Malibu Bluffs Park stands as the improved permanent location for the community skatepark April 25. The City of Malibu broke ground for the skatepark as part of the Community Lands project earlier this month, Mayor Pro Tem Marianne Riggins said. Photo by Sydnie Nuss
Despite its scenic beauty and outdoor living, Malibu faces a lack of community recreation spaces. Its location and strict development regulations are keeping residents’ growing needs for recreational spaces from being met.
As a result, Malibu is turning to neighboring cities for inspiration. Calabasas and Agoura Hills have each set community standards through their examples of successfully developed recreation centers and programs, Mayor Pro Tem Marianne Riggins said.
“Our program is thinner,” Riggins said. “Seeing what those communities have done has really given us inspiration to try and Malibu-size something to provide the same opportunities for our residents.”
Malibu’s Current Problem
The City of Malibu sees great value in recreation initiatives and is working to make them happen, said Rob DuBoux, public works director for the City of Malibu.
“It’s a big deal,” DuBoux said. “It’s something that is really important to the community and a couple big initiatives are kind of going on right now.”
Malibu’s lack of recreational space for locals affects the community-building aspect of the city, Riggins said.
“Residents recognize that if we want to have a community, places to gather and shared experiences, we need to provide those things [recreation spaces],” Riggins said.
Residents are hopeful new recreational spaces will be built, said Henley Baldwin, first-year student and Malibu local.
“Maybe a better skatepark, or expand on the one at Bluffs,” Baldwin said.
Earlier this month, the city broke ground on Malibu Bluffs Skatepark, a permanent recreation structure that will foster community and promote a healthy lifestyle, according to the Malibu Times.
As the city navigates its shortcomings in community recreation, it has already established outreach opportunities that will inform the planning process for any future community developments, Riggins said.
“Last year, we put out a community land survey,” Riggins said. “And we did this so we could find out what the current desires are of the community.”
Malibu’s relatively short history of 30 years also plays a role in the current number of community developments planned, as opposed to those that are already built, DuBoux said.
Malibu’s location adds another layer of complexity to the development process, DuBoux said.
“The city’s requirements for developments are pretty difficult compared to other cities,” Duboux said. “We have a lot of regulations because we’re on the coast, and there’s a lot of requirements that the city council has put on development to keep the small-town feel.”
But time and location are not the only challenges. Resistance to developments that threaten the integrity of Malibu are also a setback, DuBoux said.
“In Malibu it’s actually frowned upon that big developers come in and build,” DuBoux said. “So you have these opportunities where the city has to look outside the box to generate opportunities for those facilities.”
The city is finding ways around the regulations, as they recognize the benefits recreation centers would bring to the community, DuBoux said.
“What the city has been doing for the last 10-plus years is actually acquiring vacant property to be able to use those properties in the future for different parks or different recreation activities,” DuBoux said.
Malibu’s recent history with wildfires — the Woolsey Fire in 2018, the Franklin Fire in Dec. 2024 and the January Palisades Fire — caused setbacks in the planning process of the existing projects, Riggins said.
She said community recreation spaces are a big part of the rebuilding efforts Malibu hopes to implement to reassure residents.
“It is important that we have things to encourage people to want to rebuild here,” Riggins said. “These things [recreation spaces] will make them feel that there are parts of the community they can enjoy: the good parts, not just the scary parts.”
The Malibu Community Lands project plans to build on five parcels around the city, according to its website. No development has taken place so far because of fire recovery efforts.
“Our goal is to figure out what’s missing in our community,” Riggins said.
The City is Malibu is working towards implementing a performing arts center in the La Paz Lot, creating more active recreation in the Heathercliff and Loki Lots and improving the snack shack for the baseball and soccer fields, according to the Malibu Community Lands project website.
Infographic by Karla Suzuki
Looking to Others
In contrast to Malibu, neighboring communities such as Calabasas and Agoura Hills have large, community-oriented recreational spaces for their residents.
Baldwin said the cities through the canyon have everything people need from community centers to recreational spaces.
“There’s more of everything,” Baldwin said. “And there’s a lot more gyms over there.”
Infographic by Sydnie Nuss
When the community has a voice, it is important for the city to listen, said Jeff Campbell, deputy director of Community Services for Calabasas.
“We hired a consultant to reach out to the community to find out, ‘What are we doing right?’” Campbell said. “So a lot of it’s public outreach.”
Cities like Calabasas and Agoura Hills look for input from other communities along with offering help to cities looking to design a quality recreational space, Campbell said.
