Ben Marcus Rules

Screwin’ and suin’? The national pastimes of Malibu are screwin’ and suin’? No kidding? As Vincent Vega said, “That’s a bold statement” but that can be a painfully true statement when it comes to developing property and/or doing business and/or fighting paparazzi in Malibu. From 2005 to 2019, U2 guitarist David Evans - aka The Edge - learned the hard way about getting screwed and getting sued, when he got wrapped up in a 14-year, $20+ million megillah to build five cutting-edge Ecomansions on 150+ acres of Environmentally Sensitive Habitat Area on a Significant Ridgeline in a Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone, way up high in an area in the Santa Monica Mountains regulated/monitored/protected by the Coastal Act, the California Coastal Commission, the City of Malibu Local Coastal Program (LCP), the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy (SMMC), the Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority (MRCA), the Sierra Club and probably a couple other agencies: Citizens for Gophers. Save Our Scrub. Whatever.

By 2005, U2 had produced 11 studio albums, one live album, two compilation albums, one collaboration, one box set, three subscriber-exclusive albums, seven extended plays, 54 singles, one movie, 11 concert videos, 55 music videos, nominated for 33 Grammys and won 17 of them, been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, burned countless miles touring the world going back to their formation in 1976 and sold more than a hundred million records.

The Edge was a wealthy man, worth more than a quarter billion dollars according to some online nosy kitty cats, and he was most likely looking for a place to chill: his hard-earned place in the warm California sun to hang his watchcap(s) and sit by the pool sipping a Guinness (nothing better than the real thing, flown in weekly from Dublin, probably), strumming his geetar and waiting for those magic, million-dollar riffs to float down from the heavens through his fingers as friends and family frolicked in a swimming pool as the sun set into the Pacific Ocean - smiling quietly to himself at all that had happened since he first picked up a geetar way back in 1976.

(We knooooow what you’re doing: Wracking your Gulliver for U2 titles and lyrics that synchronize with The Edge’s Sweetwater Mesa saga. In August of 2011, Lisa Brenner for LAist.com had a go with: “Where The Cliffs Have No Homes: U2's The Edge Sues Over Malibu Mansions.” So that works for a song title, but for a lyric, how about: “If you want to kiss the sky better learn how to kneel. On your knees boy.”)

Edge found that place in the sun on Sweetwater Mesa - a scrubby and scruffy,  broad-shouldered ridge of land that rises to 1000 feet of elevation and lords over central Malibu and Surfrider Beach to the west. And to the east, Pacific Coast Highway leading out of the pastoral peace of Malibu toward the rattle and hum of Los Angeles. Must have felt idyllic, peaceful and beautiful up there - and it is world-class spectacular a thousand feet above sea level - so close and yet so far from all that rattle and hum, off in the distance. 

But the process of developing that idyllic property rattled more than hummed and was anything but peaceful and beautiful. The Edge aimed for the stars and landed in a mud puddle - was possibly misled in trying to build five houses with swimming pools and move mountains of Environmentally Sensitive Dirt to carve a long fire access road with turnouts on an untainted Significant Ridge in an Environmentally Sensitive Habitat Area that residents have been staring at for decades and wished to remain untainted - and would gladly sue and screw to keep it so. 

Five homes from 7,000+ to 12,000+ square feet, with swimming pools and a required fire-access road that required pounding 100+ caissons into bedrock and removing tens of thousands of cubic yards of fill - 20 cubic yards at a time - up and down the small, steep, fragile two-lane Sweetwater Mesa Road.

Where a lot of cities and states and countries would have welcomed the $70+-million project with open arms: “You rock Edge. Build it and we will come… for the imported Guinness!” The city and citizens of Malibu and the California Coastal Commission and the Sierra Club and Los Angeles County and Save Our Scrub and the California State Supreme Court made that Lurch groanoise signifying displeasure and uncertainty and put The Edge through a very expensive, time-consuming, hair-pulling, watchcap-rending, frustrating, riff-jarring ringer. 

(If U2 wrote songs about real estate deals gone wrong the way Taylor Swift writes off all her ex-boyfriends, there woulda been Grammys for all.)

Some say Edge was just a soul whose intentions were good, others think he was greedy and entitled and got what he deserved = bupkis.

The Edge got sued and got screwed, but he was by no means the first in and around Malibu to be nutted by bureaucracy.

Leon Victor Prudhomme was a Frenchman who was the second person to own/occupy the 13,000+ acre Rancho Topanga Malibu y Sequit. Prudhomme married the grand-daughter of the first owner/occupier Jose Bartoleme Tapia, and signed the title deed on January 24, 1848 - the day gold was discovered. That was good news, at first, until Mexico lost the war with America 10 days later and made a deal with Uncle Sam to sell 500,000 square miles of the southwest - including all of Alta California - to Uncle Sam under the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. 

When Prudhomme bought the Malibu it belonged to Mexico, but 30 days later, it belonged to the United States. For three years, Prudhomme thrived, and then beginning in 1852 he battled the three-man Public Lands Commission to prove he had legal title to the 13,000+ Rancho Topanga Malibu y Sequit. After a six year legal fight, Prudhomme gave up and sold the Rancho Malibu to an Irishman, Matthew Keller. 

Keller Senior passed the property to his son Henry Keller, who sold it in 1892 to Frederick Rindge - a Bostonian who came west to grow with the country. Frederick Rindge went to Harvard with Teddy Roosevelt and was born and bred to run an empire. Which he did and expanded his estate until he died unexpectedly in 1905. Strangely, the Rindge estate was itemized in the Los Angeles Times and valued at 1905$22,000,000 - which is 2022$600,000,000+ - and it all went to his wife May Rindge, a schoolteacher from Michigan. May d8d not go to Harvard with Teddy Roosevelt and was not born and bred to run an empire but she had a go and spent the next 40 years getting sued and screwed by and/or suing and screwing her neighbors, the cities of Santa Monica and Venice, Los Angeles County, the state of California and finally, the United States Supreme Court. 

In 1923, Rindge Co. vs LA County declared in favor of eminent domain and ordered Mrs. Rindge to allow the Roosevelt Highway to pass through all 20+ Miles of her private, Scenic Beauty.

Sued and screwed by Uncle Sam.

Prudhomme and May Rindge are two of hundreds and thousands of court cases that have been decided within the city of Malibu and environs going back to the Gold Rush. Edge was hardly the first person to get hopelessly snarled in the barbed wire of Malibu, LA County, California and environmental bureaucracy - but his battle was one of the most public. And expensive.

And a sign o' the times.

1976: U2 forms when members Bono (lead vocals and rhythm guitar), the Edge (lead guitar, keyboards, and backing vocals), Adam Clayton (bass guitar), and Larry Mullen Jr. (drums and percussion) were teenaged pupils of Mount Temple Comprehensive School in Dublin. They had limited musical proficiency but learned fast. (Because they are Irish, a people who are, in the experience of this author, the most musically-gifted white people on earth). Within four years, the lovely lads signed with Island Records and released their debut album, Boy (1980).

1976: Passed in 1976, the California Coastal Act begins with a section (30001) on the importance of the California coast and its ecological balance:

The Legislature hereby finds and declares:

(a) That the California coastal zone is a distinct and valuable natural resource of vital and enduring interest to all the people and exists as a delicately balanced ecosystem. 

(b) That the permanent protection of the state’s natural and scenic resources is a paramount concern to present and future residents of the state and nation.

(c) That to promote the public safety, health, and welfare, and to protect public and private property, wildlife, marine fisheries, and other ocean resources, and the natural environment, it is necessary to protect the ecological balance of the coastal zone and prevent its deterioration and destruction.

(d) That existing developed uses, and future developments that are carefully planned and developed consistent with the policies of this division, are essential to the economic and social well-being of the people of this state and especially to working persons employed within the coastal zone.

Deeper into the Coastal Act,  (Section 30107.5) designates an Environmentally Sensitive Habitat Area as: 

“Any area in which plant or animal life or their habitats are either rare or especially valuable because of their special nature or role in an ecosystem and which could be easily disturbed or degraded by human activities and developments” 

1980: According to the About Us for the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy:

The Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy was established by the California State Legislature in 1980. Since that time, it has helped to preserve over 75,000 acres of parkland in both wilderness and urban settings, and improved more than 114 public recreational facilities throughout Southern California. Additionally, it has given grants to nonprofit organizations for educational and interpretation programs that have served hundreds of thousands of children and other park visitors.

Mission Statement 

Through direct action, alliances, partnerships, and joint powers authorities, the Conservancy’s mission is to strategically buy back, preserve, protect, restore, and enhance treasured pieces of Southern California to form an interlinking system of urban, rural and river parks, open space, trails, and wildlife habitats that are easily accessible to the general public.

Partnership 

The key to the Conservancy’s success has been partnerships. The Conservancy maximizes its effectiveness by working together with local government, joint powers entities, landowners, State and Federal agencies, and community-based organizations to secure and develop parkland. Through a strategic planning process that includes substantial community participation and input, the Conservancy’s projects and priorities are continually updated to reflect the changing dynamics of the region.

Board Members

The Conservancy consists of nine voting members, three ex officio members and six legislative members. This policy-making entity for the Conservancy is broadly representative of state, regional, and local interests. A twenty-six member Advisory Committee meets jointly with the Conservancy and offers citizens the opportunity for even greater participation. 

1980 - 2001: U2 becomes a Significant Rockband with these albums and tours: Boy and October (1980–1982), War (1982–1983), The Unforgettable Fire and Live Aid (1984–1985), The Joshua Tree and Rattle and Hum (1986–1990), Achtung Baby, Zoo TV, and Zooropa (1990–1993), Passengers, Pop, and PopMart (1994–1998), All That You Can't Leave Behind and Elevation Tour (1998–2002)

1987: On January 23, 1987 Coastal Commission Executive Director Peter Douglas, South Coast District Commissioner Tom Crandall and Asst. Dep. Director for Land Use/Local Assistance Steve Scholl submitted a 144-page document titled MALIBU LAND USE PLAN POLICIES AND FINDINGS: Los Angeles County Local Coastal Program As certified by the Coastal Commission on December 11, 1986 with findings adopted by the Commission on January 15, 1987)

NOTE: The revised Malibu/Santa Monica Mountains Land Use Plan (LUP) was submitted to the Coastal Commission in October, 1986. After a public hearing on December 11, 1987, the Commission certified the LUP as submitted by the County. On January 15, 1987, the Commission adopted findings in support of its certification of the LUP. This document contains the Commission's findings for certification of the LUP and the text of the certified Land Use Plan policies. Not included here are certain Land Use Plan background materials and issue discussions which were included in the County's original submittal of December, 1982. Also not included are certain maps and exhibits which constitute a part of the Land Use Plan; these maps and exhibits are available at the Department of Regional Planning, Los Angeles County. 

2001: Brian Sweeney pays $1.5 million for 150 acres on Sweetwater Mesa. Sweeney, according to James Dolan in the LA Times: “...was a speculator who had made millions flipping undeveloped coastal tracts coveted by preservationists. He’d buy the land, begin the permitting process to build a subdivision and then sell it for a hefty profit to suddenly motivated conservation groups and park agencies.”

2002: On May 1, 2002, Jeff Bertolucci writes Sweeney to sue city over road to Sweetwater Mesa for The Malibu Times with the subtitle City Council denies Planning Commission’s variance to allow builder to construct private road. The builder vows to fight to the end.

