Field of Dreams May Be Found in Parking Lot Plan

Point Dume Village owner Zan Marquis' need for an additional parking lot could be an opening for City Councilmember Pamela Conley Ulich to fulfill her dream for a ballfield and/or community center on the site.

Conley Ulich and other city officials recently met with Marquis about options for the property, which is across Pacific Coast Highway from the mall and where Marquis is considering building a parking lot for the mall's planned Village Café.

When Marquis recently submitted an application for the café, city planners told him he did not have enough parking spaces at Point Dume Village. To build more, he looked to purchase the 9.8-acre DeWind site, which has been on the market for several years. Marquis currently has it in escrow, which will close at the end of the month, sources say. His architect submitted a layout plan to the city for a 38-space lot.

However, commercial parking is not allowed on the residential-zoned site, so Marquis would need zoning changes from the City Council and California Coastal Commission. A proposal for a zoning change received an unfavorable response from a City Council/Planning Commission subcommitee last week. City planning staff was told to continue exploring this, but that it "should not be put on the front burner," Commissioner John Mazza said. The other three members (Mayor Jefferson "Zuma Jay" Wagner, Mayor Pro Tem John Sibert and Planning Commissioner Jeff Jennings) concurred.

Wagner said among Marquis' ideas is the city buying the DeWind site and then building a parking lot, of which a portion could be used by Marquis to allow for the café. This was part of the discussion when Marquis recently met with Wagner and Conley Ulich (who are on a subcommittee to look into the possibility of the city purchasing the DeWind site or the adjacent Vital Zuman Organic Farm property) as well as Mazza and Jennings.

Conley Ulich, who is vacationing in Hawaii, said in a brief interview that she is open to considering any ideas that could mean more space for fields and community events.

"We need property for fields, open space [and other needs]," Conley Ulich said. "I am open to buying any properties, but these are the only two available."

Two years ago, she formed a citizens committee to meet about how the city could purchase the DeWind site and what should be put there. Nothing came of it. The recently formed subcommittee of she and Wagner was supposed to revive the discussion, with the Vital Zuman property added to the agenda.

The Vital Zuman site last month was purchased for $2.35 million by Los Angels Clippers owner, real estate mogul and Malibu resident Donald Sterling. It is unknown what he wants to do with the property or if his purchase puts the site out of contention for any city use. Sterling did not return calls for comment, nor did former property owner Alan Cunningham.