CITY PLANNING DIRECTOR AGAIN URGES CITY TO REJECT TRIATHLON – MOLLICA CONCEDES THE RULES REQUIRE A 5-DAY NOTICE – CITY MGR RECOMMENDS BIG CHANGES IN CITY GOVERNANCE – DEAL WITH INSURNACE GIANTS MAY CAUSE FIRE POLICIES TO TRIPLE IN COST

=.  Malibu Planning Director again tells the city council: cancel the Triathlon.

=.  Richard Mollica concedes the rules say 5-day notice is required, not 32 days.

=.  Malibu city council and planning commissions should start at 5 o’clock .. recommends the city manager.

=.   Steve McClary wants sweeping changes in the way City hall operates.

=.  Employees should get vehicles stipends if they have too drive to work … as opposed to telecommute.

=.  Your fire insurance cost may triple … as Sacramento sweeties the pot for insurance companies. 

=.   The city proposes some major changes in the way they do business.

=.  Hurricane blowoff clouds over Malibu … and 20 degrees below normal temperatures.

CITY OFFICIAL DOUBLES DOWN: CANCEL THE TRIATHLON – BUT MOLLICA CONCEDES CITY CODE REQUIRES 5 DAY NOTICE, NOT 32

Malibu’s Planning Director is again recommending that the City Council deny permission for the Malibu Triathlon to be held in 8 days.

Richard Mollica sent a report to the city council late Thursday … sticking by his earlier decision to veto the race because his staff is unable to issue a 32-day notice prior to the event date.

In his report … Mollica concedes that city codes require only a five-day notice … not the 32 days that he is enforcing.

“Although the first paragraph of the section suggests that a five-day public notice shall be provided, City practice has been to honor the 32-day notice in order to give the public enough time to review the application materials.”

The thumbs down recommendation is despite the fact that Mollica concedes “there appears to be a safe and final course design.”  

This is for a new race course that is almost exactly the same as the previous race course … except shorter. 

In his report to the city council … Mollica chides triathlon organizers for failing to realize that the Zuma Creek underpass race path was flooded until it was too late to give residents 32 days notice of the change.

“Although staff understands the constraints put on the applicant by environmental factors, it is the applicant’s responsibility to provide adequate materials to the City by the deadlines required by the Malibu Municipal Code” .… 

“The underpass had been flooded well before the public notice was required to be issued.”

Race organizers say they were given a runaround by the county and state over the denial of their request to build a temporary bridge … in the underpass … above the water.

And in his report … Mollica agrees with Planning Commission Jeff Jennings’ reading of the city municipal code as requiring only a five day notice … not 32 days.

And Mollica says out’s not the city’s job to tell the applicant if its application is in order. 

On Monday night… the City Council will conduct an evidentiary history at hearing on the application … and then decide on whether to override Mollica’s rejection of the permit.

Last Monday … the Planning Commission deadlocked on the issue … allowing Mollica’s decision to stand … pending appeal to the City Council.

Nearly 5000 people have paid their entry fees… and gathered pledges to raise about $1 million for the Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles pediatric cancer ward.

Triathlon participants are reaction just about as you would expect ion the Internet.

One says “This is a huge fundraiser for Children’s Hospital and a bad look for Malibu to not find a way to approve.

He goes on: “The concern over alerting residents 30 days before is silly. The revised course would impact less folks than the original course.”

As for the truncated … and looped race course … bicyclists are bummed.

“The looped course with 6 hairpins will have way more athlete traffic as waves overlap each other and is 40% shorter overall” one rider says.

“Plus you miss the best parts of PCH.”

Dozens of identical letters of support have been sent in by supporters and participants.

Many original letters sent in as well .. from the movie studios teams that race each year.

“To lose the race this year due to a technicality over permit processing time frames would be an absolute tragedy” says one.

Planning Director Richard Mollica has a track record of conservative interpretations of the city’s confusion g and contradictory zoning codes.

And this is not the first popular community event he has ruled against.

Two years ago … Mollica interpreted the municipal code as to prohibit a synagogue from hosting the Malibu Film Society.

The MFS was set up … with city hall endorsements … and ran for a decade showing first run movies at the Malibu Community Jewish Center.

Mollica shut that popular community event down … over his narrow interpretation of the codes.

 

MOVE CITY COUNCIL AND PLANNING COMMISSION START TIMES TO 5PM, AND CLOSE CITY HALL EVERY OTHER FRIDAY, CITY MGR URGES

The city council is being asked to approve sweeping changes in the way that the city does business.

A special city council meeting is being set for 6 o clock Wednesday night to consider what city manager Steve McClary calls a new Malibu Culture Priority Project.

Among priority items … a new code of behavior – values to ensure there is a standard for treating one another in a kind and professional manner. 

McClary says his staff also wants to clarify the roles and scope of Commissions and confirm how work items can be generated. 

The city council … McClary … and his staff met for two day-long workshops this summer and fall.

Poor morale on the city staff was the topic.

