Coastal Panel Rejects Malibu Sewer Plan

The California Coastal Commission on Wednesday rejected a $43-million sewer plan for Malibu, saying that the system was “oversized” for the seaside community.

But several commissioners made it clear that they believe Malibu residents should get ready for some sewer system, albeit a smaller one.

The decision is a temporary setback for Los Angeles County officials, who have sought to place a regional sewer system in Malibu before the community has a chance to incorporate. Coastal panel members voted 7 to 3 to reject the plan and told county representatives to rework it and bring it back in November to the commission, which would have to give its approval for any sewer system in Malibu.

County supervisors approved the system in January over the outcry of hundreds of residents who predicted that it would lead to widespread development along the rural coastline.

Spur Development

Coastal Commission staff analysts had recommended that the commission reject the sewer package, agreeing with residents’ concerns that building such a large system could spur development in Malibu beyond the limits set in the area’s land-use plan.

“Personally I believe a sewer is necessary for the Malibu area, but not of the size presented to us by the county,” Commissioner David Malcolm said.

However, a motion by Malcolm to delay any further hearings on the sewer plan until after Malibu holds an election on incorporation was killed by several commissioners, who said they were upset with the “no-growth” sentiments echoed by more than 200 sewer foes who packed Wednesday’s four-hour hearing.

County supervisors have scheduled a public hearing Oct. 19, at which time an election date for Malibu will be set. It remains unclear whether the Coastal Commission’s action will delay a vote on cityhood, because supervisors have previously delayed action on the issue so that they could complete the sewer plan. The earliest election date for Malibu would be in April.

“I’m very optimistic now that maybe we can come back and work with the county to get a smaller sewer plan and still vote for a city,” said Mike Caggiano, a former RAND Corp. analyst who disputed the figures used by the county to support the $43-million system.

Under the land-use plan adopted by the commission and the county in 1986, a limit of 2,110 residential units can be built in the coastal area stretching from Topanga Canyon to the Ventura County line and about five miles inland.

The plan allows the cap to be raised to 6,582 residential units if another lane is added to Pacific Coast Highway, but Caltrans has no plans to expand the existing two-lane road, and no studies are under way to see if it is feasible.

In rejecting the county plan, Coastal Commission analysts expressed concern about future development and also said the county failed to determine how many residential units could be built in geologically unstable areas, such as landslide-plagued Big Rock Mesa, which includes hundreds of parcels of land.

County officials have insisted that a sewer system is required for Malibu based on staff studies that they say document a “significant public health hazard” because of discharges from malfunctioning septic tanks, particularly in the million-dollar beachfront properties.

Although several commissioners said they wanted to see a revised plan, they indicated that they believed the county’s argument that a sewer system should be constructed in Malibu.

“Malibu should be willing to do what other coastal communities have done and put in a sewer,” Commissioner Charles Warren said. “Frankly, I am disturbed by the undertone that I see today opposing any type of sewer.”