Malibu City Council Asks County To Restart Divorce Court, As Santa Monica Dawdles

It looks like the City of Malibu is turning up the heat on Santa Monica. 

After meeting in secret last night … the city council voted to remove the freeze on its petition to divorce from the Santa Monica school district. 

The city council members did not explain why …. they only allowed this statement for the record by assistant city attorney Kellan Martz. 

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“The council directed the school separation committee to ask the county committee to no longer stay position petition to schedule a hearing on the cities petition as soon as possible. That is the end of the report.”

The petition has been on hold for several years … as Malibu and the school district have been negotiating on an amicable separation.

And while a tentative agreement has reportedly been reached … and publicly discussed … no written agreement has been produced between the two sides. 

And discussions continue on a joint operating agreement and other major issues. 

Malibu officials have been chafing at the slow progress in Santa Monica.

Apparently … the heat is being turned up by Malibu.

There was no public comment last night.

 

Bikers Beat Guy On PCH, Dump His Lady Over Edge, Get Chased Thru Tunnels To Calabasas

A motorcycle gang fight spilled out onto the pavement of Pacific Coast Highway in western Malibu last Saturday. 

A large group of bikers blocked the road on PCH at Encinal Canyon Saturday afternoon … while bikers meted out some street justice to another biker. 

Sgt Chris Soderlund says the beach team .. the extra deputies brought in every summer … found two motorcyclists being beaten up on the highway by other bikers.

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“They beat up one of the riders, and then his female counterpart who was riding on the  back of the motorcycle with him – they threw her over the embankment off PCH before they took off. 

“They pushed his bike over.

“For beach team … all weekend Saturday and Sunday … there is special funding for a helicopter from the sheriffs department.

“So we had a helicopter out and our helicopter was able to pick them up … intercept them by the tunnels.”

Some of the bikers fled … and sheriff’s units from Lost Hills stopped them on the 101 Freeway .. inn the San Fernando Valley. 

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“By the time we found that they got the last motorcycle stopped …we had five felony traffic stops from Kanan-Dume all the way to Sagebrush Cantina in Calabasas.

“And we got all of them.”

Sheriff’s Sgt Chris Soderlund.

Over the Memorial Day weekend … the beach team wrote 40 tickets for people drinking alcohol on there beach … a problem that leads to drunk driving on the way home. 

65 traffic tickets were written by the beach team and the regular assignment of sheriff’s deputies. 

And they dealt with absolute chaos at the MRCA trailhead near Escondido Falls … where private access roads were blocked with people parking just past the big no parking sign and overcrowded public parking area. 

Again … Sgt Chris Soderlund.

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“Once everyone saw one car do it, the rest followed suit so there were dozens of cars parked up Winging Way.  

“Yeah it was chaos over there.”

No park rangers in sight from the MRCA … which set up the public park without parking.

Soderlund told the city council that 46 vehicles were towed from blocking fire hydrants or crosswalks … or causing other immediate hazards … on the holiday weekend. 

He thanked the city council for setting up the temporary impound yard at the front of Malibu High School .. which allows the towing operation to be undertaken.

In addition to the 46 cars that got towed … deputies wrote 210 parking citations … 

The Malibu volunteer team wrote another 500 tickets.

 

Chastened Malibu Inn Hopefuls Ask For Second Chance, Council Says Get Back In Line

The two Malibu men who want to build a hotel across the street from Malibu Pier … and who got shot down in a 4-1 vote … came back to the city council … hat in hand … last night. 

Steve Hakim asked the city council last night to amend its veto of the project … and let them revise it.

He wants to come up with a revised hotel plan that takes into account the overwhelming disapproval from the public for the project’s proposed loopholes.

The Hakim brothers sought to build a giant hotel on PCH next to the old Malibu Inn cafe.

It would have been in effect four stories high … with a 52 foot retaining wall cut into the hillside behind it. 

Project architect Doug Burdge made the plea for a change in heart from the city council … and let the applicants downsize the proposal that got shot down … rather than start from scratch at the Planning Department. 

Burdge told the city council Tuesday night … he got the message.

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“Every word was heard. Every voice was heard. 

“We are asking that we can go back and create a respectful design.”

City policy is that … if a project is rejected … a new application for that lot cannot be filed for one year.

But the city council traditionally offers applicants facing a “no” vote a chance to redesign … a second chance.  

Burdge and the Hakims asked for the city council to follow its usual policy … and give them a second swing.

Council members Bruce Silverstein and Steve Uhring specifically rejected that two weeks ago … and were not inclined to reverse that decision.

Silverstein:  

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“My view is you are free to come back a year from now with another project that you think would make more sense.

“And I can’t imagine how you’re not gonna take a year to put that project together in any sense … because it is not like you are going to put that together tomorrow..”

Uhring Says Sorry, But He’s Not Sorry, Over Insulting City Staffer At Meeting

A city council member castigated and criticized a city planner during the city council meeting two weeks ago … and he got called on it at last night’s City Council meeting. 

Two weeks ago… Council member of Steve Uhring blasted the professionalism of Adrian Fernandez … a longtime city staffer.

This was during the early morning hours … approaching 1:30 … when tempers ran short over the Malibu in hotel appeal.

Uhring’s comments about the job done by Fernandez crossed the line .. in the view of planning commissioners who spoke last week … and city council members Doug Stewart and Marianne Riggins … last night. 

Stewart passed out a copy of a city policy from 1998 … and said it set standards of professionalism and decorum that were breached by Uhring at that late night meeting. 

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“The council meeting on the 13th did not even come close to adhering to these standards. 

“First, there was public verbal abuse of the city planning staff by one or more member of the council and by members of the public during the public hearing and during a break. 

“Unfortunately, the presiding officer did not rise to the occasion to maintain order or to follow this decorum requirement, including being respectful to the city staff and protecting them from abuse.

“And let me add … the rest of us did not intervene either.”

Some members of the public … and appointed planning commissioners have also reacted with shock to the abuse they say was heaped on a city planner by city council member (and rotating mayor) Steve Uhring.

Uhring doubled down last night. 

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“I’ve managed people a long time … and folks who were doing the job I congratulate.

“And when they did it wrong, I told him they were doing it wrong and they had to fix it because that’s the only way you start to get stuff corrected…

“I am more than happy to give everybody all the respect they deserve – all right?? And I do that. 

“But I think some cases they have to go out and earn that respect.

“And in this case, I don’t think it was done.

“And I’m sorry … that’s not gonna make anybody happy … but that’s the way I feel.

Again voicing lack of respect for a city employee .. Steve Uhring.

Not cool … said council member Marianne Riggins.

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“It’s fine to give feedback and possibly in your previous careers … I doubt that you did that in public or in front of the entire company. 

“And when we’re up here and we’re talking to staff, it’s a public rebuke.

“And that is not appropriate.”

No steps were taken to censure the mayor… perhaps because there were only four council members present … as Paul Grisanti was absent.

You Otter See This, As Surfer-Hating Ocean Mammal Returns To Santa Cruz

Finally, this morning … the sea otter who has been stealing surfboards on steamer Lane has returned to Santa Cruz.

Is surfing competition over the weekend at the legendary break was held despite the presence of Otter 841. 

Last it’s The Santa Cruz sea otter who gained international renown for chomping and “stealing” surfboards before disappearing last fall after giving birth to a pup has returned, according to wildlife officials and the photographer who helped make her famous.

Otter 841 was spotted over Memorial Day weekend — at least once atop a surfboard — at Steamer Lane

She is a protected marine mammal …mere humans are not allowed to provoke or disturb her.

And after all .. it’s her break.