Calabasas is a close partner with Agoura Hills, and they have worked together in the past to develop community centers, said Amy Brink, the director of Community Services in Agoura Hills.
“The city of Calabasas and the city of Agoura Hills owned and operated the Agoura Hills Calabasas Community center for over 20 years,” Brink said. “Recently COVID shut it down, but up until that, we were working very closely, hand in hand, with Calabasas.”
The Calabasas Community Center is open seven days a week with a gym, courts, fitness studios and rock-climbing wall. The building re-opened in March 2024, four years after COVID-19 shut it down. Photo courtesy of Calabasas Community Services
Agoura Hills, being a smaller community than Calabasas, runs into financial difficulties when it comes to city planning, especially surrounding recreational areas post COVID-19, Brink said.
Though Malibu High School has at least one full-sized basketball court, Baldwin said they would frequently use other schools’ courts to practice.
“I used to play a lot of basketball at Agoura High [School],” Baldwin said. “And obviously there’s bigger schools like Oaks Christian [School] that have a lot of amenities and facilities.”
Though these schools and facilities can provide a substitute for the Malibu community, events like mudslides in Malibu Canyon can prohibit residents’ ability to commute, Campbell said. Even in times of need, cities like Malibu, Calabasas and Agoura Hills work closely together to help for a variety of issues.
“[Malibu] is a very good partner, very good friend of ours,” Campbell said. “They reach out to us and they do a lot for us, so we’re really good partners with them.”
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Infographic by Shane Stephens
Malibu has made tough efforts and is fighting hard after the fire for the community to get more recreational space, Campbell said.
“[Malibu] is still dealing with the aftermath of that [the fires], but they are serious about it,” Campbell said. “They are really trying to get after it.”
With the fires, Malibu also is limited in both space and finances compared to their larger neighbor Calabasas, Brink said.
“Get creative and understand what your community is really craving,” Brink said. “That would probably be the best advice to the city of Malibu.”
Agoura Hills dedicated around $5 million to community services, according to the City of Agoura Hills budget. Being only 11% of their total budget that year, Agoura Hills constantly stays in contact with their community to know what should be a priority for their recreation, Brink said.
Calabasas is home to a variety of facilities such as a senior center, tennis and swim center, parks and more that are meant to build a sense of community among the residents, Brink said.
The Calabasas Tennis and Swim Center has swim lessons for as early as 6-month-old babies and options for every adult age group, including the elderly, Campbell said.
The Calabasas Tennis and Swim Center opens at 6 a.m. every weekday and 8 a.m. on the weekends. The facility opened in 1994 after the city of Calabasas bought it when it was a private club. Photo courtesy of Calabasas Community Services
Calabasas, home to an older community, holds many programs for their seniors to feel welcome and keep building a sense of family, Campbell said.
Agoura Hills, which is smaller than Calabasas, also provides recreation for all ages, including basketball courts, tennis courts, parks and an equestrian arena in Old Agoura Park. Agoura Hills has to get creative with the way the city uses the limited resources and funding they have, Brink said.
“We have the facilities, but I think you have to be super creative,” Brink said. “I think you have to understand what will bring your community out and how you can take advantage of the facilities that you do have.”
Despite the city having a smaller population and less land, Agoura Hills has multiple facilities for the residents and neighboring communities.
Baldwin said it was important for recreation to continue to thrive in the city as it did throughout his time growing up.
“In Malibu most people are outdoors, but I feel like a lot of the younger kids are starting to play less and less sports,” Baldwin said. “So I think just promote that [recreation spaces] and keep everyone as active as possible.”
Agoura Hills, Hidden Hills, Calabasas, Westside Village and Malibu are a united front in west Los Angeles, so they always communicate about what city is holding each service, Brink said.
“Take advantage of the facilities that you do have,” Brink said. “But also make sure to communicate about what the community wants.”
The agreement that exists between cities allows families from Malibu to have access and enjoy the facilities in both Agoura Hills and Calabasas, Riggins said.
“When we became a city we had a joint use agreement with the school district that allowed us to use their facilities to provide recreation,” Riggins said.
Yet, the City of Malibu is prioritizing the development process of their own community centers, Campbell said.
“[Malibu] talked with us about the community state, they’ve toured the community center,” Campbell said. “So they are very serious about doing this as well.”
With the news of the Malibu Bluffs skatepark coming out in early April, the city of Malibu plans to keep taking the steps in a similar direction and add more recreational spaces.
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