In essence, the Manhattan Beach resident sued the city after they rejected his proposal for 1,660-foot driveway linking Sweeney’s property in unincorporated Los Angeles County to Sweetwater Mesa Road, a narrow private road in Malibu.

Sweeney needs the road to further his plans to build five, single-family homes on the site: “But nearby Serra Retreat neighbors fear the road will eventually connect to Piuma Road at the top of the mountain, thereby creating a thoroughfare through their private streets down to Pacific Coast Highway.”

Malibu Mayor Jeff Jennings was quoted: “What (Sweeney) wants to do is develop homes further up in the mountains, which is not something we’re wild about,” said Malibu Major Jeff Jennings. “I’m also concerned with the road becoming an alternate thoroughfare in that area.”

Sweeney’s attorney Cathy Philitovich argued that the denial of the road constituted a “regulatory taking” and that Sweeney should be compensated for not being able to develop his property.

“All we’re saying is he can’t have a variance,” said Jennings. “We’re not telling him what he can or can’t do with his property.”

To Sweeney, this means war: “I’m going to pursue this until I’m successful,” he said. “They just want to take my property from me.”

Attorney Todd Sloan, who represented opponents to the project said: “What you’ve got is the ability of other property owners to grant easements that could conceivably link Piuma to the top of Sweetwater Mesa Road

There was a fear that allowing Sweeney to link Sweetwater Mesa with Piuma road “could also allow up to 500 homes on the Sweeney property.”

But Sweeney fouled that off: “They’re making up stuff that we’ll subdivide the property into 500 homes and build a highway from Piuma to Sweetwater,” said Sweeney, who has agreed with Malibu city planners’ requests that he not subdivide his land and block all road access through it, thereby eliminating the possibility of a thoroughfare and a crowded subdivision. “It’s going to cost the city a fortune in legal fees, and it’s going to cost me a ton of money,” Sweeney said. “I can’t believe the residents of Malibu will be happy to have their taxpayer dollars wasted this way.”

2002: On June 18, 2002, the Edge marries Morleigh Steinberg, a backup dancer from U2’s Zoo tour. They have two children together, Sian (1995) and Levi (1995).

So you have to wonder if David Evans was aware of the litigious/protective, screwin’/suin’ nature of Malibu when he fell in love with 150+ acres up high overlooking Malibu with eat-your-heart-out views from the center of Malibu to downtown Los Angeles and a vast panorama of the Santa Monica Bay from Venice to South Bay all the way around the Palos Verdes and out to those mysterioso Channel Islands that drove the Chumash indians cuckoo until they got their tomol canoes dialed in enough to make it out there.

“God’s infinity pool” is how Jack Doland described the view from that property in the LA Times in May 2016 in a story titled: U2's The Edge and his decade-long fight to build on a pristine Malibu hillside - which is quoted from liberally below, and thanks to the author.

The Edge’s 14-year, $20+ million battle with the city and citizens of Malibu, the California Coastal Commission, Save Our Scrub, the Sierra Club, Gophers Anonymous, Los Angeles County and the California Supreme Court could easily fill a book - as dense as T.E Lawrence’s Seven Pillars of Wisdom and as wordy as Churchill’s A History of the English-Speaking Peoples.
Not easy to condense it all into anything less than Tolstoy length, but this is a timeline of the whole 14-year, $20+ million megillah.

TIMELINE OF “WIND IN THE LEAVES” - SWEETWATER MESA

1972: Inspired by a development battle at the Sea Ranch in northern California, the California Coastal Commission is established by voter initiative (Proposition 20) and later made permanent by the Legislature through adoption of the California Coastal Act of 1976.

The CCC is a state agency within the California Natural Resources Agency with quasi-judicial control of land and public access along the state's 1,100 miles (1,800 km) coastline. Its mission as defined in the California Coastal Act: “The Commission is committed to protecting and enhancing California’s coast and ocean for present and future generations. It does so through careful planning and regulation of environmentally-sustainable development, rigorous use of science, strong public participation, education, and effective intergovernmental coordination.”

2002: The City of Malibu Local Coastal Program Land Use Plan is adopted by the Coastal Commission on September 13, 20022. 

According to www.malibucity.org:

The entire City of Malibu is located within the California coastal zone, which means that all development and activity occurring within city limits (unless considered exempt) is subject to the regulations of the City’s Local Coastal Program (LCP). LCPs contain the ground rules for protecting sensitive coastal resources and public access along the entire coastline of California. LCPs are required for all jurisdictions located within the coastal zone and the California Coastal Commission (CCC) is tasked with overseeing certification of those LCPs before they become law at the local level. Likewise, any amendments to an LCP must first be certified by the CCC before taking effect. Malibu’s LCP was certified in 2002 and grants the City authority to review and approve Coastal Development Permits (CDPs) at the local level. The City’s Planning Commission is delegated with this authority and, in some instances, the Planning Director as well. Appeals are considered by the City Council and, in some instances, may also be reviewed by the CCC. Functioning similar to the City’s General Plan and Zoning Code (Title 17 of the Municipal Code), the City’s LCP regulates zoning and land use. The primary difference is that the LCP is an extension of State law (i.e., California Coastal Act) implemented at the local level. As a result, the policies and regulations of the LCP supersede any policy or regulation of the City’s General Plan or Zoning Code in the event there is a conflict between the documents. Zoning is administered through the LCP Local Implementation Plan (LIP), and land use is administered through the LCP Land Use Plan (LUP). Combined, the two documents constitute the City’s LCP.

2005: The Edge first sees the Sweetwater Mesa property with his wife, Morleigh Steinberg. WHO SHOWED IT TO HIM? “"We were absolutely blown away by its beauty, and the position of it, and every aspect of its potential,” Evans was quoted by James Dolan in the LA Times.

November 22, 2005: Legal documents are a good place to find solid information. On March 21, 2019, the Second Appellate District, Court of Appeal, Second District, Division three ruling on The Sierra Club v. California Coastal Commission and Mulryan Properties LLLP  Real Parties in Interest and

Respondents: “On November 22, 2005, five of the Real Persons in Interest (RPIs) each purchased one of the parcels of real property at issue here.” 

Whether it was just the Edge, or the Edge and four partners, a total of $9,000,000 changed hands for 150+ acres on Sweetwater Mesa. According to James Dolan: 

“The brochure offering Sweetwater Mesa for sale in 2005 had sketches of five boxy, Bauhaus-inspired houses, Evans said in a video produced by his public relations team years later. Sweeney had taken the preliminary step of receiving “approval in concept” from Los Angeles County for five  houses – one on each of the property’s five separate legal lots — before selling it. “We didn’t know those stories about Sweeney. We didn’t know about those controversies. Had we known, The Edge and Morleigh would not have bought the land,” said Moses Hacmon.

2005: U2 are inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

2005+: Anyone who has met The Edge knows he is a decent chap, and hardly a Simon Legree or someone who doesn’t respect nature and the environment. Most cities in California and places around the world would welcome a wealthy, beloved rock star building five pleasure palaces on a ridge overlooking the ocean.

But Malibu is different, and The Edge was taken aback, according to Dolan:

The criticism has taken a toll on Evans, say those close to him.

“We’re talking about an activist, an artist, that made his money from spreading peace and love in the world,” said Evans’ project director, Moses Hacmon. “He has been hurt, personally, by all of this.”

The Edge’s plans to build five houses along that ridge were met by howls of derisive protest, pitchforks and lanterns from any number of angles, individuals and groups.

Malibu people have been staring at/admiring that empty ridge for decades, and the thought of someone building a compound of five houses with swimming pools along up there - and the access/fire road to link them together and down to PCH - did not go over well at all among the cognoscenti.

According to Dolan:

After Evans’ purchase, the first objections came from his future neighbors, who feared the compound would spoil their views. They were quickly joined by conservation groups, who said the land, which is adjacent to Malibu Creek State Park, was an essential wildlife corridor and should be left untouched.

In an effort to soothe critics, and build something that suited his own environmentalist aesthetic, Evans threw out the “boxy” plans and hired renowned architect Wallace Cunningham to design houses that, while very large – they ranged from 7,220 to 12,785 square feet — blended more naturally into the rugged hillside.

2????: Wallace E Cunningham is a designer of thoroughly modern, cutting edge homes. He was hired by The Edge and partners in ??? to design Leaves in the Wind.

On WallaceCunningham.com we learn that the firm employs nine professionals and employ a team approach, but the leader is Cunningham: 

“Wallace was born in Western Pennsylvania and spent his youth in Buffalo, New York, where he attended Hutchinson Central Technical High School for Architecture. Wallace then attended the Chicago Academy of Fine Arts and went on to study at the Frank Lloyd Wright School of Architecture. He started his architecture practice in 1978. He received a design award in 2003 from the International Academy of Architecture. In 2004 and 2007 he was named one of the Top 100 Designers by Architectural Digest, and in 2007 was named one of the Top 30 Designers by Robb Report.”

Cunningham designed the cliffside home in San Clemente for SURFER Magazine photo editor Jeff Divine, and many other beautiful homes around California and the country:

“I have attempted architecture of clarity and rigor. My approach to design is more intuitive than intellectual. The process is begun by seizing one catalyst, which can simply be a distinctive feature of the site, or be as complex as an extraordinary desire of the client. The response to this catalyst is triggered by instinct and the design is realized by collaborating with spirit and motion.

The concepts of spirituality and motion are integral to my work. I try to tap into the psyche with unexpected manipulations of form and light, which are intended to be as sculptural as they are architectural. Natural light is a crucial element in my designs and is used to define, fragment, and animate space. The environment is a primary source of inspiration and a driving force as well. Nature is not static, nor should be the efforts of man. Dealing with spaces as solids in a design causes the building to become extremely confined, static, and without spirit. Open up a structure to sky, landscape, and view, and the building becomes alive. Create unconfined space and your soul will have a place to go.”

Everyone in Malibu from richest to poorest dreams of designing and building their fantasy home either right along the water’s edge, or up high in the hills with those views of “God’s infinity pool.” 

Sweewater Mesa was one giant, tasty blank canvas for Cunningham to “tap into the psyche with unexpected manipulations of form and light,” with lashings of “natural light” and “environment is a primary source of inspiration and a driving force as well.” 

The original plan for the five homes on Sweetwater Mesa - a photo of an exhibit taken at the California Coastal Commission meeting in June of 2011.

The homes designed by Wallace Cunningham were dreamy. According to captions that accompanied artist renderings of the homes in The LA Times: A two-level, 9,555-square-foot house with swimming pool on 20.5 acres - with nearly 18 acres set aside for conservation. 

A three-level, 7,812-square-foot house with swimming pool on 25.7 acres -with more than 23 acres set aside for conservation. 

A three-level, 9,572-square-foot house with swimming pool on 30.7 acres with nearly 28 acres set aside for conservation and a public hiking trail. 

A three-level, 8,357-square-foot house with swimming pool on 45 acres with nearly 44 acres set aside for conservation. 

And for The Edge himself - a three-level, 9,454-square-foot house with swimming pool on 20 acres with nearly 15 acres set aside for a public hiking trail. 

Looking at all that in Led Zeppelin terms - that’s a whole lotta houses. 

James Dolan wrote:

As Evans’ team worked, they consulted with the Coastal Commission, attempting to ensure the designs would win approval from the notoriously hard-to-please regulators.

