Malibu
Riviera to Secede
From Rest of Malibu
Secession
is still hotter than a summer wildfire and has now reached this
affluent bedroom community north of Los Angeles.
By George Wolfe
MALIBU -- A wealthy area known as the Malibu Riviera has officially
given notice that it intends to secede from other less-wealthy sections
of Malibu.
"I know it might seem petty," says
initiative spokesman, Lester D. Baumgartenier III, "but the
simple truth is that their homes sell for under $7 mil, and we just
can't afford to have our real estate values depreciated by those
sorts of figures. I hate to put it like this, but they're essentially
slumming it, just on a higher level. And it's killing our bottom
line."
The Malibu secession movement comes on the heels
of the November elections, in which the San Fernando Valley and
Hollywood were turned down by voters in their bids to seceed from
the city of Los Angeles.
Malibu's latest "micro-secession" comes
on the heels of the 3500 Woodland Hills Avenue block's announcement
that it intends to secede from the 3600 Woodland Hills Avenue block.
And there are now rumblings that Santa Monica might also break up
into downtown, Ocean Park and East Santa Monica sections.
Baumgartenier claims to be "highly confident"
that residents of Malibu Riviera can afford "whatever personnel
or infrastructure that's needed to run a small country — let
alone a little city."
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