Malibu to sue coastal panel
Since the recent fires in Malibu, city officials have fought to ban overnight camping in certain hilly canyons above the city out of a fear that the visitors could bring greater fire danger to the area, among other problems.
This week, the Malibu City Council unanimously approved a lawsuit against the California Coastal Commission and its executive director because he supported review of an application by the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy that would allow overnight camping and other activities.
The suit stems from the conservancy’s effort to amend the city’s local coastal program to continue allowing overnight camping, the creation of trail heads, trail linkage and other uses on specific public parkland areas in Malibu. The local coastal program is essentially a planning guide with rules to protect an area’s resources and govern its development.
“It’s a waste of taxpayer money,” said Peter Douglas of the Coastal Commission, who was named in the suit. “It’s going to cost . . . both the Coastal Commission and the attorney general’s office a lot of money to defend what I consider a baseless suit.”
But city officials say the conservancy’s plan does not take into account concerns about fire safety and is an attempt to leapfrog the city’s interests. Last year’s Corral Canyon fire was believed to have been sparked by an illegal late-night campfire.
“Malibu is one way in and out, and you have fire conditions, and if you have 15 million visitors a year and additional campers, somebody could get hurt,” said Mayor Pamela Conley Ulich. “It’s not only about the safety of people who live here but also the safety of all visitors.”
The proposed amendment would provide for cold camping without a fire but would allow the use of a burner “so at least you can cook your soup,” said Laurie Collins, conservancy chief staff council.
After an earlier attempt to work with the city on a local coastal program amendment failed, Collins said, the conservancy submitted a program amendment directly to the Coastal Commission in April. Douglas approved it as eligible for consideration because it met “public needs greater than” Malibu’s as stated in the Coastal Act, he said.
Meanwhile, Malibu has developed its own program amendment. The commission will determine which one prevails.
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