Members of the commission are unpaid, apart from food and travel allowances while they attend meetings, and are appointed by either the governor, the state Senate Rules Committee or the speaker of the Assembly. Commissioners usually can’t stop owners from building on private land on the coast, but state law gives them tremendous authority over the size and scope of any construction.

The houses’ potential impact on the “viewshed” — what people might see from the ocean or while driving along the Pacific Coast Highway – would become a big issue. So Evans hired visual impact consultants to persuade commissioners that the houses, which were shorter than local zoning laws allow, would be relatively unobtrusive.

Another concern was stability of the terrain. In the four years leading up to their first hearing before the commission, Evans and his partners spent more than $400,000 for engineering studies to demonstrate the rock beneath the proposed building sites would not crumble and trigger landslides.

To overcome opposition from the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy, a state agency created to protect open space in the region, Evans and his partners offered easements for a public hiking trail and about $1 million to help build and maintain it.

While the surrounding hillsides were scattered with subdivisions, some containing dozens of homes, the Irish group’s houses covered less than 3% of their land. The rest of Sweetwater Mesa would be left undisturbed.

So, despite a groundswell of vocal opposition, when Evans’ consultants walked into the Marina Del Rey Hotel in June 2011 for their first hearing before the commission, they had reason to hope their plans would be approved.

They hit a buzz saw in the form of Peter M. Douglas.

2007: According to that Second Appellate court document of 2019: “In 2007, these RPIs filed their original applications for Coastal Development Permits with Commission.”

March 18, 2009: LA Weekly publishes Edge of Destruction which details The Edge’s purchasing of Sweetwater Mesa and also a property in Latigo Canyon, a purchase and plan which is also drawing complaints for kicking out an archery club:

“In the three years he’s owned the properties, the litany of complaints hurled at the Edge include, among other things: his eviction of a long-standing archery club; his plans to level a mountain on the property, which would cause destructive water runoff and land erosion; wildlife endangerment; and potential obstruction of existing views. If his plans become real, decry neighbors, there may be one less lovely line on Malibu’s horizon.”

"I hope you will agree that my partners and I have worked diligently to design homes that will meet the highest environmental standards. Why did we go to so much effort? Because we love Malibu."

• The Edge, from his website.

January 30, 2011: NBCLosAngeles.com reports on the Coastal Commission staff report under the title: Coastal Commission: “Edge” Playing Wrong Note in Malibu: U2's Edge fighting for a place to call home

…but the California Coastal Commission staff says the project would violate state law by ruining a wild area and scarring hillsides visible from Pacific Coast Highway.

In an analysis released late Friday, the commission's staff said the 156-acre project north of Malibu's landmark pier would violate the Coastal Act in several aspects.

Among other problems cited by the state is that nearly 50,000 cubic yards of rock and soil must be mined and moved. A proposed private access road up the mountain would have a 19 percent grade -- so steep that the fire department says it needs several "staging areas" for fire trucks to stop to let their brakes cool.

"I hope you will agree that my partners and I have worked diligently to design homes that will meet the highest environmental standards," Edge wrote on his web page. "Why did we go to so much effort? Because we love Malibu."

Despite that pledge, Edge's lawyers are fighting the Coastal Commission vigorously, have even broken the project up into five separate applications. They argue that it is unacceptable for the Coastal Commission to consider the "separate" application in one proceeding.

The state has investigated and found that the "separate" applicants are all linked to Edge by marriage or longstanding business relations. The state stops short of calling recent actions to split ownership of the land a sham, but notes that all five applications were filed on the same day and employ the same consultants.

The staff report also notes that Edge has told reporters he wants to sell three of the multimillion dollar estates to pay for the entire project, and make a profit, which in turn destroys his lawyers' claim that the projects are unrelated and cannot be considered together.

The Coastal Commission staff report said the five homes would straddle a "significant ridgeline" visible from the pier and Malibu Lagoon, which are state parks, and from PCH, which is a state-protected scenic route where new development must be screened from view.

"The area is undeveloped and comprised of steep, rugged mountain terrain that is blanketed by various natural rock outcroppings and primarily undisturbed native chaparral habitat," the state report concluded.

The staff report is advisory, but the Coastal Commission relies heavily on such findings when it decides on proposed coastal development, as required by a California constitutional amendment approved by voters in 1972, and as implemented by the Legislature in 1976. Its decisions can be appealed, but can only be overruled if a court finds it violated its discretionary power.

February 2011: On September 19, 2014, Martha Groves looked back three years for The Los Angeles Times:

“After years of skirmishing over a rock star’s proposal to build a secluded compound on a rugged Malibu ridge, the California Coastal Commission staff recommended Friday that the project move forward — with modifications.

U2 guitarist the Edge, a.k.a. David Evans, has gone to great lengths since 2006 to secure permits to build five homes, including his own, and an access road on Sweetwater Mesa in the Santa Monica Mountains.

The coastal commission staff in February 2011 rejected the Irish musician’s plans for construction of the five widely spaced mansions with swimming pools, saying they would scar a steep, undeveloped ridgeline visible from much of the coastline, cause extensive geological disturbance and destroy environmentally sensitive native vegetation.

The staff also contended that Evans was attempting to bypass environmental rules and maximize development by submitting five separate applications, each under a different corporate name.

For the last year, staff members have been quietly negotiating with Evans’ extensive team of environmental consultants, attorneys and lobbyists.

The two sides ultimately reached a settlement agreement, posted on the commission’s website, calling for Evans to cut the size of the development area, reduce the amount of grading, cluster the houses on a lower plateau and lower the height of some residences. The property owners also agreed to increase the amount of acreage under a conservation easement and shorten an access road and a retaining wall.

“From Day 1, I had told these guys that the one way to get to approval was to make these changes,” said Jack Ainsworth, the Commission’s senior deputy director. “And here we are back at that same place many years later.”

The applicants “worked hard to adhere to all the conditions laid out by the commission,” said Fiona Hutton, their spokeswoman. She said the home designs were “dramatically different” — toned down, simplified and “built to fit into the natural contours of hillside.”

The summer months may seem like the time to take a break from worrying about your teenager’s mental health. Surely the promise of sunshine and no homework will lead to improved mood and behavior, right?

Environmental groups and residents of canyons and hillsides had lambasted the original proposal, saying it would cause irreparable harm to habitat and views, as well as further erode ever-shrinking open spaces.

Many opponents were stunned when the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy, which had initially decried the project, abruptly backpedaled in May 2011 and voted to adopt a position of neutrality. The vote came after Evans and his team agreed to pay the conservancy $750,000 in cash so that it could purchase land, including an easement across the properties to extend the Coastal Slope Trail.

In August 2011, the property owners filed suit seeking to set aside the coastal panel’s denial of their applications.
About a year later, the musician’s team began lobbying for a bill in Sacramento that would have eased the way for development of the properties. NEED TO FIND OUT MORE ABOUT THIS SACRAMENTO DEAL. Environmentalists cast the bill as a power grab by developers and special interests, including Evans. After sailing through the Assembly, the bill was rejected by a key state Senate panel.
One Malibu critic of the project was surprised to learn Friday that it was still under consideration.

Jefferson “Jay” Wagner, a former Malibu councilman, said property owners in the exclusive Serra Retreat neighborhood of Malibu would be irked if the 151-acre project were approved and Evans and his partners then went on to sell easement rights for access to other lots above and below that could then be developed.

“There’s always a lawyer that can break an easement restriction,” he said.

Ainsworth declined to speculate about how the full coastal panel would vote when it takes up the project in October.
“It’s not a slam dunk by any means,” he said. “They have full discretion to approve or deny this settlement.”

February 9, 2011: The agenda for the February 9, 2011 meeting of the Coastal Commission in Chula Vista includes these Coastal Permit Applications (CPA) for Sweetwater Mesa - but the applications were pulled the day before the meeting.

Each of the five projects are detailed separately and then the Staff Recommendation gives it all a Roman Colosseum-class thumbs down with one hand and blows a raspberry with the other:

SUMMARY OF STAFF RECOMMENDATION

Staff recommends denial of the proposed projects. The standard of review for the projects is the Chapter 3 policies of the Coastal Act. In addition, the policies of the certified Malibu–Santa Monica Mountains Land Use Plan (LUP) serve as guidance.

The subject permit applications are for: (1) five new single family residences ranging from 7,220 sq. ft. to 12,785 sq. ft. in size on five adjoining parcels, each of which claims to be owned by a different LLLP; (2) 28,050 cu. yds. of grading (26,250 cu. yds. Cut; 1,800 cu. yds. fill; 21,600 cu. yds. excess) for the residence development areas and private driveways; (3) a 6,010 linear ft., 20 ft. wide access road (includes residential driveways) extending from Sweetwater Mesa Road in Malibu to the development sites with 43,050 cu. yds. of grading (20,100 cu. yds. cut, 22,950 cu. yds. fill), 123 caisson piles up to 79 ft. deep and up to 5 ft. in diameter, and 960 linear ft. of retaining walls;

(4) three Fire Department staging areas utilizing 10,000 cu. yds. of excess excavated material, (5) placement of 13,950 cu. yds. of excess excavated material upon a grassland mesa area; (6) a new 7,800 linear ft. waterline with 900 linear ft., 10 ft. wide maintenance road; and (7) a lot line adjustment between two of the subject parcels.
Total project grading is approximately 95,050 cu. yds. (46,350 cu. yds. cut, 48,700 cu. yds. fill). Due to the related nature of the six coastal development permit (“CDP”) applications, all of the proposed development is analyzed in one staff report.

The subject contiguous properties are located on the southern flank of the Santa Monica Mountains, about a mile inland from Pacific Coast Highway, east of Malibu Canyon Road, and west of Las Flores Canyon Road. The Malibu Civic Center area, Malibu Pier, Malibu Creek, and Malibu Lagoon State Park are located about a mile away to the southwest. The five properties, totaling 156 acres, are situated along an approximately 3,000-ft. long stretch of a prominent ridgeline separating the Sweetwater Canyon and Carbon Canyon watersheds. This ridgeline extends inland approximately 2.18 miles from the narrow coastal terrace traversed by Pacific Coast Highway to the backbone crest of the Santa Monica Mountain Range. The Malibu/Santa Monica Mountains Land Use Plan (LUP) designates this ridge as a “Significant Ridgeline.” The area is undeveloped and comprised of steep, rugged mountain terrain that is blanketed by various natural rock outcroppings and primarily undisturbed native chaparral habitat that is part of a large contiguous area of undisturbed native vegetation that constitutes

an environmentally sensitive habitat area (ESHA). A large area of public parkland that is part of Malibu Creek State Park is located on the adjacent parcels to the west. The nearest development in the vicinity is the residential enclave of Serra Retreat located within the municipal limits of the City of Malibu approximately a half mile to the southwest.

