Council Vows To Build 2 Skateparks, Abandons ‘No New Projects’ After 1 Meeting
Written by 991KBU on July 9, 2019
It looks like Malibu is going to get not one skate park … but two.
The city council voted last night to build a temporary skate park at Bluffs Park … and then build a permanent one at the same place in a few years.
The move comes after a room full of kids and adults made impassioned pleas at last night’s city Council meeting.
NEWSCART 75190 SKATERS
FINN MURPHY: Hi my name is Finn Murphy .. I am a student at Malibu Middle and Point Dume Marine Science School.
“The nearest skate park to Malibu is Westlake skate park … which is 30 minutes away.
“Our parents have to drive one full hour to get to a really good park in Venice. On top of that most of the parents either do not have the time or do not want to drive an hour to Venice, skate for two hours, and then skate for two hours and then drive back.
“I mean would you?”
DAKOTA GARDNER: “My name is Dakota Gardner and I’m 10 years old.
“And my parents drive over 200 miles a week driving from skate park to skate park.”
GAGE AUGER: “my name is Gage Auger, I’ve been skating for seven years, “I’ve also lived in Malibu all my life.
“I think a skate park would be great idea in the City of Malibu because there are times in peoples lives where people have to learn that kick flip or that 5-0 front 180 out … and those are some of those things we try due out in the streets where all sessions have the same outcome: we all get kicked out.
“With that we all need a skate park”
If all that sounds familiar … it should … voices like that have been appearing at city council meetings for 8 years.
It’s been
City planning commissioner John Mazza says he is in favor of skate parks … but …
NEWSCART 75191 MAZZA
“I want to bring a little reality into this, so save your boos until the end.
“Whenever you do develop a park in any newly acquired land, and you have 32 acres of it, you must do an EIR.
“And you have to do a comprehensive EIR which takes into account all the future development that you know of, which is all these parks.”
Mazza noted that he is proposing what he called a world class skate park and surfing museum … and send the chili cook off site would be a better spot for a skate park.
But city manager Reva Feldman contradicted Mazza’s claim … and said an E I R would not be necessary for a temporary use.
An E I R … an environmental impact report … would take many months to prepare.
The city manager explained that the latest years of delay was caused by the city’s concentrated effort to buy 42 million dollars worth of vacant land at the civic center and Point Dume … and come up with a master plan for Parks.
NEWSCART 75193 REVA
“We did close escrow on those vacant properties in September.
“At the end of September the city Council directed staff to start a community-wide process to find out what everybody wanted on all those parcels.
“And that process didn’t happen because of the Woolsey fire.”
Those are the latest good reasons why Malibu has gone eight years since the privately owned Papa Jack’s skate park was removed to make way for shopping center.
The city Council rejected Mazza’s contention that lengthy environmental studies are necessary before a temporary skate park can be built on flat vacant land.
City council members Rick Mullen and Karen Farrer.
NEWSCART 75194 MULLEN FARRER
RICK MULLEN: “We hear you loud and clear.
“I’m sensing that there is a demand for immediate action.
“So I want to ask the city manager how immediate we can do something, because we do have a lot of choices that people did mention here. And in terms of money here … Karen … you did say you would be in charge of fundraising here….”
KAREN FARRER: “Anybody want to help me fund raise?”
AUDIENCE MAKES HOOTS AND WHISTLES OF APPROVAL
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This decision comes less than a month after the city Council decided not to take on any new projects … spend any additional money … or give city staff any additional tasks … because of the fire.
Last night city staff was told to come up with plans for a temporary skate park on land currently being used for construction workers parking next to the subdivision being built east of Bluffs Park.
An earlier city council decided to allow the temporary parking to go in even though a skate park was proposed for the site.
The temporary skate park will then be ripped out … and a permanent skate park installed … apparently after a master plan for the city’s vacant land is completed.
The matter will come up for a final decision at a special city Council meeting in August.
