Malibu’s city council will get a remedial lesson in how to handle its workforce, and avoid costly lawsuits, in a special four-hour session Monday.

The city’s insurance carrier may have asked for the meeting, one city source said.  It comes after city planning staff members said they were being harassed, and in some cases personally threatened, by members of the city council, or by members of the public acting in concert with city council and planning commissioners.

Council members Bruce Silverstein and Steve Uhring have been publicly named by at least one city employee as behaving in a threatening manner, and the city manager has brought in counselors for other employees at City Hall.

Both men are running for re-election this fall. and both are backed by some Malibu community members who have been vocal in pointing out shortcomings and failures by city staff on major city issues.

Like other local cities, Malibu depends on insurance policies issued by a cooperative group of 100 Southern California city governments, called the Joint Power Insurance Agency, to protect taxpayers against large judgments against a small government.

KBUU News has learned that the JPIA will host what is described by one insider as “a four-hour remedial training session on how to manage staff” on Monday.

The training session is aimed at keeping Malibu in good graces with its insurance carrier.

It comes several months after the city received a consultant’s report, last spring, that recommended that the city council “improve the governance structure” by establishing decorum and rules under which the organization operates.

The remedial training session is at 11 a.m. Monday, and it is open to the public. It does not appear that the city council meeting will be streamed, however.

Calabasas Doctor Charged By Feds In TV Star’s Death

The doctor who runs a clinic called Malibu Canyon Urgent Care has been charged with distributing illegal drugs … leading to the accidental overdose death of “Friends” actor Matthew Perry.

The doctor is named Salvador Plascencia … 

He runs an outfit called Malibu Canyon UrgentCare … operating out of a shopping center in Calabasas. 

He is – not – repeat not – affiliated with the long-established Malibu Urgent Care clinic in Malibu. 

Plasencia is accused of seven counts of distribution of ketamine … in connection with the death of actor Matthew Perry … who died in his hot tub in Pacific Palisades last October.

And the U-S Attorney’s Office yesterday said Plasencia zeroed in on Perry as the actor struggled with a drug addiction … and desperately sought Ketamine to help himself come clean.

The Assistant U-S attorney says the Malibu Canyon doctor exchanged this incriminating text message with a San Diego supplier. 

FED KETAMINE 

“He wrote in a text message in September of 2023, ‘I wonder how much this moron will pay.’ “

Plasencia was also charged with two counts of altering and falsifying documents or records related to the federal investigation.

Along with he Claabasas doctor … the other lead defendant in the case is Jasveen Sangha … a woman described as “The Ketamine Queen” of North Hollywood. 

Both face charges of conspiracy to distribute ketamine.

Plasencia and Sangha have trials are scheduled for October, and haver pleaded not guilty.

Again … defendant Doctor Salvador Plasencia is NOT affiliated with Malibui Urgent Care of Malibu … but rather … his clinic is Malibu CANYON Urgent Care … on Las Virgenes Road in Calabasas. 

SMMUSD Boss Gets Gold Star In Report Card

Sanat Monica Malibu school superintendent Antonio Shelton has been given a gold star by the school board.

The school board met in Santa Monica last night. Apparently they don’t even bothered to meet in Malibu anymore.

Behind closed doors… The school board gave Sheldon a unanimous satisfactory grade.

Shelton has been superintendent of the Santa Monica Malibu school District for one year now.

He is the former principal at Santa Monica High. 

Planning Commission To Get

Malibu’s Housing Element goes before the Planning Commission next Monday night.

It’s a requirement under state law … Malibu has to provide zoning to accommodate residential hoiuysiong growth.

Malibu has it easy  … compared to other cities.

The formula used by the state to calculate how many houses and apartments we need is based on there number of local jobs … and there frankly are not a lot of jobs within Malibu City Limits.

But the Hoyshgn Element report … 400 pages …Laibu;’s Housing element points out that the city is doing absolutely nothing to help the very low income households in Mallkbui .

And yes … there are 725 extremely low income families who live here. 

And 325 of those families are renters. 

There are no subsidized low-income housing units in the city. 

While Malibu is a wealthy beach city … there is no exemption in state law for ignoring the needs for poor people in Malibu, needing housing assistance.

The county, however, does provide housing assistance in Malibu … through the federal government’s Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher program. 

As of 2023, one household in Malibu receives such a voucher from the Los Angeles County Development Authority … and there are two households on the waiting list. 

This meets the housing needs of less than one percent of the city’s 325 households that are eligible for low income renters. 

The Housing Element for Malibu is a 400-page document … and it will go under the microscope at. Monday’s planning commission meeting.

Agoura Hills Planning To Capture, Cleanse And Drink 1.1 Million Gallons Per Day Of ‘Urban Slobber’ in Malibu Creek

Agoura Hills is planning to divert millions of gallons of wastewater from its street gutters away form Mallbu Creek. 

Cityt offiicals hope to capture around 1.1 million gallons per day … during typical dry days … of urban street effluent that currently flows into Malibu Creek … upstream from Malibu Lagoon. 

The water would be channeled into the sewer system, so it can then be treated at the Tapia Water Reclamation Facility. 

The water utility  up there … there Las Viurgenes Water District … is well underway on its project top take treated sewage from Tapia and use it for drinking water … they call it the Pure Water Project.

1.1 million gallons of water per day is a lot. 

The average home in Agoura Hills uses 300 gallons a day.

The urban runoff recovery system is estimated to cost about $2.2 million, with another $400,000 in annual operating and maintenance expenses. 

Around half of the necessary funding has been secured from the state, with the county Board of Supervisors set to vote on the remainder next month.

Details Released By City About New Temporary Planning Director

Four days after she was appointed … the City off Malibu has released details about our new temporary city planning director. 

Maureen Tamuri has volunteered to step in to handle administrative duties … and planning duties … in the trouble plagued Malibu City Hall. 

She most recently stepped in as interim planning in Oxnard … where she managed 66 full-time emplotees.

The Malibu press release says she led critical initiatives, including an analysis of permit processing … and dealt with new state laws about multi-family balcony inspections, solar permitting, and expedited housing reviews.

But her longtime job was in Calabasas, where she served as an Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Manager during the 2018 Woolsey Fire and led fire clean-up and rebuilding efforts.

Tamuri has only 960 hours to work in Malibu … however … before her state pension requires her to walk away from the temporary job or lose pension benefits. 

The city is trying to hire a full-time and permanent planning director … but has been hobbled by the turmoil and employee stress inside City Hall. 

Get Your (Tom Petty’s) Stuff Day Coming Up

Do you want to buy Tom Petty’s stuff?

Things owned by there Malibu rock ‘n’ roll star are bing auctioned off in a few weeks by the Bonhams auction hopsue. 

Tom Petty is going under the hammer at an online auction staged by Bonhams from August 29 to September 10.

The longtime Malibu reisdcdent sold more than 80 million records over the course of his life, making him one of the most successful rock stars of all time. 

Petty’s private collection includes his Yamaha grand piano …  his recording console = died from it and his writing desk, adorned with the engraved initials of his wife.

Petty’s fiery Rangoon Red 1965 Ford Mustangs for sale at an asking price of $25,000–$35,000. 

The car, which Petty drove for almost 20 years, is in excellent condition, according to the auctioneer.