The subject ridgeline is a prominent landscape feature along a significant stretch of the Malibu coast. The ridge is visible from several significant public vantages along Pacific Coast Highway, including: Malibu Bluffs Park (2.5 miles west); Pacific Coast Highway and Malibu’s Civic Center and Colony Plaza areas (2 miles west); Malibu Lagoon State Park and Surfrider Beach areas (1.2 miles southwest); and Malibu Pier (1 mile southwest). The ridge is also highly visible from Malibu Creek State Park land, portions of Malibu Canyon Road, and the Saddle Peak Trail about a quarter mile to the west, portions of Piuma Road approximately a mile to the north, and several LUP-mapped Vista Points along Rambla Pacifico Road a mile to the east. The proposed construction of single family residences within ESHA is not consistent with Section 30240 of the Coastal Act or the guidance policies of the Malibu-Santa Monica Mountains LUP because residences are not resource-dependent uses and because the habitat removal associated with the proposed development does not protect ESHA against significant disruption of habitat values. In addition, the proposed development would not serve to protect public views, minimize landform alteration, or ensure compatibility with the character of the surrounding area. As such, the proposed development would result in significant impacts to visual resources, inconsistent with Section 30251 of the Coastal Act and the guidance policies of the Malibu-Santa Monica Mountains LUP. Furthermore, the proposed development will not avoid significant adverse effects, either individually or cumulatively, on coastal resources, which is in direct conflict with Section 30250 of the Coastal Act. Although the Commission does sometimes allow development that violates one or more of the policies in Chapter 3 of the Coastal Act (including residential development in ESHA) pursuant to Section 30010 of the Coastal Act, it can only do so where to do otherwise would result in a constitutional taking. As is explained in detail below, due to the specific facts of this case, the Commission can deny the present applications without committing such a taking. That is true, in part, because there are feasible alternatives to the proposed development that would avoid or substantially reduce the adverse environmental effects of the projects and the impacts that are inconsistent with the policies in Chapter 3 of the Coastal Act. Therefore, for the above reasons and for the reasons more fully explained in the following sections of this report, staff recommends that the Commission deny these applications. 

And most likely because of that Staff Recommendation, the Coastal Permit Applications for those five properties were pulled/postponed the day before that February 9, 2011 meeting.

• Yes … there are 5 Sites available for constructing 5 Houses.  BUT … do you really have a desperate urge to build all 5?   Why not just 1 … or 2 at the most … and find a ‘sustainable’ use, or uses, for the rest of the landscape??  

- Dubliner CJ Walsh, from his website.

April 2011: On April 2, 2011, Leaves in the Wind caught the eye of Dublin-based C.J. Walsh, whose https://cjwalsh.ie/ website described him as “Consultant Architect, Fire Engineer & Technical Controller – International Expert on Sustainability Implementation + Accessibility-for-All + Fire Safety for All + Sustainable Fire Engineering”

As a fellow Dubliner, Walsh claimed to be proud of The Edge and the Lovely Lads for all they had accomplished as musicians, but he wasn’t too keen on some aspects of The Edge’s plans for Leaves in the Wind. Walsh raised design, environmental and philosophical objections that mirrored those of Malibu citizens and concerned environmentalists.

Sustainability in Action ?!? – The Edge’s Malibu Housing Project

Posted 2011-04-2 by CJ Walsh

Leaves in the Wind is an innovative five-home green building and organic design project in Malibu California

2011-04-02:  While ‘sustainability’ may be a difficult concept to understand and implement … our collective consciousness of what is not sustainable … unsustainable … should be improving.  Does this, or that, intuitively ‘feel’ wrong ?   Please discuss.

This item came to my attention a few days ago, via an Architectural e-Newsletter from the ‘US of A’ … and it is a sad, sad reminder of the unsustainable construction frenzy which infected so many people in Ireland during the Celtic Tiger Years.

The Edge is one of our own … we delight in his success, and we are proud of him!

Colour photograph, extracted from the Project Fact Sheet (available to download from the 'Leaves in the Wind' WebSite), showing the view from Surfrider Beach of The Edge's Proposed 5 House Coastal Development in Malibu, California. 

The hilltop locations of 4 of the houses are indicated by white arrows. Where is the last house? 

At the beginning of a slick and convincing promotional video, the Proposed Coastal Housing Development by The Edge (David Evans) and his wife Morleigh Steinberg, is described as follows … 

” Leaves in the Wind is an innovative five-home green building and organic design project in Malibu, California.  Each home is actively seeking LEED Gold Certification from the U.S. Green Building Council.

All five terrain-appropriate, environmentally sustainable homes will be built on just over 1 acre of the 156-acre site, leaving most of the land untouched and in its natural state.”

A vague ‘artistic impression’ of each of the 5 Houses, available to download from the Project WebSite, shows that the designs are far from being earth-shatteringly innovative … and, in the case of at least 4 of the Houses, they will break the skyline at the top of the hills …

David (aka The Edge) … some Questions and Comments …

• A building which breaks a hilltop skyline has an enormously adverse visual impact.  Just visit the Bodrum Peninsula, in the south-west of Turkey, to see exactly what I am talking about.  Please move the houses in Malibu.  They are not ‘terrain-appropriate’.  Don’t destroy the visual enjoyment of the landscape for everyone else in the local community!

• Yes … there are 5 Sites available for constructing 5 Houses.  BUT … do you really have a desperate urge to build all 5?   Why not just 1 … or 2 at the most … and find a ‘sustainable’ use, or uses, for the rest of the landscape??   Are you familiar with ‘sustainable’ management?   Would you like to do something to slow down the rate of, and perhaps even reverse, biodiversity loss in Malibu?   If you have not done so already… would you like to consult, meaningfully, with members of the local community about your ideas … even at this advanced stage?

• Have you fully considered the large range of adverse environmental impacts during the long, difficult process of construction ?

• Finally (for now) … I regret very much that you have been an innocent victim of Ubiquitous American Greenwash Marketing … with profound apologies to Canada, Mexico and the rest of Central and South America!

The U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Building Rating System is only concerned with certain environmental aspects of Sustainable Human & Social Development.  There are many other aspects to sustainability which are equally, if not more, important.  

LEED is not a Sustainable Building Rating System.  And the Green Building Council, itself, knows this!   Please do some proper research!  

And PLEASE … do this before the ‘real’ design process commences … and definitely, before any work starts on site!!

May 2011: According to Martha Groves for the LA Times in September of 2014: 

“Many opponents were stunned when the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy, which had initially decried the project, abruptly backpedaled in May 2011 and voted to adopt a position of neutrality. The vote came after Evans and his team agreed to pay the conservancy $750,000 in cash so that it could purchase land, including an easement across the properties to extend the Coastal Slope Trail.”

May 27, 2011: Writing for Malibu Patch, Jonathan Friedman reported under the title:  Staff Recommends Coastal Commission Reject Development Proposal by U2 Rocker and subtitle: A representative for the project says the owner or owners will go forward with the proposal in hope that the commission will not side with the staff recommendation.

As expected, the California Coastal Commission staff has recommended the 12-member panel reject applications for five large homes off Sweetwater Mesa Road above Serra Canyon. U2 guitarist The Edge owns at least one of the lots (whether he owns all of them is a matter of dispute between the project representatives and coastal staff).

The applications will go before the commission next month in Marina del Rey. The staff recommendation was released Friday afternoon. Coastal staff had also recommended denying the applications prior to a scheduled February hearing. The applications were pulled from the agenda the day before the hearing was supposed to take place. This has happened several times during the past couple of years. But this time it appears the applications will go forward.

"We ... look forward to presenting our proposals and the real facts to the appointed Coastal Commissioners in June," Fiona Hutton, spokeswoman for The Edge and his possible partners, wrote in a press release.

In recommending the denial, staff writes, "[Staff] finds that the proposed projects will result in significant and unavoidable adverse individual and cumulative impacts to [an environmentally sensitive habitat area] and visual resources. ... The proposed developments will not avoid significant adverse effects, either individually or cumulatively, on coastal resources."

Hutton wrote in response, "The five separate property owners have worked tirelessly over the past four years to develop sustainable home designs that will protect the area's natural resources, blend with the surrounding landscape, and be responsive to the many changes sought by the Coastal Commission staff. The property owners have a clear legal right to develop their land and have cooperated and acted in good faith throughout the permitting process."

The hearing will take place June 16 at the Marina del Rey Hotel, located at 13534 Bali Way.

June 14, 2011: An Addendum to Commissioners and Interested Parties from South Central Coast District Staff  regarding Agenda Items 13c-h for the Thursday, June 16, 2011 California Coastal Commision meeting is a whopping 246 pages long (!)

This document - among many things - questions whether the five properties are all owned under five separate LLP, or are actually under the control of one person - with the intent to sell some of the properties for profit.

Unity of Ownership Facts: 

One or two parties appear to control this entire project, based on: 

David Evans’ statements to two sitting Commissioners. 

David Evans’ statements on his web-site for this development. 

Statements in numerous news articles. 

All five properties were purchased on the same day, with loans from the same bank. 

The coordinated recordation of the deeds of trust and grant deeds with sequential recordation numbers at the Office of the County Recorder for Los Angeles County. 

All five properties were purchased by LLCs that were created on the same day a week earlier. 

The five LLCs all converted to LLLPs on the same day. CDP Applications 4-10-040, 4-10-041, 4-10-042, 4-10-043, 4-10-044, 4-10-045 Page 7 

The principals of the five LLCs (and the original principals of the five LLLPs) were: one individual, his wife, his business partner, the Director of that business partner’s company, and the project manager. Three of those LLLPs changed their principals in 2010, soon after Commission staff informed the parties of staff’s intention to assert related ownership. One of the new owners is the individual’s sister. 

In essence, the CCC staff weren’t buying that the five projects were separately owned, and it was all just cover for Edge and his wife and maybe a partner or two to own all the properties - and possibly speculatively sell one or more of them.

And staff still objected to the access road, and the number of caissons and the visibility of the project(s) from PCH and elsewhere. And they objected to pretty much everything.

The staff recommendations for all five parcels were the same.

In the words of Dr. Evil: “HOW ABOUT NOOOOOO!!!!???”

STAFF RECOMMENDATION OF DENIAL: Staff recommends a NO vote. Following the staff recommendation will result in denial of the permit and adoption of the following resolution and findings. The motion passes only by affirmative vote of a majority of the Commissioners present. 

RESOLUTION TO DENY THE PERMIT: The Commission hereby denies the coastal development permit for the proposed development on the ground that the development will not conform with the policies of Chapter 3 of the Coastal Act and will prejudice the ability of the local government having jurisdiction over the area to prepare a Local Coastal Program conforming to the provisions of Chapter 3. Approval of the permit would not comply with the California Environmental Quality Act because there are feasible mitigation measures or alternatives that would substantially lessen the significant adverse impacts of the development on the environment.  

June 16, 2011: The California Coastal Commission meets at the Marina del Rey Hotel to consider all sides and make a judgment on the Sweetwater Mesa proposal. According to James Dolan: 

“So, despite a groundswell of vocal opposition, when Evans’ consultants walked into the Marina Del Rey Hotel in June 2011 for their first hearing before the commission, they had reason to hope their plans would be approved. They hit a buzz saw in the form of Peter M. Douglas. A fierce and controversial environmental crusader, Douglas had been a key author of the 1972 ballot initiative that created the commission, and had served as the agency’s Executive Director since 1985. In a rich baritone, Douglas opened the hearing with his succinct opinion of the project. The proposed homes were “very attractive,” Douglas offered, but they were still too big, too prominently perched on the ridgeline and the access road connecting them would carve a jagged, mile-long scar across the face of the mountain: “In my 38 years with the commission,” Douglas said, “I have never seen a project as environmentally devastating as this one.”

Shocked, Evans’ team scrambled. The project manager at the time, Don Schmitz, a former Coastal Commission employee who had become a developer’s consultant, lectured the commissioners for ignoring their history of allowing larger developments, with longer access roads, on surrounding hillsides.

If any tactic could have saved the day, confrontation wasn’t it. The commission voted 8-4 against the proposal.

