MARC CHOQUETTE
Online Content Manager
After a long and rocky history as a local landmark, the Malibu Pier will be getting a much-needed facelift soon when new businesses move in to revitalize the area’s nightlife and economy. New restaurants, a bar and a surf museum are among the developments planned for the pier.
However, many Malibuites think delays and bureaucratic red tape may be holding the project back.
The California State Parks & Recreation announced in June a deal between Malibu Pier Partners and the Ruby Restaurant Group, calling for much of the new development.
The deal will bring a Beachcomber Restaurant and Bar to the site of the former local hotspot Alice’s Restaurant. The eatery will have a 1940s theme, serving “coastal dishes” to patrons.
On the far end, Ruby’s Shake Shack will occupy the building closest to Surfrider Beach, and will offer counter service for standard American fare.
Separate plans call for a surf museum, a gift shop, equipment rentals from Zuma Jay’s Surf Shop, and a bait and tackle shop which will share space with Malibu Pier Sportfishing, which opened last year.
But with fall’s arrival and a new elevator shaft the only sign of progress, delays have continued. Only the Beachcomber Restaurant has publicly pushed back its opening to “early 2008” and Malibuites are in the dark.
While the press release and Web site for the pier put dates for openings in the summer and fall of 2007, the buildings that should house those establishments remain empty, with only wooden frames, sparse construction materials and trash dotting the plywood floors.
Alex Vogt, an employee at Malibu Pier Sportfishing, said he is not sure what is causing the delays but that he was told businesses were shooting for a December or January opening.
“It’s all really rough and its hard to get a straight answer about what is going on,” Vogt said.
Business at Malibu Pier Sportfishing has been very inconsistent in the company’s first year as they wait for other businesses to open on the pier, Vogt said. He said the new development would certainly increase his store’s own visibility, since they will no longer be the lone tenant at the far end of the pier.
“Most people don’t know we are even out here,” Vogt said.
Across the street from the Pier, Holly Padias, who manages the Malibu Inn, welcomes the new digs even if it means direct competition to her business.
“Business usually brings more business, so I see it as a good thing,” Padias said.
Seaver junior Alessandra Alarcon considers the new additions to the Malibu pier as a good way to keep students in Malibu.
“The pier is pretty boring now so this should definitely be a step in the right direction,” Alarcon said. “We won’t have to go to Santa Monica as much.”
She also noted that the re-opening of the refurbished Malibu Beach Inn, which sits adjacent to the pier, would also bolster activity in the pier’s vicinity and give some life to the area.
While other Southern California piers bring in crowds nightly, Malibu’s remains lifeless and empty, save for the few fishermen dotting the rails and the occasional couple out for a stroll.
Business at the pier is slow but beginning to take hold, even though nearly all the buildings remain empty. A banner below the famous neon sign alongside PCH advertises Saturday night movies at the pier. Malibu Pier Sportfishing runs two trips daily from the pier. This summer, coastal tours of Malibu began departing from there as well.
Senior Geoffrey Baker seemed impressed with the plans for new development.
“Malibu has always lacked a central feel to it, where everyone gathers to have a good time. I feel like that this will go a long way to improve that and better define the town,” Baker said.
Few in Malibu would disagree that the pier has seen better days. It was originally built in 1905 as the dock for the Rindge family yacht, but was later used as a shipping pier for the Rindge’s Ventura—Topanga railroad line.
After opening in 1934, the Pier served as a lookout post during World War II, was the site of a famous restaurant (Alice’s), and has been a staple of the Malibu surf culture, looming over Surfrider Beach and appearing in surf films, including the one that put Malibu on the map— 1959s Gidget.
After being sold to the state in 1980, El Nino storms have taken their toll on the pier, with major damage in 1993 and 1994 causing it to later close for repairs. Things have not been the same since. After remaining closed to the public for nearly a decade, the pier re-opened once again for fishing and special events, but the large wooden gates at the entrance remain shut by dusk, to the dismay of most visitors.
Southern California locals Tim Haigh and Bobby Haines visit the pier often, and they are excited at the new development, citing the need for expanded hours at the pier and the demand for new restaurants in Malibu.
“It’s a shame for fisherman and visitors that things are so slow here,” Haines said. “There is huge opportunity here and a lot of money to be made.”
Though both Haines and Haigh said they frequent the pier over other options because they enjoy the tranquility, they said they do not expect the new businesses or crowds to deter them from coming to fish. In fact, they said they welcome the fresh start the pier will be getting.
“If the new bar has waitresses that bring drinks out to the fishermen, I’ll be out here everyday,” Haigh said.
09-27-2007
