Malibu City Council Votes To Purchase Vacant Properties

MALIBU, CA – Malibu City Council voted unanimously Monday evening to progress towards purchasing 29.24 acres of vacant properties in the city. The purchase from the Malibu Bay Co., the late billionaire Jerry Perenchio's company, consists of 9.65 acres at 23575 Civic Center Way, known as Sycamore Village; 1.11 acres at Civic Center Way and Webb Way; and 18.48 acres at Pacific Coast Highway and Heathercliff Road. The properties are all in commercial zones.

The City Council voted to move forward with identifying the source of funds to complete the purchase of the three properties and directed City Attorney Christi Hogin to negotiate a purchase and sales agreement.

The city intends to use a combination of undesignated and designated general fund reserves, Los Angeles County Measure R and M funding and certificates of participation to fund the purchase, Assistant City Manager Lisa Soghor said.

"Undeveloped land anywhere in Malibu is rare and its value cannot be quantified in dollars alone," Mayor Rick Mullen said. "By acquiring this land we will be making sure that this great treasure, our community's heritage, will benefit the future generations of Malibu."

The Malibu Bay Company land purchase adds to the city's ongoing efforts to acquire open space and parkland. In 2006, the city acquired the 17- acre Legacy Park site and the 35-acre Trancas Field property overlooking Zuma Beach in 2016. Some of the property can also be used to address unmet parking demand.

City News Service and Patch staffer Emily Holland contributed to this post; Image via Shutterstock