Because Evans was entitled to build something on the land, Douglas’ staff offered an alternative: Make the houses smaller, move them off the ridgeline and cluster them close together on a relatively flat mesa lower on the hillside, eliminating the need for about half of the road.

And then they dropped a bomb. The commission staff didn’t believe there were actually five separate owners. Instead, they said, the limited liability corporations through which the partners held deeds were part of a scheme to mask the one true owner, Evans.

In that case, Evans would only be entitled to one house, but the staff was prepared to allow up to three.

That meant two of his four partners — Gillian Delaney, Evan’s sister; Chantal O'Sullivan, a Dublin antiques dealer who was the ring bearer at Evans’ wedding; and two wealthy Irish real estate investors, Tony Kilduff and Paddy McKillen – would be out of luck.

Evans’ team insisted the partnership was genuine, and that Evans had no controlling interest in the others’ property. They played videos recorded by three of the partners in Ireland conveying that message, but the commission wasn’t swayed.

Many applicants might have given up at that point, but The Edge had the money and determination to fight on.

August 2011: The property owners filed suit seeking to set aside the CCC’s denial of their applications.

The SMMC sell-out for $750,000 sends a signal that there is a bar code on projects in their jurisdiction. They are looking the other way on what will happen on the side of a mountain visible to millions so a section of trail that lacks connectivity can be obtained. 

• James Smith, in a 12-29-2011 letter to The Malibu Times.

2011: On December 29, 2011, Malibu citizen James Smith wrote a somewhat shocked/disappointed letter to The Malibu Times under the title: MONEY TALKS 

May 5: The Santa Monica Mountain Conservancy in 2009 sent a detailed 11-page letter to the Coastal Commission stating opposition to the massive project U2 Edge is planning on Sweetwater Mesa. 

Last Monday, the SMMC Board approved an agreement to no longer oppose the project in exchange for $750,000 in cash from the Edge group plus conservation easements which duplicate restrictions the Coastal Commission would seek anyway. 

The Board was told by the Executive Director Joe Edmiston that this money could be used as part of the Public Benefits Program to acquire trails. In the agreement, the SMMC is obligated to support the Public Benefits Program when the Edge Group requests, both in writing and in speaking before public hearings such as the Coastal Commission. The agreement conditions the payment of the $750,000 as being contingent on Edge getting building permits. 

No permit means no money. 

This condition links support of the Public Benefits Program with support of the Edge project. 

Edge has hired California Strategies, a very powerful lobby firm in Sacramento which also represents the City of Malibu. The SMMC agreement neutralized the opposition of the SMMC and gave Edge control of where and when the SMMC is to speak. All of this for $750,000. The area at issue above Sweetwater Mesa is one of the most sensitive locations in the Santa Monica Mountains. Approval of the Edge project as it is proposed will lead to development of the entire mountain side. 

The SMMC sell-out for $750,000 sends a signal that there is a bar code on projects in their jurisdiction. They are looking the other way on what will happen on the side of a mountain visible to millions so a section of trail that lacks connectivity can be obtained. 

Check the SMMC web site for more information. 

James Smith 

2011 - ????: Not that it’s anyone’s bidness, but The Edge’s celebrity net worth has been estimated at $340,000,000. In that spirit, the www.celebritynetworth.com for ???? 2019 synopsized what happened after the CCC said “What about NOOOOO!!!” and shot down the plan 8-4.

“This did not deter The Edge.

He sued the California Coastal Commission. In the light of Evans' lawsuit and his army of lawyers and pretty unlimited ability to pay those lawyers, the CCC softened its stance and said if he reduced the size of the homes and made them less visible, the commission might be more inclined to approve the development. The Edge then rescinded the lawsuit and sent his team of architects, engineers, and geologists back to the drawing board. He also said that he would give 140 of his 151 acres for public use and also pledged to give $1 million to the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy to build and maintain a public hiking trail. In exchange for all of this from The Edge, the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy dropped its opposition to the project.

The Edge sent attorneys and lobbyists to Sacramento, the state capital of California, to try to have planning laws changed. That wasn't successful, but it did cost him a small fortune. To date, his legal bills related to the project are in excess of $10 million.

In December 2015, The Edge brought the revised plans back to the California Coastal Commission and the five houses were smaller – the largest was 9,500 square feet, the homes were closer together, and pushed back from the edge of the ridge – which makes them less visible from the Pacific Coast Highway below.

The CCC approved the new plans with a vote of 12-0. The Edge didn't have any real time to celebrate the victory because a month later the Sierra Club sued and accused the CCC of violating environmental laws.”

2011 - 2012: From James Dolan in the LA Times:

First, he sued, asking a judge in October 2011 to determine that there were, in fact, five separate owners. Evans agreed to suspend the lawsuit while he and the commission staff explored an out-of-court compromise on the number, size and location of the houses.

In addition to the lawsuit, some of the lobbyists and lawyers Evans had previously hired, including ex-Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez, one of the most powerful advocates in Sacramento, launched an effort to change state law. They pushed a bill in the 2012 legislative session that would have required the Coastal Commission, and other state land regulators, to accept that a person, or corporation, that holds a deed is recognized as the property owner.

The bill died after fierce opposition from environmentalists and the regulatory agencies that would have been affected.

Around the same time Evans filed the lawsuit, he hired a new set of consultants to open a fresh permit application with the Coastal Commission and start the arduous approval process over again.

Two developers with experience building in coastal Malibu, and familiarity with The Edge’s proposal, estimated the total cost of his lobbying and legal campaign was at least $3 million, and possibly two or three times that amount.

2012: The musician’s team begin lobbying for a bill in Sacramento that would have eased the way for development of the properties. Environmentalists cast the bill as a power grab by developers and special interests, including Evans. After sailing through the Assembly, the bill was rejected by a key state Senate panel.

April 2012: James Dolan’s story in The LA Times covers the arc from the death of ??? Douglas in April 2012 through political struggles in the Coastal Commission and The Edge’s lawyers and consultants and architects redesigning and reconfiguring Leaves in the Wind leading up to the second Coastal Commission meeting in December of 2015 in Monterey.

 In a recent interview at her Studio City office, Evan's public affairs consultant, Fiona Hutton, refused to say how much the effort had cost. “We’re not going there,” she said.

An appraisal done last fall for Evans’ attorneys estimated that the combined value of the property and the houses would be roughly $66 million.

While Evans’ new team was busy redesigning the project to conform with most of the commission’s recommendations, the commission was undergoing dramatic changes of its own.

In nearly four decades as executive director, Douglas had fought off repeated attempts to remove him by powerful developers and their political allies. He succeeded, at least in part, because, under the rules he had helped write back in the 1970s, no single California politician could appoint a majority of the commission. That meant no single politician — not even the governor – could pick up the phone and give him orders, or have him fired.

But, shortly before the hearing on Evans’ project, Douglas had been diagnosed with cancer, and he was forced to give up his daily responsibilities later that month. He died less than a year later, in April 2012, at the age of 69.

Douglas’ second in command and hand-picked successor, Charles Lester, a former college professor, was equally committed to the environment but lacked his predecessor’s skill as a political infighter.

Not long after Lester took over, several commissioners appointed by Gov. Jerry Brown raised questions about Lester’s management ability. They complained about the time it took for developers to get permits approved, and about staff members failing to answer commission questions or respond to emails in a timely fashion.

Commission employees, almost all of whom signed a petition in support of Lester, feared a coup was underway, with the goal of cleaning house and restocking the agency with people who would be more sympathetic to developers.

That internal maneuvering, which ultimately led to Lester’s ouster three months ago, was nearing its climax in December 2015 when Evans and his partners stepped forward for a vote on their scaled-down plan.

They had incorporated virtually all of the commission staff’s recommendations. The houses would be moved off the prominent ridgeline, clustered on the mesa and none would be bigger than 10,000 square feet. They would be built and decorated with earth-tone materials, they’d have non-reflective glass to prevent glinting at sunset and they would employ so-called “dark skies” lighting – no outdoor lightbulb greater than 60 watts – to prevent the houses from glowing too brightly at night.

Evans and his partners also agreed to pay an archaeologist and a Native American consultant to supervise all digging and empower them to stop the process and gather any culturally sensitive artifacts that might emerge.

But the Evans team refused to budge on the biggest issue: They were still planning to build five houses.

The atmosphere at the hearing, though, had changed from their first appearance, four years earlier.

Douglas was gone, his once-assertive staff was on its heels and, because the hearing was in relatively remote Monterey, many of the opponents had chosen not to attend.

Orchestrating The Edge’s campaign this time was Susan McCabe, the go-to lobbyist for wealthy landowners seeking guidance through the commission’s maze of red tape. McCabe declined to comment for this story.

McCabe met with most of the commissioners in the weeks before the hearing. Evans lobbied hard, too. He and his wife gave one new commissioner, Long Beach City Councilman Roberto Uranga, a guided tour of the Malibu hillside.

Uranga, 62, said the celebrity treatment did nothing to sway him and that he didn’t even recognize The Edge, who turned up in a baseball hat instead of his trademark cotton beanie. “Honestly, I prefer jazz,” Uranga said. But he was impressed with all of the changes Evans had made to the proposed houses to address the commission’s concerns.

Evans met another new commissioner, Mark Vargas, in late November at a stadium in Dublin just before a U2 concert. Commissioners can’t accept gifts in excess of $10 per month from applicants. Vargas said he paid for everything himself, including airfare, hotel and even a ticket to the show. He said he’d been in London for a Thanksgiving vacation, and he attended the meeting on his “private time.”

Hacmon, Evans’ project director, said the U2 band members frequently hold meetings at arenas before shows. For them, it’s a workday, and they’re trying to get as much done as possible. Vargas got no special favors, Hacmon said, not even a free ticket to the concert.

“Commissioners cannot be bought; our experience is they have the highest integrity,” Hacmon said. “It’s ridiculous that people think we walk in with big cases of cash and just drop it.”

In addition to the new commissioners who were lining up on his side, Evans had also won over some of his most vocal critics.

Sweetwater Mesa’s closest neighbor, Jim Smith, 76, was among the first organizers of the opposition. He said he was so appalled by the scale of the original plan that, while riding down the hill in an ambulance after a massive heart attack in 2011, he pointed to the ridge out the back window and told the confused paramedic, “If I don’t make it, don’t let that son of a bitch get away with it!”

But that was all water under the bridge by late 2015. Smith said Evans had been to his house many times in the intervening years to settle their differences. “He’s a hell of a nice guy,” Smith said. “I took a lot of flack for my change of heart. People thought for sure I’d been paid off, but I didn’t get a nickel.”

Evans also got support from former neighbor Davis Guggenheim, director of the global-warming documentary “An Inconvenient Truth.”

“I think the objections to this thing are overwrought,” Guggenheim said. “You can’t find more conscientious people than The Edge and Morleigh… they’ve gone to tremendous lengths to make sure these houses are environmentally sound.”

The long process has probably taught Evans more than he wanted to know about California politics, but he’s always been a master showman, and it’s hard to watch the video of the December hearing without admiring the casting.

2013: Writing for the San Diego Reader under the long title and longer subtitle Lobbyist White makes hay simultaneously handling city of Malibu and U2's the Edge: Potential conflict of interest involving Pete Wilson’s ex-top political guru and high flying lobbying business detailed in L.A. Times, ???? explained:

Today's L.A. Times reports that White's firm has also been mining some big cash in the super rich beachside haven of Malibu, just north of L.A., by working for both the city government there and a famous denizen who's been fighting city hall:

In Malibu, officials raised concerns about potential conflicts of interest in the way their work was being handled by a firm called California Strategies, which the city has paid $150,000 a year since 2004 for state government advocacy. The firm simultaneously represented U2 guitarist David Evans, better known as the Edge, in his 2009 quest to build five homes on the bluffs overlooking the Malibu coastline — an effort some members of the City Council opposed.

