MEGAN WESTERVELT
Staff Writer
In a world of change, one thing remains constant in the infamous Southern Californian city of Malibu: the Malibu Pier. While the pier has withstood El Nino storms and massive reconstruction, it sill hasn’t overcome one problem: bringing in business.
Malibu residents have been repeatedly promised that businesses will open on the pier.
Bill Robinson, captain of Los Angeles County lifeguard operations said the most difficult part of waiting for businesses to return is disappointing residents who are expecting changes.
“The most disappointing thing for me is that everyone asks me when [the pier] is going to open and we tell them, ‘next month,’” Robinson said. “Then the next month comes around and nothing happens, and we have to tell the same people over and over that the pier is closed.”
Though the pier is now open to the public for fishing and recreation, the buildings on the pier remain empty.
“When I started working as a lifeguard on the pier, it was really busy,” said Robinson. He has worked on the pier for 12 years. During that period, he has witnessed a lot of change.
“There used to be restaurants, fishing boats to take people out on the water, and even a bait-and-tackle shop,” he said. “Nothing is left there now.”
Jefferson Wagner, master concessionaire of Malibu Pier, said that there are many unsolved issues, and the pier can’t open until these issues are resolved.
Wagner is operations manager of Malibu Pier Partners (MMP), an investment company for the pier that Wagner started in 2001 with his partner, Alexander Leff, the CEO of operations.
There are three reasons that businesses have not been allowed to open yet on the pier, Wagner said.
First, there is a trademark validation dispute for the pier image and name that has yet to be resolved. Also, Malibu Pier Partners said there may be some environmental issues with the pier that still need to be fixed before businesses can open safely.
Lastly, businesses haven’t opened yet because Malibu Pier Partners has encountered some internal conflict about the future developmental plans for the pier.
“The pier has not been able to open for business nor will it in the foreseeable future,” Wagner said.
The pier has withstood a stormy history. Built around the turn of the 20th century, the pier was commissioned by local businessman Frederick Rindge. It was built as a shipping wharf for hides and grains produced in the area and for receiving railroad ties and rails for the local railroad, Rindge Railroad.
It was first opened to the public in 1934. During World War II, the pier was used by the Coast Guard as a lookout post, and it is still used today by lifeguards as a watch tower and base of operations for most of Malibu’s coast.
The building in which the famous Alice’s Restaurant has been housed was built in 1945. The Restaurant itself opened in 1971, quickly becoming one of the most popular dining establishments for locals and visitors alike.
However, the pier sustained heavy damage from the El Niño storms of 1982 and 1983, all of which weakened most of the pier and closed down Alice’s Restaurant. The state rebuilt the pier, but poorly, according to Wagner. Therefore, when strong storms devastated the coast again in 1993, the pier was so damaged that it was completely closed to the public until recent reconstruction beginning in 1999.
Reconstruction of the pier has cost the State of California, Los Angeles County, and City of Malibu a total of $10 million so far. According to Wagner, the three-phrase reconstruction process included demolition, piling and deck replacement, and building restoration since it is a historical site.
Despite the disappointment, many fishermen and local residents face every day at the pier, they still enjoy the historical landmark for its beauty and its community.
“It’s the friendliest of all the local piers,” said Chance Smith, a local fisherman who lives in North Hollywood but comes to the pier every Sunday with his wife. “If one person catches something, everyone gets excited.”
Smith and his wife, Lee, who was nicknamed “Shark Lady” on the pier for her willingness to kiss sharks when people catch them, have joined the Malibu chapter of the fishing club Get Bent Sportfishing. Together with the other members, the Smiths join in picnicking on the pier, night fishing in the area and creating their own community right on the pier.
“Its one big family on the Malibu Pier,” Chance said. “It’s the only place where you can leave your [fishing] gear, grab some lunch across the street, and come back with everything still set up just as you left it.”
The couple also loves to teach others, especially children, about fishing and about the sea life that they catch.
Robinson has also experienced the camaraderie of the pier, though not as much since the pier’s closure.
“I used to get off work, walk by the restaurants on the pier, and hear ‘Hello, Bill’ from at least a dozen locals,” Robinson said.
Robinson said that there is still a community on the pier, but he’s not sure if it will ever regain its former strength.
03-16-2006