CALIFORNIA BRIEFING / MALIBU

The city of Malibu has issued a request for bids to build its proposed Legacy Park on Pacific Coast Highway in the heart of the Civic Center area.

The project would create an educational park for the community, with a variety of coastal habitats, and would serve as a storm water treatment facility.

Interested contractors will be able to view more than 200 sheets of plans to help formulate their bids, which are due by July 16.

Construction of the eight-acre storm water detention pond and park will involve earthwork and grading, paving, walkways, landscaping and irrigation systems, bridges, educational kiosks, donor acknowledgments and art.

Some environmental groups, including Heal the Bay, have criticized the project because it does not also address the area’s serious wastewater problems, which are blamed largely on aging septic systems. The Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board has ordered Malibu to clean up Malibu Creek, Malibu Lagoon and Surfrider Beach, which have been notorious for high levels of bacteria.

The city staff expects to present a winning bid to the City Council in August.

-- Martha Groves