"It made me uneasy, because the lobbying firm [was] representing something the city may not be happy with," said Jefferson Wagner, who sat on the City Council from 2008 until mid-2012. Wagner was opposed to the development and told the city's advocate, California Strategies' Ted Harris, that the firm's work on the project "made it awkward for me."

Jason Kinney, a spokesman for the firm, said its partners determined there was no conflict in accepting Evans as a client because the necessary permits were dispensed by the California Coastal Commission, not the Malibu City Council. The Coastal Commission ultimately rejected the project.

September 2014: On September 19, 2014 Martha Groves wrote for the LA Times: Coastal panel recommends that U2 guitarist’s Malibu project proceed

“After years of skirmishing over a rock star’s proposal to build a secluded compound on a rugged Malibu ridge, the California Coastal Commission staff recommended Friday that the project move forward — with modifications.

U2 guitarist the Edge, a.k.a. David Evans, has gone to great lengths since 2006 to secure permits to build five homes, including his own, and an access road on Sweetwater Mesa in the Santa Monica Mountains.

For the last year, staff members have been quietly negotiating with Evans’ extensive team of environmental consultants, attorneys and lobbyists.”

May 8, 2015: In a letter to the Coastal Commision, Errol and Annette Ginsberg expressed grave doubts about the Sweetwater Mesa project

Dear Commissioners, 

My family has lived in Serra Canyon since 1990 and on Sweetwater Mesa Road for the last five and half years. We are extremely concerned about the David Evans (Edge) Sweetwater development because of all the negative impacts that will result from this massive development. 

Please ask yourselves why do we have a Local Coastal Plan and then have California Coastal Commission Staff propose the approval of a massive development that violates many of the key principles and policies of the LCP? Some of the excessive construction that will result if this development moves forward that are in direct conflict with the LCP are:  

A water line nearly one and half miles long in an area where there is mostly no existing road.  

Significant grading with no explanation as to where the excess dirt will be located on the sites. If the excess is to be removed this will result in thousands of truck trips up and down Sweetwater Mesa Road.  

No consideration whatsoever has been given by staff to the section of road that will need to be constructed that is outside of LA County. This section of road in the City of Malibu is about 1700 feet long and is extremely steep in parts and will almost certainly require significant grading and caissons.    

Over 500 feet of retaining walls in a landslide area.    

Road construction on a slide area that will require 152 caissons (some of them are 79 feet deep and 5 feet in diameter).  

Rockfall containment barrier up to 14 feet tall and 315 feet long.  

Significant ridgeline development.

May 12, 2015: An addendum citing revisions to special conditions and findings of the May 1, 2015 staff report is 217 pages long (!) and includes 43 letters arguing for and against the project. While John Paul Dejoria/Paul Mitchell and a few others approve of the Sweetwater Mesa, the majority of the letters are adamantly opposed to it and cite traffic density, air quality, fire and safety, ridgeline protection, habitat protection, waterline, grading and removal, wildlife connectivity, noise, and the tight, delicate nature of Sweetwater Mesa Road, which would be the path for thousands of truckload carrying out dirt and bringing in building materials.

I think this is the entrance/exit to the Serra Road/Sweetwater Mesa Road that trucks would use to access the construction site. No bueno.

Sweetwater Mesa Road leads to Serra Road which is steep and rough and leads directly onto Pacific Coast Highway. If one of those hundreds or thousands of fully-dirt-laden trucks were to lose its brakes and run out onto PCH, some unlucky motorist(s) would be screwed, and everyone would get sued.

December 2015: The specifications for the CDPs considered at the December 2015 meeting were as follows: 

(1) five new single family residences ranging in size from 10,315 square feet to 11,189 square feet (including garages and non-habitable storage space) on five adjoining lots; (2) 27,570 cubic yards of grading (23,250 cubic yards of cut; 4,320 cubic yards of fill) for the five residence development areas and private driveways; (3) 25,520 cubic yards of grading (6,700 cubic yards cut and 19,450 cubic yards of fill) for the 2,180-linear foot long, 20-foot wide shared access road extending across the project sites (connecting Sweetwater Mesa Road in Malibu by construction of a road segment which remained subject to consideration by the City Council of the City of Malibu); (4) 3,030 cubic yards of grading (40 cubic yards cut and 2,990 cubic yards fill) for fire department turnout along the shared access road; (5) 7,270 cubic yards of excavation required for structural piles for the five residences’ foundations; (6) a 315-linear foot rock fall stabilization device along the shared access road and a 190-linear foot rock fall stabilization device on the Ronan residence site; (7) 7,000-linear foot long waterline extension to the sites from Costa Del Sol Road; (8) recordation of an open space conservation easement grant over 137 acres, including portions of the five construction sites, and of a grant deed for the dedication of a sixth, contiguous, approximately nine-acre parcel to Mountains Recreation Conservation Authority; (9) an offer to dedicate a trail easement for the Coastal Slope Trail which runs through the project area; (10) lot line adjustments; (11) implementation of a Habitat Mitigation and Monitoring Plan for an endangered species of vegetation (purple needlegrass) and restoration and revegetation of a dirt access road that had not been restored earlier; (12) implemental of construction traffic mitigation measures.

2015: In The LA Times, James Dolan detailed The Edge’s new presentation to the Coastal Commission.

Gone was the argumentative, precedent-citing former project manager who had done the original presentation. He was replaced by Hacmon, an artist and sometime model, who had interrupted his architecture career in 2007 to play the title role in a National Geographic documentary, “The Missing Years of Jesus.”

Hacmon didn’t speak in the film. He provided the B-roll, walking through the desert with his long hair flowing and his soulful brown eyes searching the horizon. He had a similar look as he stepped to the podium at the December hearing.

“We are artists,” Hacmon told the commissioners. “For us, the mountain is the sculpture, and our inspiration…our intention is to disappear and become one with the mountain.”

The commissioners voted 12-0 in The Edge’s favor.

The Sierra Club has sued to overturn the commission’s decision, but legal experts call it a long shot. Barring court intervention, The Edge could break ground as early as next year.

We are artists. For us, the mountain is the sculpture, and our inspiration…our intention is to disappear and become one with the mountain.

-Moses Hacmon

December 10, 2015: The Coastal Commission meeting is held at the Portola Plaza Hotel in Monterey which perhaps cut down on the number of anti-Leaves in the Wind commenters. Four years had passed - and God knows how many millions of dollars and billable hours - but this time the California Coastal Commission approved all five of the Coastal Permit Applications - with conditions.

“I don’t know Malibu enough, other than I know sometimes they get a little ornery,”  CCC commissioner Martha McClure, quoted by Emily Sawicki in the Malibu Times   for December 17, 2015

December 17, 2015: Writing for the Malibu Times under the title Coastal Commission Approves “Edge” Project  Emily Sawicki reported:

U2 rocker David Evans, known by his stage name The Edge, has overcome the first of several hurdles on his way to building five houses on a prominent ridgeline off Sweetwater Mesa in Malibu, with the California Coastal Commission (CCC) voting unanimously on Thursday to approve the project and move it forward for its next set of approvals.

Though, according to conservationists, this decision may be considered writing on the wall for the pristine land, which, it should be noted, is zoned for rural residential development but, as most Malibu residents know, gaining approval to build anything in Malibu is a feat not for the faint of heart.

“U2’s The Edge Given Permission to Ruin Untouched Malibu Bluff,” declares a headline from Curbed LA, an online real estate newspaper. The CCC decision from Dec. 10 has received press coverage from local and national sources that is critical at best and inflammatory at worst, despite the fact that, “it’s a very large site and the cluster is very small,” according to Moses Hacmon, project director. CCC staff and commissioners seem to agree.

Complaints regarding the size and location of the homes, which range in square footage from 7,812 sq. ft. to 9,572 sq. ft., were not the only issues raised by those who came to speak at the meeting, which was held in Monterey, Calif.

Sarah Sikich, Vice President of Heal the Bay, implored commissioners to hold off on their decision until they could meet closer to Malibu. “[We] request that the commission postpone the hearing until it can be held more locally,” Sikich asked, citing requests from L.A. County Supervisor Sheila Kuehl and Senator Fran Pavley, among others. 

“I am very concerned that the Commission scheduled this upcoming hearing in Monterey during the holiday season, virtually eliminating the possibility of local participation at the hearing,” read a letter Kuehl sent to CCC Chair Steve Kinsey.

The reply from the dias stated that the January CCC meeting, scheduled to take place in San Diego, would not be significantly closer to Malibu and therefore the hearing should continue. The December meeting, which took place at the Portola Plaza Hotel in Monterey, was about 310 driving miles from Sweetwater Mesa. The January meeting, to take place at the San Diego Board of Supervisors Chambers, will be less than half that distance — about 146 driving miles from Sweetwater Mesa.

“It becomes very clear when you’re on the site that the obvious alternative is to cluster the project on that mesa site,” said CCC Senior Deputy Director Jack Ainsworth. 

The original application for the development was submitted in late 2010 and rejected by the CCC in 2011 on grounds that the original plans would have a significant negative impact on “visible resources.” The clustering of the houses is designed to preserve more of the 151-acre site.

The project includes an open space easement of 137 acres granted to the Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority.

“The proposed structures are sited and designed in a clustered configuration to minimize visual impacts,” read the staff report of the project. These changes were suggested by CCC staff years ago, according to a wry comment by Ainsworth. “If the applicant had listened, they would be having Christmas dinner in their house today, probably,” Ainsworth said.

What Ainsworth failed to take into account with that comment was approval needed from the formidable Malibu Planning Commission and the Malibu City Council — an idea not lost on CCC Commissioner Martha McClure. “I don’t know Malibu enough, other than I know sometimes they get a little ornery,” McClure said, stating that the city may refuse to review the project until after it is reviewed in L.A.

In the end, commissioners voted 12-0 to approve the project to move forward with an extended term of five years for approval by L.A. County and the City of Malibu

January 27, 2016: So after 11 years of battling with the California Coastal Commission and expensively rejiggering Leaves in the Wind, the project is approved 12-0. But then the Sierra Club came in swinging.

The Sierra Club Los Angeles Chapter newsletter reports in SIERRA CLUB SUES COASTAL COMMISSION TO HALT MOUNTAIN-TOP HOUSING PROJECT IN MALIBU: 

“The Chapter has sued to stop the Sweetwater Mesa project in the mountains above Malibu which would forever change the face of the surrounding 28,000 acres of native chaparral habitat. The plan to build a complex of houses will permanently destroy this rare habitat, and there's no way to mitigate its effect. Once it's gone, it's gone forever.

Chapter activists worked hard over the years to block the development at hearing after hearing of the California Coastal Commission. The commission gave its OK to the plan that would destroy a mountain ridge in Malibu. The lawsuit calls out the Coastal Commission for violating state law in approving the project.

Specifically, the commission:

--unlawfully approved a project that was inconsistent with the California Coastal Act and the Local Coastal Plan. Sweetwater Mesa was designated as open space in the Coastal Plan; and

--violated CEQA by failing to do a proper environmental analysis of the project. So there's no way to enforce measures to mitigate the project’s effects.

