=.  The wind chill this morning … 35 degrees … at Leo Carrillo Beach … 

=.  But Malibu gets bypassed by this cold winter rain and snowstorm,

=.  Indoor mask requirements may be dropped in Malibu … and LA County … this week.

=.  Rehab centers are taking advantage of the Woolsey Fire .. to supersize their operations,.

=.  80 years ago tonight … a submarine surfaced off Santa Barbra … fired some shells .. and sent Malibu into war footing.

=.  And back to the weather …a mild Santa Ana is setting up.

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This is Malibu’s Only Local Daily News … the Wednesday edition … I’m Hans Laetz reporting.

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Rehab Center Taking Advantage Of Woolsey Fire Size Increase

Rehab centers are taking advantage of the Woolsey Fire to supersize their operations.

One rehab center on a ridge overlooking Malibu High School burned down in the Woolsey Fire. 

And because the city council is giving fire victims a 10 percent increase in building size … the rehab is taking advantage of that.

The number of bedrooms is increasing … and the number of water fixtures increasing dramatically,

Commissioner John Mazza says that doesn’t sound like a rebuild … it sounds like an expansion.

NEWSCART A73121  ANDROMEDA 

“It went from 41 fixtures to 79…. Which doesn’t sound like the same house plus 10 percent

The house … on Andromeda up above Malibu park … is owned and operated by a rehab center.,

Its owners plan to not only expand it by 10%… But to put in a basement.

Mazza worries that the septic tank will not be big enough to handle the dozens of employees… An unknown number of rehab residents.

But the assistant city attorney says the city Council gave a 10% size bonus to all the fire victims who are we building … and that includes rehab centers. 

The 10 percent bonus is called a de minimis waiver … and last night … the Planning Commission was told that a large septic tank system has been given a permit.

The permit for the new basement and other changes had not been granted yet,

Assistant city attorney Trevor Russian:

NEWSCART A73120 ANDROMEDA TREVOR RUSSIN against rehab facilities

“There point of this is … why the … so that people didn’t have to get a Coastal Development Permit only because they needed it for the septic.  That was the whole purpose to make it streamlined.  If it going to be streamlined is for individuals in the city, then it has two be streamlined, by law, for people who so a rehabilitation facility.  We cannot discriminate under our planning code against rehab facilities.”

Plans for the rehab centers basement and eventual size have not yet gone before the Planning Commission… 

Several planning commissioners worry that other rehab centers in the area are over taxing their septic systems… which in one case needs to be pumped every two weeks. 

That’s illegal… but the city has not moved to enforce that rule.

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Unofficial Policies In Planning Department Will Finally Go Before City Council

Also at Malibu City Hall … they call it the two thirds rule. 

It’s the rule that the top floor of a new house in Malibu can’t have an upper floor that is more than two thirds the size of the bottom floor.

Sounds simple … but it’s not.

How exactly to calculate the floor size is a matter of policy set by the planning department. 

But that policy has never been set by the elected city council.

At last night’s city planning commission meeting … that became an issue. 

Commission chairman Kraig Hill says the way that city staff interprets the two thirds rule is wrong … he took an appeal to the Coastal Commission … and they agree with him.

So … why its staff drawing up policies … instead of implementing them?

Assistant city planner Adrain Fernandez says his boss … the planning director Richard Mollica … agrees. 

NEWSCART A 73122 POLICIES ADRIAN FERNANDEZ

“Richard and I are going to be taking a lot of these policy questions to the city council, and we’re gonna let city council decide whether they wanna tackle them and themselves or whether they want to have as the races make interpretations on them but this is one that will definitely be on that list.”

Zoraces is the city council’s subcommittee that writes new zoning laws. 

And by the way … Planning Director Richard Mollica missed last night’s Planning Commission session.

Something to do with a new baby. 

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You are listening to the latest news from Radio Malibu … FM 99 point 1 … KBUU. 

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LA County About To Drop Indoor Mask Rule For Vaccinated People

Malibu may soon be dropping its indoor mask rules … for people with vaccinations and boosters. 

Malibu is observing the LA County regulations … which are more severe than the statewide regulations,.

The county Department of Public Health tells the LA Times “is considering possible options for lifting indoor masking protections earlier at sites where there are other additional layers of protection, such as vaccination verifications,” 

 Additional details will be provided today … the rules may change tomorrow. 

Members of the Board of Supervisors are not happy that LA County is tougher than the rest of the state … on mask rules.

The LA Times reports that 

82% of eligible residents aged 5 and over have received at least one dose of COVID vaccine, while 74% are fully vaccinated, and 36% are fully vaccinated and received a booster shot.

Of the county’s overall 10.3 million population, 78% have had at least one dose, 70% are fully vaccinated and 34% have received a booster shot.

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You are listening to the latest news from Radio Malibu.

Support for KBUU’s radio covers from Orbit Homes Inc.

Prefabricated homes are the future of construction. Easy to get permits. Fast to build and install. Cost effective … little construction waste.

In Malibu, Orbit Homes has a showroom between City Hall and the Malibu racquet club.

Fire victims can check them out in person … and visit them on the web at www.orbithomes.us .

