The race for the three open council seats to be held in April 2000 got a little more crowded last week when John Wall, a longtime community activist, as well as a supporter of Walt Keller and Carolyn Van Horn, decided to run for the council. Wall, who has toyed with the idea of running in the past, decided to take the plunge this time, he told The Malibu Times, because he was encouraged by many friends, including Keller.

Asked whether that meant Keller, whose term is up in April, had decided not to run, Wall indicated Keller had not yet made up his mind. Sources say Keller has been asking friends and supporters if they would support him again and has received a somewhat mixed reaction.

Lucile Keller, in a telephone interview, said Wall’s decision was his own and had nothing to do with whether Keller will run again. She also said, as of now, Keller had not yet made up his mind about running. The period for pulling papers for candidacy runs from December through January.

In a letter to the editor (page A4) in which he explains his reasons for running, Wall refers to “rancorous inter-personal relationships within the council, decisions based on personalities rather then data, and political posturing … and a view by many that our city government is dysfunctional.”

Wall has long been an activist and one of the mainstays of the Slow Growth movement and is currently on the city Public Works Commission, Building Appeals Board and Economic Plan Advisory Board, which he chairs.

Previously, he served on the General Plan Task Force, Zoning Ordinance Advisory Committee and Transportation Study Group.

He holds a B.S. and a Ph.D. in engineering and has lived in Malibu for 38 years, where he and his wife raised their four children.

Five candidates have indicated their intention to run. Four are from the Slow-Growth group: Mayor Carolyn Van Horn, Councilwoman Joan House, Planning Commissioner Ken Kearsley and Wall. The fifth is former Councilman Jeff Jennings.

If Keller runs, five people, all formerly allied, will compete with one another for three council seats, as will Jennings.

In a brief sampling of opinion relating to Wall’s announcement, Councilman Tom Hasse, whose term is not up until 2002, indicated he had decided not to endorse anyone until after the filing period closes on Jan. 20, and even then probably not until after one or two candidate forums.

Frank Basso, another longtime Slow-Growth Point Dume activist and currently a Public Works Commissioner, said he was “thinking about” running, thought Wall’s decision to run was “wonderful” and gave Wall his support.

An audit by the Federal Emergency Management Agency relating to Malibu’s November 1993 fire threatens to lop off some $750,000 from the city’s budget, according to Administrative Services Director William Thomas. In a quarterly review by the Malibu City Council last Wednesday, Thomas said a key issue focuses on some $560,000 spent by the city for debris cleanup.

Some 31 homes were insured, but the status of 80 homes is not documented. Absent further documentation whether the homeowners were reimbursed through insurance, FEMA will disallow the cost. FEMA might impose a requirement that Malibu collect the money from the insurance companies. “The records just ain’t there,” said Thomas, in describing the task of locating owners, going over insurance policies and securing reimbursement.

Councilman Harry Barovsky called the possible loss of funds by the city “a disaster of disasters. … I’m very disturbed about this.” Predicting a lot of city projects will not be funded, he warned the city must pledge to be very careful about each expenditure. “This is not exactly chopped chicken liver,” he said, lamenting the prospect that the city would have to attempt to collect these sums from individual homeowners.

City Manager Harry Peacock said relief may come through Washington, D.C., and the city must coordinate with its congressman and a lobbyist. Meanwhile, he said, Malibu must make a “sincere” effort to reconstruct the records. “We just have to play this hand out.”

“We can’t place blame,” added Barovsky. “The deed is done.”

City to sue SMMC

In other action, Interim City Attorney Richard Terzian reported he will soon file suit over the use of the Streisand Center on Ramirez Canyon Road for weddings, fund-raisers and business retreats. The Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy owns the 22.5 acre property donated by Barbra Streisand in 1993.

The conservancy has dropped a request to hold one 400-person event per year. But it seeks approval for six garden tours per month with up to 40 guests from April through September, up to 24 business retreats, workshops and other one-day meetings with up to 30 guests, and 30 special events such as weddings and fund-raisers with as many as 200 guests.

