Malibu : Building Ban Delay Sought

The Chamber of Commerce has asked Malibu’s unofficial City Council to postpone for at least two weeks a decision on whether to impose a moratorium on new development in the seaside community.

Mary Lou Blackwood, the chamber’s executive vice president, said this week that the group asked for the delay in order to poll its 350 members on the issue.

A coalition of homeowners, builders and real estate brokers has voiced strong opposition to a proposed law that would temporarily halt construction of condominiums and commercial buildings and severely restrict the construction of single-family houses.

The five-member council has held three public hearings on the matter, including one last Sunday attended by about 300 people, most of them opposed to restricting single-family homes. The council has said imposing development curbs will be one of its first official acts on March 28, when Malibu becomes a city.