The Commission rightly denied the project in 2011, but was subsequently sued and pressured by the real estate developers to reconsider its decision.

The project is located in the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreational Area, one of the greatest urban parklands in the country. Roughly 54% of the 160,000 acres is public or otherwise protected open space that's home to coyotes, bobcats and other wildlife.

But lacking funds to buy all the parkland, scenic viewsheds, habitat linkages, watersheds and trail corridors that need protection, it's imperative that the protective policies of the California Coastal Commission and the Los Angeles County Coastal Coastal Plan be used to protect the land.

1904 - 2019: Similar to Prudhomme facing the three-person Public Lands Commission way back in the 1850s, the fate of Leaves in the Wind fell to three justices in the Second District of the California Courts of Appeal. 

According to courts.ca.gov: 

On November 8, 1904, Article 6 section 4 of the California Constitution was adopted creating 3 District Courts of Appeal: the First District located in San Francisco, the Second District located in Los Angeles, and the Third District located in Sacramento. 

The Constitution was modified in 1966 and there are now six Courts of Appeal: The Fourth District with Divisions in San Diego, Riverside and Santa Ana, the Fifth District in Fresno and the Sixth District in San Jose.

The Second District held its first session on April 24, 1905. It is now made up of four counties, Los Angeles, Ventura, Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo. There are eight Divisions of four justices each. Divisions 1-5, 7 and 8 are located in Los Angeles, and handle all matters arising from the Los Angeles Superior Court. Division 6 is located in Ventura and handles all matters from the Ventura, Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo Superior Courts.

Courts of Appeal review final judgments of Superior Courts for prejudicial errors of law. Most appellate dispositions are by written opinion. The Second District files over 5,000 appellate opinions each year. Courts of Appeal have original jurisdiction over writs of habeas corpus, mandamus, prohibition, and certiorari. Writ petitions may be disposed of by summary order or written opinion. The Second District disposes over 3,700 writ petitions yearly.

Cases are decided by randomly selected three Justice panels. There are 32 Justices in the Second District. Justices are appointed by the Governor and confirmed by the Commission on Judicial Appointments. Newly appointed Justices must be retained by the public at the next general election and at the end of each 12 year term.

2016: According to Samuel Braslow writing on June 21, 2019 for Los Angeles Magazine under the title The Edge’s 14-Year Battle to Build a Malibu Compound Comes to an End: The U2 guitarist’s ”environmentally devastating” plan gets the kibosh after a years-long fight

Enter: the Santa Monica Mountains Task Force, a local chapter of the Sierra Club. The environmental advocacy group filed suit against both the California Coastal Commission and Evans in 2016, arguing that the commission had improperly granted Evans’s permit. Led by attorney Dean Wallraff, the Sierra Club claimed that the commission had not sufficiently studied the environmental impact of the project as required by state law. Furthermore, they asserted, the development violated the California Coastal Act of 1976 by disrupting an environmentally sensitive habitat.

For that reason, it came as a surprise when the Court of Appeals ruled in favor of the Sierra Club, but not for any of the arguments they put forward. Instead, the court found that the Coastal Commission never had the right to issue the permits in the first place. The millions of dollars and years of lobbying, it turned out, had been spent in the wrong lobbies.

The suit was characterized as a long shot at the time—a prognostication that soon came true. The Los Angeles Superior Court ruled against Wallraff and the Sierra Club.

But after some consideration, Wallraff appealed the ruling, reiterating the same arguments he had made to the trial court. For that reason, it came as a surprise when the Court of Appeals ruled in favor of the Sierra Club, but not for any of the arguments they put forward. Instead, the court found that the Coastal Commission never had the right to issue the permits in the first place. The millions of dollars and years of lobbying, it turned out, had been spent in the wrong lobbies.

“Actually, both sides were surprised that the two main issues in the trial court were not the basis for the Court of Appeals’ ruling,” Wallraff says. “The Coastal Commission no longer had jurisdiction to consider the Edge’s permit application once the county had adopted a local coastal plan in 2014, which transferred jurisdiction of the permits to the county.”

May 2017: On June 19, 2019, west coast editor for the UK’s Daily Mail bridged the gap in court cases and appeals from the Sierra Club appealing the Coastal Commission approval, and a judge finally putting a kibosh on the whole deal:

In May 2017, LA Superior Court Judge James Chalfant devastated the Sierra Club by ruling in favor of The Edge and the CCC.

The judge decided the Commission had complied with local planning laws in approving the project - which would have set Evans back an estimated $78 million in construction costs, including $24 million for the access road alone.

The Sierra Club wasn't done though.

Two months later, Wallraff filed an appeal against Judge Chalfant's ruling.

Fast forward through almost two more years of the appeals process and last March it was the Sierra Club's turn to win.

California's Court of Appeal 2nd District upheld the Club's appeal and threw out the original court's decision for Evans.

The Appeals judges found the CCC had not complied with local planning laws in approving Evans' project and that LA County Regional Planning Department has approval power over the project, not the CCC.

Evans only recourse at that point was to go to the California Supreme Court - which this week refused to review his case.

According to court documents, the five-home project, proposed by Evans and other investors, should never have been approved by the California Coastal Commission (CCC). Rather, the decision falls under the jurisdiction of LA County, because the county has a Santa Monica Mountains Local Coastal Plan in effect; essentially, the commission overstepped its bounds. 

• Emily Sawicki in The Malibu Times for March 2019.

March 21, 2019: Writing for The Malibu Times for March 27, 2019 under the title Court Decision Nail in Coffin for ‘The Edge’ Sweetwater Mesa Development, Emily Sawicki essentially sounded taps for the 14-year-old project:

U2 guitarist The Edge—aka David Evans—may be better known in Malibu for his long-denied dream of building five houses on Sweetwater Mesa than for his role in the prolific Irish rock group. Now, it seems as if his plan to build homes on the central Malibu ridgeline is less attainable than ever, after a judgment made last Thursday in the California Court of Appeals once again closed the door on the project. According to court documents, the five-home project, proposed by Evans and other investors, should never have been approved by the California Coastal Commission (CCC). Rather, the decision falls under the jurisdiction of LA County, because the county has a Santa Monica Mountains Local Coastal Plan in effect; essentially, the commission overstepped its bounds. 

What this means for Evans and other investors is they will have to start over again, this time working with the county to gain approval for the development.

The proposed homes, which ranged in square footage from 7,812 sq. ft. to 9,572 sq. ft., underwent various changes in order to make them fit narrow stipulations mandated by the California Coastal Commission (CCC). The project included an open space easement of 137 acres granted to the Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority. Originally, Evans requested the houses take up 9.2 acres of the bluff; that was later condensed to 4.3 acres. The total site is 151 acres.

Many of these changes came about in 2011 after the CCC originally rejected the project’s 2010 application.

Coastal Commission Director Jack Ainsworth—who was deputy director at the time—admitted the proposal was in violation of the Coastal Act. 

“That whole area up there is considered to be environmentally sensitive habitat area, so under the Coastal Act, technically it would not be consistent with the policies to protect sensitive areas,” Ainsworth said in 2014. However, the CCC said it was compelled to allow some kind of development on the parcels due to their zoning—to avoid what’s known as a “taking,” where the government stops a property owner from making lawful use of his or her land.

Finally, in late 2015, the commission approved the plans. Almost immediately, they were challenged in court by environmental nonprofit the Sierra Club.

The plans have been tied up in court since January 2016; first, Sierra Club lawyers filed a petition for a writ of mandate asking that the court stop the project from proceeding. When that was thrown out, the club appealed on several grounds: According to the club, the commission failed to properly study the environmental impact of the development, abused its discretion because the project violated the local coastal plan, and was incorrect in stating denial of the project would constitute a taking.

According to Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge James Chalfant, the California Coastal Commission simply did not have the authority to approve the projects.

In a message Sierra Club attorney Dean Wallraff sent to members—which was later shared with The Malibu Times—Wallraff described the win as “narrow.” He summarized Chalfant’s decision: “Once LA County adopted its Local Coastal Program for the area, the Coastal Commission no longer had jurisdiction to approve the permits, so those permits are voided.”

“But we won, which will make it much harder for the developers to do the project,” the attorney added. “For now, the 155 acres will remain undisturbed.”

Finally, after at least 60 lawyers, lobbyists, and environmental consultants and more than 70 technical reports authored by geologists, biologists, hydrologists, archaeologists, arborists, structural engineers, and transportation engineers, the California judicial system has rejected Evans’s vision for his forever home. The final nail in the coffin came last week when the California Supreme Court decided not to hear Evans’s appeal of an earlier ruling against him, finalizing an unexpected victory for the considerably less-resourced conservationists.

• Samuel Braslow on June 21, 2019 in lamag.com

Wallraff's advice to The Edge: 'Give it up and move on,' he said. 'Sell the land or better still, donate it to the Santa Monica Mountain Conservancy so that the people can enjoy it.

'Do something good with this beautiful piece of property instead of destroying it. Go somewhere else to build your homes!'

• Attorney Dean Walraff, quoted by Ryan Perry on 6-18-2019 for the UK’s Daily Mail.

2019: On June 18, 2019, Ryan Parry writing as the West Coast Editor for England’s Daily Mail wrote under the title:  California Supreme Court denied The Edge's (real name David Evans) petition to review his case for his $100million Malibu dream complex, shattering his construction plans 

U2 guitarist The Edge's dreams of building an ultra-luxurious, $100million family compound overlooking the Pacific in Malibu have been all but shattered, DailyMailTV can reveal.

The 57-year-old Irish rocker - real name David Evans - has been trying for 14 years to construct five ultra-modern mini-mansions on an idyllic plot he bought, despite the loud protests of outraged environmentalists who say his plan would destroy a pristine, untouched mountainside.

And now, after a long-drawn out - and expensive - court battle that Evans lost on appeal, the California Supreme Court issued its decision denying his petition to review the case.

The court's refusal even to consider hearing his case effectively torpedoes Evans' ambitious project, which he calls 'Leaves in the Wind.'

'He's finished - the California Supreme Court was his last resort,' Dean Wallraff, lawyer for the pro-environment Sierra Club - which sued Evans over his plan - told DailyMailTV.

'I'm very happy that the Supreme Court decided not to review the case because it brings a definitive end to this terrible project which would have caused devastating damage.'

If Evans - who has refused to take no for an answer during all the years of roadblocks he's faced in trying to get his houses built - wants to pursue his dream, he could re-apply to Los Angeles County planners for new building permits.

But it would be another, years-long uphill battle.

Evans - to no avail - altered the architecture and planning to accommodate environmental groups and agreed that the houses (pictured in this rendering) would be built with 'earth tone' materials, they would have non-reflective glass to cut down glinting, and outside light bulbs would be no more than 60 watts to prevent too much brightness at night.

'He would have to start from scratch, with new applications to LA County Department of Regional Planning for new permits,' added Wallraff.

'Then he would have to get approval from the five members of the LA Board of Supervisors - which would be tough since the member who represents Malibu, Shiela Kuehl, is on record opposing Evans' project.

'All of that could take another two or three years - with no guarantee that either LA County or the Board of Supervisors would say yes.'

Wallraff's advice to The Edge: 'Give it up and move on,' he said. 'Sell the land or better still, donate it to the Santa Monica Mountain Conservancy so that the people can enjoy it.

'Do something good with this beautiful piece of property instead of destroying it. Go somewhere else to build your homes!'

