MSN_071316

malibusurfsidenews.com news
Malibu surfside news | July 13, 2016 | 3
Malibu City council
Lou La Monte tagged as next Malibu mayor
Skylar Peak named
as mayor pro tem
Alex Vejar, Assistant Editor
The Malibu City Council
unanimously elected Lou
La Monte to the office of
mayor on Monday, July 11,
beginning his second goaround
at the position. La
Monte previously served as
mayor of Malibu from August
2012 to June 2013.
“I wanted to thank my
collegues for their continued
faith in me for a second
time as mayor. I appreciate
it,” La Monte said. “I also
want to thank Laura Rosenthal
for all the work she has
done during her term. As
usual, you are a very hard
act to follow.”
La Monte read a list of
the priorities he has for the
city’s residents during his
time as mayor. One of the
projects he mentioned was
the Bluffs Parkland.
“I will ... work to get the
ballfields and other amenitites
in Bluffs Park that we
want and that we need,” La
Monte said. “We are now
poison-free, but we are also
available-field-space-free.
We need these fields and
we need to work with the
[California] Coastal Commission
to make sure that
all the stakeholders that are
involved in this have a full
and open hearing, and ultimately
we can play ball ball
on those fields.”
La Monte also said he
wishes to make Pacific
Coast Highway safer.
“We have had an unacceptable
amount of accidents
lately,” La Monte
said. “Even one fatality is
unacceptable.”
La Monte added that he
wants to see more law enforcement
on PCH.
Monday marked the last
day as mayor for Laura
Rosenthal, who was elected
for the second time in 2015
and previously held the position
in 2012-13.
In the final month of
Rosenthal’s tenure, the City
banned pesticide use in all
of Malibu and it also broke
ground a wastewater treatment
facility in the Civic
Center area.
La Monte presented
Rosenthal with an award on
behalf of the entire council.
The council also unanimously
named councilman
Skylar Peak as Mayor Pro
Tem; however, Peak was
not present at the meeting.
“Generally when you’re
not here, it’s always good
to give you a job,” La Monte
said jokingly.
Several speakers congratulated
La Monte on
the position and thanked
Rosenthal for her service
during their remarks regarding
other council business.
The office of mayor in
the City of Malibu is elected
every 9.6 months, said
Round it up
A brief recap of City Council action July 11
• Council members OK’d edits that expand
regulations, including requiring a homeowner’s
signature and the notifying neighbors in advance, to
the City’s special events permit ordinance.
• A second reading was approved for an amended
ordinance requiring valets to wear safety vests when
working on public right-of-ways.
• An agreement between the City and SMMUSD was
extended for three years. The partnership allows the
City to use district facilities for recreation programs
at a cost of $239,824 for the next year, which is
about $60,000 higher than the previous rate.
Matt Myerhoff, the City’s
media information officer.
The term length was chosen
so that every councilmember
could have a turn
as mayor for the City, Myerhoff
said.
The change from a
one-year mayor term to a
9.6-month term was made
at a council meeting in
April 2008, Myerhoff said.