MALIBU—Mayor Karen Farrer, spoke during a Zoom meeting on May 20, in regards to her aggravation at the litter in the city upon the city’s recreational reopening of the beaches and parks on May 16. Farrer worked with the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department to ensure the city would be better prepared for the Memorial Day weekend. Some of the changes were implemented include, increased enforcement of Los Angeles County Department of Public Health guidelines and more open parking lots.
Farrer expressed her approval for the soft reopening in a statement released on May 15 saying:
“It is important for the mental and physical wellbeing of our community to be able to enjoy outdoor recreation, relaxation and sports, fresh air, and the natural beauty that we cherish in Malibu, so I am very happy that we are able to open our City parks today.”
Residents flocked to city parks and beaches failing to adhere to rules to pick up after themselves.
“The county opened the beaches for active recreation, which nobody paid any attention to—unless you consider sitting and getting a tan active recreation. I don’t. It was basically a disaster,” said Farrer.
Farrer understood that the LASD’s lack of enforcement of public health guidelines and law enforcement being outnumbered did not help with the re-opening.
On Memorial Day Weekend, law enforcement increased, but the Sheriff’s Summer Beach Team was added as well. Another improvement made during Memorial Day Weekend was opening Zuma Beach parking lots and public bathrooms. This aided in causing less traffic and clutter in the Malibu city streets closer to the beaches.
During Memorial Day Weekend, Farrer was not made aware of any major problems in the city. “No news is good news,” she said. The 40-year-resident of Malibu praised Malibu’s Volunteers on Patrol (VOP) for helping keep the public in order. The VOPs issued 997 tickets on Memorial Day weekend, which made a significant difference in the safety of the Summer celebration.
