The city is bounded by the Santa Monica Mountains to the north,Topanga to the east,Solromar to the west, and the ocean to the south. The Malibu ZIP Code includes residents of the unincorporated canyon areas as it was assigned before the city incorporated.
The area is within theVentureñoChumash territory, which extended from theSan Joaquin Valley toSan Luis Obispo to Malibu, as well as several islands off the southern coast of California. The Chumash called the settlementHumaliwo[14] or "the surf sounds loudly". The city's name derives from this, as the "Hu" syllable is not stressed.
Humaliwo was an important regional center in prehistoric times. The village, which is identified as CA-LAN-264, was occupied from approximately 2500 BCE. It was the second-largest Chumash coastal settlement by theSanta Monica Mountains, after Muwu (Point Mugu). This pre-colonial village was next toMalibu Lagoon and is now part of the State Park.[15][16]
Humaliwo was considered an important political center, but there were additional minor settlements in the area. One village, Ta'lopop, was a few miles upMalibu Canyon from Malibu Lagoon. Research shows that Humaliwo had ties to other pre-colonial villages, including Hipuk (inWestlake Village), Lalimanux (byConejo Grade) and Huwam (inBell Canyon).[17][18]
ConquistadorJuan Rodríguez Cabrillo is believed to have moored at Malibu Lagoon, at the mouth of Malibu Creek, to obtain fresh water in 1542. The Spanish presence returned with theCalifornia mission system, and the area was part ofRancho Topanga Malibu Sequit—a 13,000-acre (53 km2)land grant—in 1802. Baptismal records list 118 individuals from Humaliwo. That ranch passed intact toFrederick Hastings Rindge in 1891. He and his wife,Rhoda May Knight Rindge, staunchly protected their land. After his death, May guarded their property zealously by hiring guards to evict all trespassers and fighting a lengthy court battle to prevent the building of aSouthern Pacific railroad line through the ranch. Interstate Commerce Commission regulations would not support a railroad condemning property in order to build tracks that paralleled an existing line, so Frederick Rindge built his own railroad through his property first. He died, and May followed through with the plans, building theHueneme, Malibu and Port Los Angeles Railway. The line started at Carbon Canyon, just inside the ranch's property eastern boundary, and ran 15 miles westward, past Pt. Dume.[19][20][21][22]
Few roads even entered the area before 1929, when the state won another court case and built what is now known as thePacific Coast Highway. By then May Rindge was forced to divide her property and begin selling and leasing lots. The Rindge house, known as theAdamson House[23] (aNational Register of Historic Places site andCalifornia Historical Landmark), is now part of Malibu Creek State Park, betweenMalibu Lagoon State Beach[24] and Surfrider Beach, beside the Malibu Pier[25] that was used to provide transportation to/from the ranch, including construction materials for the Rindge railroad, and to tie up the family's yacht.[22][26]
In 1926, in an effort to avoid selling land to stave off insolvency, May Rindge created a small ceramic tile factory. At its height,Malibu Potteries employed over 100 workers, and produced decorative tiles that furnish many Los Angeles-area public buildings andBeverly Hills residences. The factory, half a mile east of the pier, was ravaged by a fire in 1931.[27] It partially reopened in 1932, but could not recover from the effects of theGreat Depression and a steep downturn in Southern California construction projects. A distinct hybrid ofMoorish andArts and crafts designs, Malibu tile is considered highly collectible. Fine examples of the tiles may be seen at the Adamson House and Serra Retreat, a 50-room mansion that was started in the 1920s as the main Rindge home on a hill overlooking the lagoon. The unfinished building was sold to theFranciscan Order in 1942[28] and is operated as aretreat facility,[29] Serra Retreat. It burned in the 1970 fire and was rebuilt using many of the original tiles.
Most of the Big Rock Drive area was bought in 1936 byWilliam Randolph Hearst, who considered building an estate on the property. In 1944, he sold the lower half of his holdings there to Art Jones, one of Malibu's prominent early realtors, starting with the initial leases of Rindge land in Malibu Colony. He also owned or partly owned the Malibu Inn, Malibu Trading Post, and the Big Rock Beach Cafe (now Moonshadows restaurant). Philiip McAnany owned 80 acres (32 ha) in the upper Big Rock area, which he purchased in 1919, and had two cabins there, one of which burned in a brush fire that swept through the area in 1959, and the other in the 1993 Malibu fire. McAnany Way is named after him.[30][31][32][33] On January 7, 2025, the city was struck by a massive 17,000 acres (6,900 ha) wildfire. With a lack of water, equipment and workers, theLos Angeles Fire Department was forced to start evacuating more than 30,000 citizens from the metropolitan area. Many homes were destroyed in Malibu, including most of the beach homes in the central part of the city. A few homes of well-known celebrities, includingParis Hilton's, were also affected by the fire.
