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Malibu surfside news | July 18, 2019 | 7
Malibu planning commission
Soho’s traffic, noise issues to return Sept. 3
Sound system,
offsite employee
parking OK’d
Michele Willer-Allred
Freelance Reporter
The Malibu Planning
Commission is giving Soho’s
Little Beach House extra
time to work out sound,
traffic and parking issues
that have been the subject
of neighbors’ complaints for
the past several years.
After a more than three
hour public hearing, the
Malibu Planning Commission
on Monday, July 15,
unanimously approved allowing
Soho House to test
an installed sound system
and get the blessing of the
community and City staff
before it returns for a Conditional
Use Permit Amendment
review by the Planning
Commission on Sept.
3. No amplified music will
be allowed.
The commission also
agreed that offsite parking at
The Enclave can be utilized
for employee parking (employees
will have stickers),
and that a planned on-site
valet system can be implemented.
A traffic study will
be conducted on the impact
of the new valet system, and
reviewed by the City engineer
before Sept. 3.
Soho House, located at
22716 Pacific Coast Highway,
is a social club for arts
and media professionals,
and features a sitting room,
bar, terrace, and dining
room. About a third of the
club is made up of Malibu
residents, though it is not
open to the public. About
100 employees work there,
with about 25 to 40 employees
on site per shift.
Soho House shares a parking
lot with Nobu restaurant,
which also has parking and
other issues to be addressed
at a separate meeting.
Richard Mollica, the
City’s assistant planning director,
said that over the past
couple of years, staff has
worked with Soho House
in an attempt to bring them
into conformance with recorded
violations regarding
music, parking and traffic,
which were brought up during
a hearing in February.
As a result, Mollica said
Soho House submitted a
Conditional Use Permit
amendment in an effort to
comply. This includes no
queuing on PCH of cars
looking to enter the parking
lot. They also suggested
moving the valet as far west
in the parking lot as possible
and stacking parking to allow
more cars on site.
Soho House also wants
to include amplified and
acoustic sound at the site.
Currently, they are prohibited
from having music indoors
or outdoors.
Soho House Attorney
Kenneth Ehrlich said the
club is taking responsibility
to correct noise issues,
and that they would like to
continue having music there
because it is an important
and complimentary part of
the business.
Residents are concerned
about music, saying they
want to maintain the community’s
peaceful ambiance.
“Any sort of noise that
obscures the [sounds of the]
waves, interrupts our sleep
and concentration and even
our own music, is really not
appropriate for Malibu,”
resident John Graham said.
Jeff Moore, president of
Corona Del Malibu Homeowners
Association, said
virtually all of the 21 homeowners
he represents as part
of the HOA “vehemently
oppose” the CUP amendment.
Moore said the sheriff’s
department doesn’t
respond to neighbors’ complaints
because it is a code
enforcement issue.
“The City is on notice
that they have a huge problem
and if they do nothing,
because we’ve complained
and not one thing has ever
been done to cure this situation
effectively, the City is
going to be liable for lack
of enforcement of their own
rules,” Moore said.
Some residents spoke
about the benefits of having
Soho House, saying it provides
a service for the arts
community.
Other residents spoke
about increased traffic on
PCH caused by Soho House
and Nobu.
Planning Commissioner
Chris Marx had concerns
with continuing to allow
employee parking at The
Enclave, since a lot of the
community input had to do
with concerns over valets
driving cars and parking
there.
The commission also
agreed that the valet traffic
circulation plan proposed
by Soho House can be put
into effect; the City engineer
will review it and bring
back findings on Sept. 3. If
it looks like it isn’t working,
Soho House representatives
agreed to look at working
with Nobu on a single valet
parking system.
Jennings supported the
motion, however, he added
that “it’s not the function of
this body to bless whatever
agreement is reached by affected
residents and applicants.
That’s not what we
do here.”
Assistant City Attorney
Trevor Rusin agreed, saying
Soho is “under no obligation
to work with the residents,
although it is encouraged by
the community.”
“We’re also under no obligation
to approve what they
come up with,” Mazza said.
“We have to review it.”
police reports
Offenders reportedly smash door, swipe $1,900 in cash from Malibu pizza place
Police responded to a
burglary call at D’Amores
Pizza, 22601 Pacific Coast
Highway, on June 25. The
front door was smashed
and at least $1,900 in cash
was taken. An employee
of a nearby store arrived
to work early in the morning
and noticed the damage
to the door, while another
employee of the same store
observed a red sedan driving
out of the parking lot.
Video surveillance showed
three suspects entering the
restaurant between 3:30
and 3:45 a.m., taking money
from the cash register
and an envelope from the
manager’s office.
June 25
• Two camera lenses
worth $2,000 each reportedly
were among items stolen
from a locked vehicle
parked at a residence on
PCH. The alleged victim
stated she went out of town
on June 23, and received a
call from a neighbor that
her vehicle had been broken
into. The window was
shattered.
• A $950 cashmere bag
reportedly was stolen from
Ranch At The Pier, 23000
PCH. On June 22, a female
came into the store, and an
employee noticed that she
was in the bag area for an
unusually long time. The
woman paid for a T-shirt
and a patch with a credit
card. After the woman left
the store, the employee noticed
a bag missing from
the display.
• A $500 rivet removal
tool reportedly was stolen
from a job site on the east
side Heathercliff Road. The
alleged victim stated that the
tool was stolen from inside
the bed of a company-owned
pickup truck. The job site is
surrounded by a chainlink
fence, but there were no
signs of forced entry.
June 24
• Fifteen women’s fur
coats totaling $150,000, a
$10,000 women’s designer
dress, and a $1,500 bottle of
champagne reportedly were
stolen from a residence on
Latigo Bay View Drive.
The house was damaged
during the Woolsey Fire
and is under construction.
The alleged victim stated
he wasn’t in the house between
June 21-24 when the
theft occurred. Various fingerprints
were found on the
stainless steel rods where
the clothing items were
hanging. A shattered garage
window was found on the
property. Entry is believed
to have been made through
an unsecured dog door.
June 21
• Approximately $1,989
worth of tools reportedly
were stolen from Malibu
Sands, 22333 PCH. Video
footage shows an unidentified
male taking the tools.
EDITOR’S NOTE: The Malibu
Surfside News police reports
are compiled from official
records on file at the Los
Angeles County Lost Hills/
Malibu Sheriff’s Department
headquarters. Anyone listed in
these reports is considered to
be innocent of all charges until
proven guilty in a court of law.