Two Fires In Nearby Cities And A Car Crash At Trancas

Two fires to report in adjacent cities.

PCH was closed yesterday for a few minutes in Santa Monica … near the California incline. Santa monica firefighters were dealing with a structure fire in a beachfront house. Details are emerging now from a terrible fire on Saturday morning near Cal state channel Islands… 15 miles west of Malibu. 

10 horses and several goats were killed when the barn caught fire. Investigation there continues into what sparked that fi… Which took nearly 2 hours to put out.

The second crash in three days closed PCH at Trancas Creek.

Yesterday … the driver of a car that had been parked along the beac

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Support for KBUU Radio comes from the Malibu Foundation.

The Malibu Foundation underwrote the KBUU solar panels and batteries at the transmitter … which keeps KBUU’s FM transmitting on 99.1 during storms and blackouts… 24 seven… on clean renewable Malibu sunshine.

‘Stairway Of the Stars’ Returns After 2-Year Hiatus

After a two-year cancellation because of the Covid pandemic .… Malibu school kids will again be trooping down trooping down to santa monica… For the “Stairway of the Stars” Concert.

The springtime tradition will be held for the 71st year… And this time for the first time in a decade it’ll be a combined musical extravaganza featuring choral band and orchestra performers.

Nearly 900 elementary … middle school and high school performance will take the stage at the santa monica high school Greek theater… Outdoors… In a few weeks. The concert is at 4 PM on Saturday, March 15..

At the very last minute to years ago… Stairway of the stars was canceled… As the pandemic spread hit home. And then last year it was canceled because the entire school district was still on distance-learning.

Music students and their teachers have persevered and excelled through distance learning, playing instruments with special masks in bags, bell covers on horns and rehearsing outside.

Also, in 2022, the district will return to the tradition of bringing choir, band, jazz band and orchestra students together in one big beautiful concert so nearly 900 students can experience the music of their peers and share the gift of music with their peers and the communities of Santa Monica and Malibu.

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Support for KBUU Radio also comes the the Malibu Association of Realtors.

When choosing someone to represent you when you buy … sell or rent a house … local knowledge is very important.

Malibu zoning rules … Coastal Commission rules …

Members of the Malibu Association of Realtors are local experts.

The Malibu Association of Realtors …  supporters of our local community … and supporters of local radio 99.1 KBUU.

WAR!  Submarine Surfaces Off Santa Barbara, Shells Oil Tanks, Pier Blown Up

80 years ago today …. actually tonight at 7 … a Japanese submarine surfaced off the coast of Santa Barbara. It was submarine I 17… And at 7 o’clock on February 23, 1942 the sub started launching artillery shells at an oil storage tank and pier just west of where UC Santa Barbara stands now.

It was the first time in more than 100 years that the U.S. mainland was attacked by a foreign power. 

The submarine surfaced at around 7 p.m…. Just as President Roosevelt was speaking on a nationwide radio hookup.

It lobbed several shells at the Ellwood oil tanks … and missed.

It did manage to blow up a shed at the end of the pier.

Total damage … 500 dollars. 

But the psychological damage was severe. Malibu joined the entire West Coast in blacking out lights. 

An artillery battery was installed on Point Dume … which brought out the first phone lines to LA.

Massive steel nets … to prevent sub attacks … were hung across the channel openings at the only two West Coast ports … San Diego and San Francisco.

The incident 80 years ago tonight was the only Japanese attack on the mainland that did any substantial damage … but it certainly damage an American public that was already reeling from the Pearl Harbor debacle.

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Support for KBUU Radio comes from the Malibu Brewing Company.

Malibu Brewing Company is a locally owned craft brewery, proudly supporting our community, and local public radio. 

Just released: a limited, holiday-spiced Winter Ale …  a perfect fireside companion.

It makes a special gift for the beer-lovers on your list.

Find Malibu Brewing Company premium craft beer in select retailers, or order direct at brew malibu dot com

Rain Never Showed In the Bu, Grapevine Closed, Cold Winds Forecast

It may have been sunny all day yesterday … but technically that was a rain storm. 

Rain and snow did fall in the mountains north of us … in fact … snow is still falling this morning, on the Grapevine. 

And there is a chance that scattered shower may hit Malibu this morning. 

It’s going to be really cold next couple of days … and windy.

The wind chill this morning in the Malibu mountains … 30 degrees. 

43 degrees and 18 mile an hour wind gusts this morning at 5 at Leo Carrillo Beach …  the wind chill factor …. 35 degrees.

And the rain and snow that missed Malibu is winding down up in the mountains.

Looking ahead. … a 4 millibar Santa Ana is developing for Saturday ,… and again Tuesday.

Temperatures will be warming … up to 8-to-12 degrees above normal by Tuesday.

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You can hear the news live every morning until 9:30 on KBUU.

FM 99.1 in western Malibu.  Also: streaming at www.radiomalibu.net

Between 10 and 2 … you can hear the newscast playback loop on KBU2. That’s on FM 99.1 HD2 in your car, or streaming at s7.viastreaming.net/6500

If humanly possible, the KBUU NewsScript is usually published at around midday at www.radiomalibu.net