Terzian said he is not satisfied with the staff report presented to the California Coastal Commission, which will review the matter in January. The Nov. 4 staff report urged approval of no more than 12 total events in any single month and an annualized average of six events per month involving 40 or fewer guests.

Permanent city attorney qualifications

In questions from members of the City Council, Terzian reviewed the merits of hiring a city attorney or an attorney expert in land use issues, or both. He noted the city had received 18 responses from private attorneys who sought to work on a contract basis. He recommended a tilt in favor of expertise on land use, environmental laws and coastal legal issues. He noted the applications had been winnowed to eight or nine; three might be presented to the council for final review. The council should budget at least an hour with each applicant, he said.

Terzian suggested the cost to the city would be about the same whether it chose a contractor or a full-time city attorney. Trust and personal compatibility would be the key factors, he said, urging it would be a favorable sign if the council vote were unanimous.

In a brief review of his experience as city attorney, Terzian lamented Malibu is unique as a very litigious place where threats to sue are a commonplace.

IZO changes

Planning Director Craig Ewing described revamping the Interim Zoning Ordinance, which has been “interim” for almost 10 years, as a top Planning Commission priority. Peacock urged the council take up each chapter as it is ready, rather than wait until the Planning Commission completes the mammoth project. Otherwise the council would be awaiting a “tidal wave,” he said.

With 42 chapters, Councilman Tom Hasse said, it would be best to “bundle them.” As for the type of review the council will exercise over a planning commission decision, Hasse inquired whether the standard is de novo — meaning full review of all issues, including the ability to make its own findings of fact.

Terzian, indicating the review was de novo, suggested it would be a good option for the applicant to know if he reopens one condition imposed by the Planning Commission, all of the issues, including those decided in his favor, will be open for review on appeal.

Councilman Walt Keller expressed his concern that a portion of Pacific Coast Highway had failed to get state designation as a scenic highway. The rejection reportedly stemmed from the number of homes and overhead telephone poles. Currently, in this part of the state, only Highway 2 along the Angeles Crest and Highway 33 through the Ojai Valley have scenic highway designations.

Lt. Thom Bradstock, liaison with the Lost Hills sheriff’s office, notified the council leaves had been canceled for New Year’s eve, and there would be an increase of 30 percent in police available to handle the revelers.

A 50-foot crane being used to assist placement of new pilings under Malibu Pier toppled and crashed into the roof of the prep kitchen next to Alice’s Restaurant Monday morning, trapping and causing injuries to the operator and halting rush-hour traffic.

Jeff Patrick, 19, was moving the heavy metal cages used in the pile-driving operations when the weight attached to the extended boom apparently caused the crane, sitting on uneven ground, to topple. Witnesses across the street said the crane appeared to topple in slow motion. It also appeared as if the roof of the prep kitchen, which arrested the fall, may have kept the operator from being totally crushed by the weight of the crane.

It took firefighters, sheriffs, lifeguards, state park rangers and the project’s contractors, using special electric saws and other emergency equipment, almost 1-1/2 hours to free Patrick by cutting open the partially crushed, but heavily reinforced, operator compartment that held him. During the rescue operation, Patrick was given intravenous fluids by the fire department paramedics.

After being removed from the crane cage, Patrick was airlifted to UCLA Medical Center by an emergency helicopter, which landed in the middle of PCH for the evacuation.

Initially, it was reported he had a lack of feeling in his lower body. By later in the day, it was reported that there was no paralysis, and he was being treated for a fractured pelvis.

By Monday afternoon, accident investigators from Cal/OSHA and various other agencies were on the scene. The pier, owned by the state of California, is in the first stage of repair and rehabilitation. Work is being done by Darian Construction, a privately owned general contractor, under the supervision of the state Department of Parks and Recreation. It was reported that the crane was operated by a subcontractor and its employees.