Malibu Colony was one of the first areas with private homes after May Rindge opened Malibu to development in 1926. Frederick Rindge paid $10 an acre in 1890.[34] One of Malibu's most famous districts,[35] it is south of Malibu Road and the Pacific Coast Highway, west of Malibu Lagoon State Beach, east of Malibu Bluffs Park (formerly a state park), and across from the Malibu Civic Center. May Rindge allowed Hollywood movie stars to build vacation homes in the Colony as a defensive public relations wedge against theSouthern Pacific from taking her property under eminent domain for a coastal train route. The action forced the Southern Pacific to route itsnorthbound line inland then return to the coast in Ventura. But her long legal battle to protect the Malibu coast was costly, and she died penniless.[36] Long a popular private enclave for wealthy celebrities,[37] the Malibu Colony is agated community with multi-million-dollar homes on small lots. It has views of the Pacific, with coastline views stretching fromSanta Monica andRancho Palos Verdes on the south (known locally as theQueen's Necklace[38]) to the bluffs ofPoint Dume on the north.
The first working model of alaser was demonstrated byTheodore Maiman in 1960 in Malibu at theHughes Research Laboratory[39] (now known as HRL Laboratories LLC). In the 1990s HRL Laboratories developed the FastScat computer code.[40]TRW built a laboratory in Solstice Canyon without any structural steel to test magnetic detectors for satellites and medical devices.[41]
In 1991, most of the Malibu land grant was incorporated as a city to allow local control of the area (as cities under California law, they are not subject to the same level of county government oversight). Prior to achieving municipal status, the local residents had fought several county-proposed developments, including an offshore freeway,[42] anuclear power plant,[43] and several plans to replace septic tanks withsewer lines to protect the ocean from seepage that pollutes the marine environment. The incorporation drive gained impetus in 1986, when the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors approved plans for a regional sewer that would have been large enough to serve 400,000 people in the western Santa Monica Mountains. Residents were incensed that they would be assessed taxes and fees to pay for the sewer project, and feared that the Pacific Coast Highway would need to be widened into a freeway to accommodate growth that they did not want. The supervisors fought the incorporation drive and prevented the residents from voting, a decision that was overturned in the courts.
The city councils in the 1990s were unable to write a Local Coastal Plan (LCP) that preserved enough public access to satisfy theCalifornia Coastal Commission, as required by the California Coastal Act. The state Legislature eventually passed a Malibu-specific law that allowed the Coastal Commission to write an LCP for Malibu, thus limiting the city's ability to control many aspects of land use. Because of the failure to adequately addresssewage disposal problems in the heart of the city, the local water board ordered Malibu in November 2009 to build asewage plant for the Civic Center area. The city council has objected to that solution.[44] On February 2, 2007, Civic Center Stormwater Treatment Facility opened.[45][46] On June 29, 2016, City of MalibuCivic Center Wastewater Treatment Facility, Phase 1, broke ground.[47][48][49][50][51]
The Pacific Coast Highway (PCH) in central MalibuThe Paradise Cove pier in MalibuResidential developments in the mountains above Malibu coast
Malibu's eastern end borders thecommunity of Topanga, which separates it from the city of Los Angeles. According to theUnited States Census Bureau, the city has an area of 19.8 square miles (51 km2), over 99% of it is land.
Malibu's dry brushchaparral and steep clay slopes make it prone to fires, floods, and mudslides.
Like all California beaches, Malibu beaches are public below the mean high tide line. Many large public beaches are easily accessible, but such access is sometimes limited for some of the smaller and more remote beaches.[58]
View from Malibu Bluffs Park, facing west toward Point Dume
The Malibu Coast lies on the fringe of an extensivechaparral and woodland wilderness area, the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area.[59] Various environmental elements collectively create a recipe fornatural disasters: the mountainous and geologically unstable terrain; seasonal rainstorms that result in dense vegetation growth; seasonal drySanta Ana winds; and a naturally dry topography and climate.