Whether the wealthy Irish musician and songwriter will finally abandon his Malibu project or choose to keep his dream alive, he isn't saying.

Stan Lamport, the Los Angeles attorney who has represented him through years of court action, didn't return DailyMailTV's calls.

But if the U2 star worth an estimated $340million - who alongside lead singer Bono, bass guitarist Adam Clayton and drummer Larry Mullen Jr, make up one of the biggest rock bands in the world - refuses to give in and wants to pursue his dream home project, Wallraff and the 640,000 members of the Sierra Club will be ready.

'We'll fight him again, all the way to the Supreme Court again,' declared Wallraff. 'In reality, I think it would be very hard for him to get new building permits from LA County, or approval from the Board of Supervisors.

'But in the highly unlikely event that he does, we will fight him in court all the way. We will never give up.'

2019: On June 21, 2019, Samuel Braslow looked ahead in 2019 and didn’t see much good for The Edge and Leaves in the Wind:

But after some consideration, Wallraff appealed the ruling, reiterating the same arguments he had made to the trial court. For that reason, it came as a surprise when the Court of Appeals ruled in favor of the Sierra Club, but not for any of the arguments they put forward. Instead, the court found that the Coastal Commission never had the right to issue the permits in the first place. The millions of dollars and years of lobbying, it turned out, had been spent in the wrong lobbies.

“Actually, both sides were surprised that the two main issues in the trial court were not the basis for the Court of Appeals’ ruling,” Wallraff says. “The Coastal Commission no longer had jurisdiction to consider the Edge’s permit application once the county had adopted a local coastal plan in 2014, which transferred jurisdiction of the permits to the county.”

Evans appealed the ruling to the state’s highest court, but the State Supreme Court only hears a fraction of the total cases that seek a hearing with them. The contested $100 million hillside mansion compound did not seem to catch their interest. By doing nothing, the court upheld the ruling by the Court of Appeals, ensconcing the Sierra Club’s victory.

Wallraff hopes that Sweetwater Mesa might find its way into the possession of a public agency like the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy, “so that it can be part of an ever increasing area of public parkland in the Santa Monica Mountains.”

If Evans plans on a round three, he will now have to seek approval from the Los Angeles County Department of Regional Planning. This means starting over from scratch and performing a full Environmental Impact Report. Then, if the project gets permitted by Regional Planning, it faces a political barrier in the form of County Supervisor Sheila Kuehl, who oversees the district containing Sweetwater. In comments submitted during the trial court proceedings, Kuehl expressed her “deep concern and opposition” to the development, which was “inconsistent” with the county’s environmental goals, she wrote.

Then if Evans manages to surmount both the Department of Regional Planning and Supervisor Kuehl, he will still face one last impediment.

“If it gets approved, the Sierra Club is very likely to sue again over those approvals,” Wallraff says, “and we’ll be back in the courts for another ten years.”

2022: The saga of David “The Edge” Evans and his trials and tribulations developing Sweetwater Mesa is the perfect Coda to this history of Malibu: The Hard Cash in Chumash to Hard Cash.

All the legal documents and press articles and letters and court decisions could easily fill a book as dense as T.E Lawrence’s Seven Pillars of Wisdom and the size of Churchill’s 510,000-word A History of the English Speaking Peoples. 

This conflict generated mountains of reports, staff recommendations, snide and sympathetic journalism and dozens of letters to the Coastal Commission and other agencies.

This whole story was as large as 20,000 words at one time before it got condensed. It was sent around to various Malibu people for comment and generated more correspondence to add to the mountain. Jefferson “Zuma Jay” Wagner was on the Malibu City Council from ??? to ??? and was mayor from ???? to ???. This was his response:

There are many facets you are missing on the Edge project. As an author, “you can paint like an artist, but the public will still be the judge.” - JW

I was an elected official by the citizens of Malibu and sat through the hearings at the Coastal Commission on several occasions representing the constituent’s desires. 

Don Schmitz was the original coastal expeditor for David Evans et. al. Don was always known as a property rights advocate. He was released when Coastal Commission first denied the project, as it had significant ridgeline, ESHA proximity, and no District 29 water access. Water access for the Edge project would come from L.V.M.W.D., the other water provider for Malibu hillsides. The main for L.V.M.W.D. is up on the top of the ridge (Stunt and Schuren Roads) area. A full-size road would have to be built from the top down to the Edge compound. The road would be paved at 15’-0” minimum. This new service road would allow access to the unbuildable 25 properties above the Evans compound. Because the Evans compound is not in the city, it falls into the L.A. Co. Building Department and is not part of the Malibu L.C.P. The county guidelines are more restrictive than the city of Malibu. Even if Evans had won in the Appellate Court after losing in the California State Supreme Court, the Serra Canyon H.O.A.’s 250 due-paying members would not allow all the years of ground scraping concrete trucks with 100,000 cubic yards of export on their fragile, one-lane asphalt road. That IS in the city’s jurisdiction, so add another 5 years in legal battles.

Evans tried this scheme in Latigo Canyon in the 90’s. 210 homeowners saw the fallacy [of the] plan, and fought it in court to his loss. After losing in Latigo, his plans moved to Serra. I was president of the Latigo Canyon Preservation Association during the lawsuit. The city of Malibu failed in its responsibility to follow its own L.C.P. and the Preservation Association was also awarded legal fees. In essence, Wagner 2, Evans 0.

17,000 sq.ft. homes are his rights. He even tried the scam of having his niece and/or nephew as property owners, as well as Morleigh. To avoid the appearance, he would sell 3 homes to help defray the cost of all 5, keeping one or two for himself. 

Since you are such a fan of Evans, why not ask him about the 500 million iPhone users who did not appreciate him forcing U2 music, “Songs of Innocence”, upon them via iTunes? See: CBS News by Erik Sherman, Sept. 16th 2014. You also might want to refer to the LA Times articles written about 2 California Commissioners entertained by Evans in Ireland (he paid for the trips). 

This scoundrel’s efforts are far too numerous to write about in your short article. As a journalist, you should have all of the knowledge about someone you are about to throw glorious salutations upon.

THE END

WEBPAGES AND REFERENCES

SANTA MONICA MOUNTAINS LOCAL COASTAL PROGRAM

https://planning.lacounty.gov/coastal/smm

COURT OF APPEALS DESCRIPTION

https://www.courts.ca.gov/2127.htm

Introduction to California Coastal Act

https://www.coastal.ca.gov/coastalvoices/IntroductionToCoastalAct.pdf

The Edge of Destruction - LA Weekly https://www.laweekly.com/the-edge-of-destruction/

Coastal Commission Approves Edge Project 12-17-2005 

https://malibutimes.com/article_e2fa0bbc-a44c-11e5-9c7d-a71cf48af2a9

Coastal Commission JUNE 2011 AGENDA MARINA DEL REY HOTEL

https://www.coastal.ca.gov/meetings/mtg-mm11-6.html

CITY OF MALIBU LOCAL COASTAL PROGRAM LAND USE PLAN

2002 https://www.coastal.ca.gov/ventura/malibu-lup-final.pdf

2003 Designation of ESHA in Santa Monica Mountains from Ventura

https://www.coastal.ca.gov/ventura/smm-esha-memo.pdf

2010 Coastal Comission Staff Report for February 2011 meeting

https://documents.coastal.ca.gov/reports/2011/2/Th8a-s-2-2011.pdf

2011 Addendum to Coastal Commissioners. Staff recommendation prior to 2011 meeting

https://documents.coastal.ca.gov/reports/2011/6/Th13c-s-6-2011.pdf

2011 Agenda for February 2011 Coastal Commiission meeting in Chula Vista - postponed

https://www.coastal.ca.gov/meetings/mtg-mm11-2.html

Significant Rideglines

https://library.municode.com/ca/los_angeles_county/codes/code_of_ordinances?nodeId=TIT22PLZO_DIV10COSTDI_CH22.336SAMOMONOARCOSTDI_APXICRSIRI

2011 Patch Friedman Suggests Rejecting

https://patch.com/california/malibu/staff-recommends-coastal-commission-reject-developmen11f954755f

2011 Letter to Malibu Times from James Smith

file:///C:/Users/thebe/Google%20Drive/Malibu%20Past%20and%20Present%20-%20Then%20and%20Now%20-%209-14-19/Chumash%20to%20Hard%20Cash%20-%20unknown%20edge%20story%20from%20Pepperdine%20-%207-13-2022%20PDNP01_31667.pdf

Fact Sheet Ridgeline Protection Ordinance

https://planning.lacity.org/odocument/ae69639f-2434-4274-90e3-a7972e883a99/Fact_Sheet.pdf

2013 Lobbyist White makes hay simultaneously handling city of Malibu and U2's the Edge

https://www.sandiegoreader.com/weblogs/news-ticker/2013/mar/18/lobbyist-white-makes-hay-simultaneously-handling-c/

2014 LA Times Coastal panel recommends that U2 guitarist’s Malibu project proceed

https://www.latimes.com/local/westside/la-me-edge-malibu-20140920-story.html

2015 ADDENDUM May 12, 2015 Commissioners and Interested Parties FROM: South Central Coast District Staff SUBJECT: Agenda Items 16a-f, Thursday, May 14, 2015, Coastal Development Permit Application Numbers 4-10-040, 4-10-04

https://documents.coastal.ca.gov/reports/2015/5/th16a-s-5-2015-a1.pdf

EXHIBITS TO THE COASTAL COMMISSION SOMETHING

Wallace Cunningham and all that.

https://documents.coastal.ca.gov/reports/2011/2/Th8a-s-2-2011-a4.pdf

2015 Coastal Commission Agenda for Monterey Portola Plaza meeting

https://www.coastal.ca.gov/meetings/mtg-mm15-12.html

2016  U2's The Edge and his decade-long fight to build on a pristine Malibu hillside By JACK DOLAN MAY 13, 2016 Allen J Schaben

http://static.latimes.com/the-edge/

2018 City of Calabasas Hillside and Ridgeline deal

https://www.cityofcalabasas.com/home/showpublisheddocument/15885/637279016218500000

2019 Celebrity Net Worth Environmental Groups Force The Edge To Put His $100 Million Malibu Dream Home On Hold

https://www.celebritynetworth.com/articles/entertainment-articles/environmental-groups-force-the-edge-to-put-his-100-million-malibu-dream-home-on-hold/

2019 

Daily Mail He’s Finished!!

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7151333/U2-guitarist-Edges-dreams-building-100-million-family-compound-Malibu-shattered.html

Wallace Cunningham website
https://wallacecunningham.com/firm-in-san-diego/

Malibu Local Coastal Program description

https://www.malibucity.org/372/Local-Coastal-Program

2019 Court Decision Nail in Coffin Emily Sawicki Malibu Times

https://malibutimes.com/article_ae7e93f0-509f-11e9-a69b-57d898fddea0

2019 Sierra Club Announces Victory

https://angeles.sierraclub.org/news/blog/2019/03/sierra_club_wins_appeal_stop_sweetwater_mesa_project_malibu

2019 Sierra Club vs Coastal Commission Second Appelate Court

file:///C:/Users/thebe/Google%20Drive/Malibu%20Past%20and%20Present%20-%20Then%20and%20Now%20-%209-14-19/Chumash%20to%20Hard%20Cash%20-%20The%20Edge%20lawsuit%20for%202019%20-%207-10-2022.pdf

CJ WALSH FROM DUBLIN GUY

https://cjwalsh.ie/author/admin-2/