also felt concern during pick up and drop off times.

However, there seems to be some loss of perspective. In the years we have lived on the Point we have seen the bodies of more than three people on PCH right here, plus numerous accidents. There is a stop sign on Fernhill, yet I have yet to hear statistics on the number of accidents that occurred there. How many accidents have occurred on Fernhill. Ten, five, one? Does anyone have this information? I personally have had numerous close calls on PCH and none on Fernhill. Six patrol cars for Malibu might better serve the community where there is the most need. The speed bumps were a hazard for fire trucks.

The silent minority.

Pat Sneed

Help for handicapped

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Thanks to Craig Sap, lifeguard/peace office in the Angeles District/Malibu West Sector, my mother and I had the most memorable Mother’s Day I can ever remember. Craig met us at the handicapped parking space (wearing a smile that could light up the darkness) at the entrance to the Point Dume Reserve.

His department has two beach wheelchairs that are available to anyone who calls him at 457-1234. After my 90something mother got into this large, cartoon-like vehicular wheelchair (the yellow tires are enormous), I pushed her to the lookout at the base of the Point Dume Headlands for a spectacular view I’d always wished I could share with her and now, thanks to the State Department of Parks and Recreation — and Craig Sap — I was now able to provide her. Did she enjoy it? You bet! Did it make me enormously happy? You bet your bippy it did!

I hope your readers who are handicapped read this letter and avail themselves of the same wonderful experience my mother and I had on that glorious day.

Marlene Matlow

A little irony here

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13StarsManager
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We Californians don’t like nuclear power plants. We don’t like power plants of any kind. We don’t like oil refineries or power lines either. And, of course, we don’t want our beautiful state marred by those ugly oil wells and pumps. However, there are things that we do like.

We love our SUVs, our computers, VCRs and TVs. Our kids spend hours in front of the television playing Nintendo, Play Station and every new power dependent toy that Japan can produce while the sun is shining outdoors.

We have a problem. Those selfish people who live with oil refineries, power plants, and miles of power lines won’t share their energy with us. Didn’t we offer to trade oranges for oil?

Agnes Peterson

Malibu Seen

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kimdevore_2
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ART SMART

And in the category of outstanding performance in hospitality . . . the Oscar/Emmy/Grammy/fill-in-the-blank goes to . . . David Foster and Linda Thompson. The Foster and Thompson duo lived up to their reputations as Malibu’s most gracious and generous hosts after a three-day whirlwind celebration that drew everyone from superstars to environmentalists to local cops.

After opening their doors for a Sheriff’s Department fund-raiser one Friday evening, they cleared the tables and set up for the Baykeeper ball the following Saturday and capped it all off on Sunday as they rolled out the red carpet for Pepperdine University and its Center for the Arts.

The center and its outreach programs use performing arts, dance and music as a way to educate, inspire and enlighten children from various backgrounds. “The arts have taught me so much about discipline, goals and teamwork,” said Ellen Weitman, “and the Fosters have been amazing. They’ve done so much, especially for the kids.”

The center also works to fill a void that exists in many school programs. “The arts are the first thing they cut in public education,” said Susan Runnels Noel. “The arts are what our world is built on. We have to step in because these kids are our future.”

After a silent auction and champagne on the lawn of his elegant Malibu estate, David took the stage to preside over the kind of top-drawer entertainment program he is famous for. His surprise guests spanned the musical spectrum with everyone from Pat Boone, sporting an eye-popping electric tangerine sports jacket, to an elegantly clad Marilyn McCoo who delighted the crowd with standards like “Up, Up and Away” and “One Less Bell to Answer.”

The evening’s highlight came as wacky “Will & Grace” star Sean Hayes burst on the scene with a tribute to his TV idol, Cher, and gave a special rendition of, what else, “Believe.” Not exactly poetry in motion, but very, very funny. What could be better? Well, how about the real Cher taking his place and performing the real thing? After a grand finale with pop’s most popular diva in fine form, the 400 or so guests left with a smile on their faces and a song in their hearts knowing they had done their part for a worthy cause.

Of course a memorable evening such as this can only draw words of praise for the people who made it happen. “David and Linda are so great,” says Runnels Noel. “They’re always giving back to the community, and giving back is what it’s all about.”

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