October 9, 1982 – "Dayton," Malibu Canyon Corridor, 44,000 acres (180 km2), 15 homes in Paradise Cove destroyed.[64]
October 14, 1985 – "Piuma," Las Flores area, Topanga Canyon, 4,700 acres (19 km2).[62]
October 14, 1985 – "Decker," Kanan/Decker Corridor, 6,600 acres (27 km2). Both arson-caused; six homes destroyed; $1 million damage.[62]
November 2, 1993 – "Old Topanga/North Malibu." One of the largest fires in Malibu history, which burned 16,516 acres from November 2 to 11.[65] The 1993 firestorm was composed of two separate fires, one ravaging most of central Malibu/Old Topanga, and another, larger fire affecting areas north of Encinal Canyon. Three people died and 739 homes destroyed in the central Malibu/Old Topanga blaze. 18,949 acres (77 km2) were torched in the north Malibu fire, with no deaths and few homes destroyed in the less densely populated region. Los Angeles County Fire Department officials announced suspicions that the fire was started by arson.[66] The fire and widespread damage to properties and infrastructure resulted in the City of Malibu adopting the strictest fire codes in the country.[67]
October 21, 1996 – "Calabasas," Malibu Canyon Corridor, Brush fire ignited by arcing power line, 13,000 acres (53 km2).
January 8, 2007 – At about 5:00 pm a fire started in the vicinity of Bluffs Park, south ofPacific Coast Highway in Malibu. The fire hit near the Colony area, burning down four houses on Malibu Road, including the oceanfront home ofStep By Step starSuzanne Somers. TheLos Angeles County Fire Department announced that a discarded cigarette stub started the blaze.
October 21, 2007 – At about 5:00 am a fire started off ofMalibu Canyon Road. As of 1:00 pm there were 500+ personnel on scene. 1,200 acres (4.9 km2) burned with no containment. 200+ homes were evacuated. Five homes were confirmed to have been destroyed, with at least nine others damaged. Two commercial structures were completely destroyed. Castle Kashan and the Malibu Presbyterian Church were both destroyed.
November 24, 2007 – The "Corral Fire" destroyed 53 homes, damaged 35, and burned over 4,720 acres (19.1 km2), forcing as many as 14,000 people to evacuate. Damages from the fire were expected to reach more than $100 million. The blaze originated at the top of Corral Canyon, where a group of young people who were in closed parkland after dusk had started a bonfire despite the presence of high Santa Ana winds. The individuals responsible for starting the fire were later identified, and are the subject of ongoing civil and criminal litigation.[69][70]
November 8, 2018 – TheWoolsey Fire, a wildfire that burned from November 8–21 that burned 96,949 acres (392 km2) and destroyed 1,500 structures and left 341 buildings damaged. The fire also resulted in 3 firefighter injuries and 3 civilian fatalities. In 2020, authorities blamed faultySouthern California Edison equipment for the blaze.[71][72][73]
December 9, 2024 – The "Franklin Fire" began shortly before 11:00 pm on December 9 near Malibu Canyon Road. The fire spread quickly under strong Santa Ana winds, burning a total of 4,037 acres (16.3 km2) over the next few days. The fire prompted mandatory evacuations for much of Malibu and destroyed a total of 19 structures.[74][75]
January 7, 2025 – TheJanuary 2025 Southern California wildfires caused deaths, evacuations, and heavy damage to homes and property, including in Malibu. ThePalisades Fire began around 10:30 a.m. on January 7 and initially burnt nearly 3,000 acres between Santa Monica and Malibu. The uncontrollable blaze, which continued to consume buildings, has wound up burning more than 11,000 acres between the two beach towns.[76]
One of the most problematic side effects of the fires that periodically rage through Malibu is the destruction of vegetation, which normally provides some degree of topographical stability to the loosely packed shale and sandstone hills during periods of heavy precipitation.Rainstorms following large wildfires can thus cause mudslides, in which water-saturated earth and rock moves quickly down mountainsides, or entire slices of mountainside abruptly detach and fall downward.
