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# Malibu revolts against district
- URL: https://www.smdp.com/malibu-revolts-against-district/
- Published: 2008-01-28T16:00:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-24T18:13:19.000Z
- Author: Bill Bauer
- Tags: Opinion, Malibu, #archive-import

MALIBUITES ARE IN A HUFF ABOUT THE “unfair”allotment of Measure BB bond monies earmarked for new school facilities. The Santa Monica/Malibu Unified School District Board of Education recently approved cutting "BB” spending for Malibu High projects from $27.5-milliion to $13.5-million leaving residents feeling shortchanged and cheated.

When Santa Monica resident and Santa Monica for Renters’ Rights insider, Ralph Mechur was tapped as Emily Bloomfield’s BOE replacement instead of a Malibu resident after she resigned last year, many Malibuites felt underrepresented with only one resident on the seven-person board.

Letters printed in Malibu’s two newspapers and scuttlebutt that’s come my way confirm there’s distrust of the BOE, therefore more Malibuites say they’re voting “No” on “R,” the school parcel tax measure on the Feb. 5 ballot. Wait until they find out that $24.5-million in “BB” money is going to Santa Monica’s Edison Language Academy where almost half the students are nonresidents and reside in West L.A., Culver City, Mar Vista and surrounding communities and don’t pay any parcel or bond taxes.

According to the Malibu Times (Jan. 11), “Shari Davis, a Santa Monica resident who heads the campaign in favor of Measure R, said on Tuesday (Jan. 8) there is strong and growing support for the tax in Malibu.” That was before the Malibu Times (Jan. 16) editorialized “Vote No” and the Malibu Surfside News (Jan. 24) editorialized to “Send SMMUSD Measure R back to the drawing board.”

Malibu Times Publisher, Armold York, wrote he’s supported every school and college tax and bond that’s come down the pike, but the SMMUSD board hasn’t treated Malibu fairly. Because they refused to reinstate “BB”monies diverted to a Santa Monica project, "We’ve been snookered,” he writes.

York editorializes, “The reason that the parcel tax Measure ‘R’ is on the ballot is the school board wants to take Malibu out of the loop. If it passes, the parcel taxes becomes permanent and they don’t have to come back to the voters again, which effectively means that we have no political power to impact the school board decision. And, which almost forces us to become our own school district. Perhaps that’s what some on the School Board want. I don’t know.”

York concludes a “No” vote will send everyone “back to the negotiating table.” The Malibu City Council will discuss the establishment of a separate Malibu school district at their next meeting.

I received a phone call from a parent of a Santa Monica High School student who was upset that “R” rated movies were being shown in freshman seminars. He’d just found out his 14-year-old saw “Crash” in one, last year. “It has filthy language including the ‘N’ word, graphic violence and sex acts,” he said.

“Because the Motion Picture Association of America’s ‘R’ rating requires that a minor, under 17, be accompanied by a parent or adult guardian, my kid couldn’t see it in a theater but can see it in school?" The parent complained he was never notified the film was going to be shown and said his ninth grader was only told just before the film started that students not wanting to see it could leave.

“Peer pressure traps a child into staying without knowing what to expect or prepare for a shocking experience,” he added, emphasizing showing R-rated movies have resulted in controversy in other school districts.

Here, the movies are a part of the freshman seminar curriculum that teaches racial tolerance and understanding of different peoples. I checked with another parent whose stepdaughter is currently a Samohi freshman. He told me he signed a permission slip before she watched the acclaimed holocaust drama “Schindler’s List," last Fall. I also talked to Principal, Dr. Hugo Pedroza who said, “The district requires advance parental notification — which may include descriptions of content —if something that might be sensitive or controversial will be taught or shown.”

Pedroza noted, “It’s possible that someone may have forgotten to do it in this case, but we care about the sensitivity of our students and their parents. We need to constantly remind ourselves to cover all our bases regarding policies and my door is always open when any issue comes up."

Santa Monica Rent Control Board Chair, Jeffrey Sklar, came up with a doozie at a Jan. 10 board meeting when parcel tax pass-along effects on low income tenants was discussed. Sklar said, “Rent control is not a law to help low income people. It was never designed for that. It’s a straw man argument. It’s ridiculous to assume rent control’s only value is for the needy."

Wasn’t I surprised? I didn’t realize rent control was only for the rich. I wonder if the Renter’s Right’s leadership knows? Hear Sklar’s mind-boggling observation for yourself on YouTube. Search:“Santa Monica Rent Control Board Sklar speech."

*Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on January 28, 2008.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/012808.pdf?ref=smdp.com)