A new city council member had to do some backtracking last night.

Bruce Silverstein had questions about why the City of Malibu was allowing a private company … the Malibu Marathon … to take over city streets for two days in the fall.

Silverstein had questions:

Who chose this event to close a lane on PCH?   

Why give some of the profits to the Malibu Boys and Girls Club of Malibu?  

How much money?

At last night’s city council:

NEWSCART 73498 BS MARATHON

“I’m wondering whether we can’t get a larger commitment going forward, since the actual profits were sufficient to sustain a much larger contribution in the past.

“I also question whether the contribution ought to go directly to the Boys and Girls Club as opposed to a specified fund .. that the city then would divided up with whatever it deems to be the worthy candidates.”

The Malibu Marathon is not the same as the Malibu Triathlon … the slick package on Zuma Beach that raises money for the Childrens Hospital of Los Angeles every September.

That event raises millions for the hospital … and much more for the private company that organizes and promotes the Triathlon.

The Triathlon has three more years to go on its ten-year exclusive contract.

Unlike the Marathon … the Triathlon has never disclosed how much money goes to the company that sells corporate sponsorships and collects valuable advertising and promotion money for the celebrity-studded Triathlon.

The Triathlon is also much larger in scope … closing down local access along a long stretch of PCH.

But the much smaller Marathon … in November … is homegrown.

It benefits the Boys and Girls Club of Malibu .. the social services agency that has grown into a post-fire food pantry .. and pandemic emergency lifeline. 

Marathon director Erica Segal says she has shown the P and L … the profit and loss statement … to the city councilman who asked.

NEWSCART 73505 ERICA SEGAL

“You’ve requested our P and L … councilmember Uhring … and I happily turned it over,

“It is true that we have a high revenue … but our costs t p[ut on this event are just as high.

“We make a very very small profit for the event.

“And the first year and the last year … we were at a major loss.”

For the executive director of the Boys and Girls Club … Casey Ernst … the marathon is a civic asset.

NEWSCART 73504 CASEY ERNST 

“When we have an event in OUR town, like the Malibu Marathon, we should be thanking Erika and the Malibu Marathon for choosing OUR community.

“So when we talk about how Malibu is benefitting from the Malibu Marathon … a hundred thousand dollars plus over the course of five years?

“If you would like to translate that into the cost of services delivered … I am happy to do so.”

And that she did.

Food deliveries during the pandemic.

Disaster assistance after the fire. Mental health services for kids.

After school recreational programs. 

Child care for working parents.

Program after program that in other cities – are delivered by the municipal government.

Silverstein got the message … said he learned from the discussion .. and voted to allow the marathon to use the public streets.