The first stage of pier rehabilitation was anticipated to be completed by April 2000. It is yet unclear how this accident will impact that repair schedule.

Adopting a traditional test for development in beachfront areas, the Planning Commission voted Monday that the “stringline” limiting decks or other structures at the edge of the beach would be drawn “between the nearest adjacent corner of the seaward side of the house or deck nearest the subject property.” Chairman Andrew Stern joined with Commissioners Jo Ruggles and Charleen Kabrin in borrowing draft language proposed by the L.A. County Local Coastal Program Committee.

By a vote of 3-2, the commission rejected a staff recommendation that would have used an average of each neighbors’ deck frontage — with a stringline drawn from each averaged point. Commissioner Ken Kearsley described the approach as a liberal interpretation that would be fair to all. He denounced the formula picked by the majority as punitive.

Commissioner Ed Lipnick also voted in favor of averaging, but only when it was clear there was no support for his formula that would draw the line “between the furthest seaward corner of the adjacent house or deck.”

According to a staff report, this language would have extended new development to the outermost limit of the existing development pattern. Lipnick, noting he is the only member of the commission who lives on the beach, said the owner should be able to get exactly as much as his neighbor, but not less. He said the option chosen by the majority — known as draft LCP 396 — was the worst of the options. Under this approach, he said, the outcome is determined by who goes first, with an obvious penalty or disparity for the owner of a vacant lot.

Planning Director Craig Ewing tried in vain to dispel the notion that Malibu’s approach should resemble that of the California Coastal Commission. He explained the Coastal Commission uses interpretive guidelines that can be applied without regard to the “ink on the page.” He said the LCP draft was “way too watery” and contained “vague references” that would be difficult to administer.

In a second 3-2 split, Ruggles was unable to garner a majority for language that would draw the stringline only from structures that were built with valid permits. “We’re sinking into a morass,” lamented Kearsley. Lipnick said he sympathized with the problem posed by “bootlegged” decks but submitted the city lacked the forensic capability to distinguish between illegal structures and those that had been “grandfathered.”

Stern cast the deciding vote, explaining he was wary of adding “a layer of tension and stress” to the applicant with additional cost and delay. He promised to revisit the issue at a subsequent meeting if suitable language can be drafted.

By a 5-0 vote, the commission agreed owners who claim the drawing of the stringline creates a hardship can request a variance. Under this procedure, neighbors will be notified in advance of a hearing.

The split on the commission surfaced anew in an appeal by Gilbert and Joanne Segel from a stringline determination by Planning Director Ewing on a beachfront pool proposed by their neighbor on PCH. Segel, through his attorney Frank Angel, argued the pool must be behind the seaward edge of an existing deck. “The two reference points on the east and west have not changed at all,” said Angel.

Kabrin challenged the accuracy of a schematic drawing submitted to the commission. She also asserted that what appears as a deck is in fact simply wooden slats lying directly on the ground. Ruggles remarked once the line is drawn, the commission should not be asked to revisit the matter. She also insisted the neighbor’s pool would interfere with a public easement guaranteeing lateral access to beachgoers when weather conditions dictate.

Kearsley remarked the issue is solely whether Ewing drew the line properly and concluded staff followed the rules. “The other issues [are] rhetoric,” he said.

Ewing pleaded for some guidance. “Tell me what is correct,” he declared, adding his role is to enforce a zoning code. Ruggles asserted her vote turns on the existence of a pool that cannot jut out on the sand beyond the deck. “That’s not in the code,” he replied, insisting it gives a new house or a pool the same treatment.

Ewing lamented, “You’re giving me direction as to how to apply the zoning code from here on. … You don’t make policy one case at a time, except as it changes forever how we do things. And this will change forever how we do stringlines.” At one point in the debate, he said, “Maybe, I’m speaking Chinese.”

Voting with Ruggles and Kabrin, Stern alluded to the role of the City Council and said, “We’re not the last step in this deal.”