The large number of staffing vacancies … then hard commute … and the impact that Malibu’s reputation has on morale and recruitment.

According to McClary … workload pressures, staff treatment from elected and appointed representatives, and the City’s distance from affordable housing options all cause bad morale..

Recommendations:

Move the city council and Planning Commission meeting start times up from 630 … to 5 o’clock .

Move the opening commissions from Monday to the middle of the week.

And set up a two person city council committee to iron out the roles and responsibilities of City Commissions.

The city council should set up rules for conduct and staff interaction for the Council and Commission members. 

Close City Hall every other Friday … in order to standardize all staff schedules like many surrounding cities do. 

And close City Hall during the last week of December … to allow staff to spend time with family during the quietest time of the year.

McClary also wants to pay car expenses stipend to staff who actually show up for work, as opposed to telecommute, to create equity for those who cannot work from home.

Again … this goes before the City Council 6 p-m Wednesday.

FIRE INSURANCE COSTS MAY TRIPLE, AS STATE BARGAINS WITH INSURANCE GIANTS TO REMAIN IN 85% OF THE STATE

Insurance against fire in high risk places like Malibu may cost 200 percent more … the rates might triple … under the latest Sacramento plan to keep the insurance industry alive in California.

Insurance commissioner Ricardo Lara announced the plan yesterday yesterday in Sacramento.

“Over the past 10 years, insurance companies have done far worse in California than nationally. 

“During those years, California experienced 9 of the 10 largest wildfires in the state’;s history.

“As a result, we are facing really tough questions.

“Can consumers get insurance they need?  Can they get it today?

“And generally the answer is – in all honesty – the answer is no.”

It was a huge victory for the insurance industry … a victory that the industry could not win in the state legislature … said one Northern California business reporter. 

Under the plan from California governor Gavin Newsom and insurance commissioner Ricardo Lara big insurance will ahem to come back to the state.

The big insurance companies promise to write insurance policies cross 85% of the state… but will be allowed to avoid writing policies in the 15% of the state that is most dangerous from a fire standpoint. 

That 15 percent of California … the burliest parts … would be covered by policies written by the California FAIR plan.

One might assume that Malibu would be in that 15%… We’re fire insurance policies would mostly be available from the fair plan

The fair plan is the insurance industry, pool… The insurance of a last resort. It’s more expensive and covers less.

The deal is that the insurance companies will write policies in 85% of the state and remain in the California fair plan… Undertaking a proportional share of the risk.

Private insurance would still be available in very high fire risk areas … like Malibu … but at what cost???

Yesterday … Lara did not provide a direct answer on whether the new models would lead to sharp rate increases … according to Politico.

But Lara did say he plans to allow insurers to use catastrophe modeling in setting future rates.

That’s against the rules in California right now … and it’s a big reason why 85 percent of the insurance underwriters are threatening to leave.

Companies will be allowed to use these future models only if they comply with their commitment to increase coverage in the state and reduce the FAIR plan population.

Before they announced plans to leave California … State Farm wants to increase fire insurance prices by 28 percent.

USAA wants to increase fire insurance prices by 31 percent.

Allstate wants 40 percent increases.

All three have walked out of California … and yesterday they were promised an easier time getting their higher rates approved by the state Insurance Commissioner.

Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara yesterday … in Sacramento … reading from a prepared script.

“You know there’s no doubt the California is at an insurance crossroads.

“Making insurance moire available is becoming critical for our entire economy.

“With the climate crisis coupled with historic inflation, we are clearly living in unprecedented times.”

Mammoth insurance rate hikes in high fire risk areas may cause real estate values to plummet.

A new study predicts that house prices in places like Malibu will drop – a predicted 39 percent drop – because of global warming and its effect on fire insurance prices.

This dire prediction is from a nonprofit climate research firm First Street Foundation

But … the giant hikes may help California to avoid the fate of Florida. 

Residents there pay $6,000 a year on average for house insurance … while Californians pay about $1,300. 

 

STATE APPROVES BIG FINES IF EDISON VIOLATES POWER SHUTOFF RULES IN SANTA ANAS (AGAIN)

More news from the state government that affects Malibu.

The California Public Utilities Commission enacted teeth in its regulations over planned power outages.

Southern California Edison is allowed to turn off the power when the winds are predicted to blow above 28 miles an hour.

When the situate first allowed these intentional power outages … there were no rules at all.

No rules about notifying customers.

No rules about keeping essential power running for people with CPAP machines … or traffic lights.

Gradually… the CPUC implemented rules for the utilities to follow when they turn off the lights.

There are rules on reporting, noticing, and mitigating the impacts.

But those rules get violated repeatedly by the utility companies,

As of yesterday… those rules have teeth.

Every time a utility breaks the rules …. The state can now levy an fine of up to $8 million.

But let’s put that in context … if Southern California Edison gets hit with an 18 million dollar fine … it’s earnings last reportable quarter were 354 million dollars.

That’s just under 4 million dollars in profit per day … the company makes a profit of nearly 9 percent on its investments.