MRCA Goes After Malibu Residents By Name: $5 Million Each
Written by 991KBU on April 11, 2018
Homeowners in a Malibu neighborhood say they are protecting their property.
But a government agency from Ventura County says the Malibu residents are obstructing the public’s access to parkland.
And that government agency … the Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority … M R C A … is suing individual homeowners … by name … in Sycamore Park.
The M R C A last week filed a lawsuit … naming 10 Sycamore Park landowners …. and seeking 5 million dollars each in damages.
The lawsuit is actually a countersuit … as the homeowners had already filed court action against the outside government agency.
The M R C A lawsuit says the homeowners are blocking the general public’s access to land that the so-called public agency has bought.
But the language of the deed … cited in the M R C A lawsuit … specifically says that roads in the subdivision are … quote … private roads.
The lawsuit claims that the homeowners have erected a small checkpoint kiosk … and hired a security guard … in violation of the state coastal act … which requires a coastal use permit.
A side note …. the City of Malibu has filed a notice of violation against the MRCA … for constructing park facilities in the canyon with first obtaining the exact same permit.
Damages of no less than 5 million dollars from each of the 10 named residents are sought … two of the landowners are former Malibu mayor Ken Kearsley and his wife.
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As usual … the M R C A is not responding to requests for comment from K B U U News.
The agency is a joint powers agency … created by two obscure parks districts in Ventura County … and directly answerable to no voters anywhere.
Its executive director … Joe Edmiston … has voiced longstanding enmity and frustration with Malibu … and other coastal residents.
Edmiston has been accused by Malibu residents of showing up at the Escondido Canyon entrance … with a badge and a handgun … to try to intimidate residents with police powers … to force entry to private property.
On at least one occasion in the last months … L A County sheriffs deputies have rushed to Sycamore Park after residents reported that an agitated and armed Joe Edmiston was at the gate … trying to force his way onto the private roads.
The residents have now hired an armed guard … as the situation has escalated far beyond the courtroom.
