1991 Updates : Malibu Sewer Study to Be Released Jan. 15

Malibu became a city in 1991, and, with it, Los Angeles County government’s long-sought goal of installing a comprehensive sewer system for the community went down in a heap.

After months of silence, however, the sewer issue is about to reassert itself.

The Board of Supervisors stalled cityhood for months in a futile effort to get final approval from the California Coastal Commission to start work on its proposed $43-million sewer system. Malibu cityhood foe Pete Schabarum decided not to run for reelection, and the new majority on the board struck a deal in March with Malibu’s leaders.

The county said it would stop seeking approval for its sewer plan and blocking Malibu’s incorporation, and Malibu said it would cease the legal fight against the sewer proposal and would hire a consultant to develop a waste-water treatment plan.

It was agreed the truce would last for six months. It has since been renewed.

In the meantime, Malibu hired Peter Warshall, a San Francisco consultant, to explore its sewer options.

On Jan. 15, Warshall’s report will be released, and some observers predict the results are bound to rekindle the sewer argument.

“This time around,” one observer said, “instead of fighting with the county, those who fought the county for so long will be fighting among themselves.”