City Manager Resigns for Job in Westlake Village

Ray Taylor, Malibu’s city manager for its first 15 months as an independent municipality, has resigned to take a similar job in Westlake Village.

Taylor, 43, who has been commuting to Malibu from his home in Palos Verdes Estates, said Tuesday the Westlake Village job is one he “coveted and really wanted.”

“Had that not clicked,” he said, “I undoubtedly would have stayed in Malibu.” He said the new job matches his skills and experience “to a T.”

“The community has an excellent reputation as being well-managed with excellent staff,” he said of Westlake Village, which has about 7,500 residents. He praised the City Council and Chamber of Commerce there.

“They have high standards for residential and commercial development and planning issues, which are very important,” he said. “It’s an ideal situation.”

He said Westlake Village is similar to Rolling Hills Estates, where he served for 10 years as assistant manager and then city manager.

Taylor said he will leave Malibu Dec. 21 and start his new job Jan. 6.

The main reason he sought the Westlake Village job, he said, is that he can relocate his family there, something he felt he could not do in Malibu.

“Housing here was out of the question” because of the cost, he said. He also praised the school system that his three children will attend in Westlake Village.

When he accepted the Malibu position, he said, he placed his house up for sale. As the real estate market continued to slump, he could not find a buyer and gave up. He had thought about renting in the Malibu area, but then the Westlake Village opportunity arose during the summer.

Westlake Village Mayor Berniece Bennett said Tuesday that she “expects great things out of Mr. Taylor. . . . The interviews, his references, all checked out to be absolutely outstanding.”

Malibu City Council members praised Taylor after he informed them of his decision Oct. 28.

“Ray got us through a very rough period,” Mayor Walt Keller said. “He did a great job with the first election, the city’s first budget, and got the staff working.”

Keller said in Westlake Village, Taylor won’t have to work as hard as in Malibu. “They’re established, with no major issues. He can get out at 5 p.m.”

Malibu Mayor Pro Tem Carolyn Van Horn said she is sorry to see Taylor leave, “but I can understand.” She said Taylor had been trying to move his family to Malibu to avoid the long commute, but to no avail.

Taylor said establishing an organization for a new city is difficult, and Malibu, which incorporated March 28, 1991, was especially tough.

“A new city presents challenges anyway,” he said, “but a new city with the issues Malibu has facing it represents even more of a challenge.

“I’ve said in jest, but it’s really true, that 1 1/2 years here are worth three or four years anywhere else.”

Malibu’s initial City Council was split 3 to 2 between two groups that disagreed over nearly everything, particularly development issues; an election in April changed that, with three additional “slow-growthers” ousting the majority. The new council has continued grappling with complex issues such as a building moratorium, negotiations with Los Angeles County over a proposed sewer and the preparation of a General Plan.

The city has begun a search for Taylor’s replacement, and council members indicated that an interim city manager might be hired until a permanent selection is made.

Taylor’s salary in Malibu was $85,000 a year. He said financial details of his Westlake Village job remain to be worked out, but that the pay would be comparable.