Malibu : Sewer Plan Withdrawn

Los Angeles County last week agreed to withdraw its application for a Malibu sewer project from a July hearing of the state Coastal Commission. Opposition to the sewer was a major rallying force behind Malibu’s drive for cityhood, and some activists and city officials had feared that the county would continue to try and ram its project through.

But instead, attorneys for the city and county, plus Coastal Commission officials, spent the last few weeks hammering out an agreement that delays indefinitely a hearing on the county proposal while the city puts together its own plan. Members of the City Council this week are interviewing representatives of companies that have submitted proposals for a waste-water management study. “This shows that the city and the county can work together,” Councilman Mike Caggiano said. “And it gives us some breathing room to put together our own plan.”