After the 1993 wildfire stripped the surrounding mountains of their earth-huggingchaparral, torrential rainstorms in early 1994 caused a massive mudslide near Las Flores Canyon that closed down the Pacific Coast Highway for months. Thousands of tons of mud, rocks, and water rained down on the highway. The destruction to property and infrastructure was exacerbated by the road's narrowness at that point, with beachside houses abutting the highway with little or no frontage land as a buffer to the mudslide.[77] Another large mudslide occurred onMalibu Canyon Road, between thePepperdine University campus and HRL Laboratories LLC, closing down Malibu Canyon for two months.[78] Yet another behemoth slide occurred onKanan Dume Road, about one mile (1.6 km) up the canyon from thePacific Coast Highway. This closure lasted many months, with Kanan finally fixed by theCalifornia Department of Transportation (Cal-Trans)[79] over a year after the road collapsed.
Mudslides can occur at any time in Malibu, whether a recent fire or rainstorm has occurred or not. Pacific Coast Highway,Kanan Dume Road, andMalibu Canyon Road, as well as many other local roads, have been prone to many subsequent mudslide-related closures. During any period of prolonged or intense rain, Caltrans snowplows patrol most canyon roads in the area, clearing mud, rocks, and other debris from the roads. Such efforts keep most roads passable, but it is typical for one or more of the major roads leading into and out of Malibu to be temporarily closed during the rainy season.
Malibu is periodically subject to intense coastal storms. Occasionally, these unearth remnants of theRindge railroad that was built through Malibu in the early 20th century.
On January 25, 2008, during an unusually large storm for Southern California, a tornado came ashore and struck a naval base's hangar, ripping off the roof. It was the firsttornado to strike Malibu's shoreline in recorded history.[80]
Malibu is within 50 miles (80 km) of theSan Andreas Fault, a fault over 800 miles (1,300 km) long that can produce an earthquake over magnitude 8. Several faults are in the region, making the area prone to earthquakes.
This region experiences warm and dry summers, with no average monthly temperatures above 71.6 °F (22.0 °C). According to theKöppen Climate Classification system, Malibu has awarm-summer Mediterranean climate, abbreviated "Csb" on climate maps.[81] The city's climate is influenced by the Pacific Ocean, resulting in far more moderate temperatures than locations further inland experience. Snow in Malibu is extremely rare, but flurries with higher accumulations in the nearby mountains occurred on January 17, 2007. More recently, snow fell in the city on January 25, 2021.[82] The record high temperature of 104 °F (40 °C) was observed on September 27, 2010, while the record low temperature of 26 °F (−3 °C) was observed on January 14, 2007.[83]
Malibu city, California – Racial and ethnic composition Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos may be of any race.
The census reported that 99.3% of the population lived in households, 0.7% lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and no one was institutionalized.[105] There were 6,624 housing units at an average density of 333.8 units per square mile (128.9 units/km2), of which 4,558 (68.8%) were occupied. Of these, 69.9% were owner-occupied, and 30.1% were occupied by renters.[105]
There were 4,558 households, out of which 22.6% included children under the age of 18, 45.9% were married-couple households, 5.4% werecohabiting couple households, 27.0% had a female householder with no partner present, and 21.7% had a male householder with no partner present. 30.6% of households were one person, and 13.0% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.32.[105] There were 2,847families (62.5% of all households).[106] The age distribution was 15.1% under the age of 18, 8.7% aged 18 to 24, 17.1% aged 25 to 44, 32.3% aged 45 to 64, and 26.7% who were 65years of age or older. The median age was 52.2years. For every 100 females, there were 96.9 males.[105]
In 2023, the US Census Bureau estimated that the median household income was $192,159, and theper capita income was $127,233. About 8.3% of families and 12.5% of the population were below the poverty line.[107]
The2010 United States census reported that Malibu had a population of 12,645.[108] The population density was 637.7 inhabitants per square mile (246.2/km2). The racial makeup of Malibu was 11,565 (91.5%)White (87.4% Non-Hispanic White),[109] 148 (1.2%)African American, 20 (0.2%)Native American, 328 (2.6%)Asian, 15 (0.1%)Pacific Islander, 182 (1.4%) fromother races, and 387 (3.1%) from two or more races. There were 769 people ofHispanic orLatino origin, of any race (6.1%).
The Census reported that 12,504 people (98.9% of the population) lived in households, 126 (1.0%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 15 (0.1%) were institutionalized.
There were 5,267 households, out of which 1,379 (26.2%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 2,571 (48.8%) wereopposite-sex married couples living together, 403 (7.7%) had a female householder with no husband present, 222 (4.2%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 269 (5.1%)unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 49 (0.9%)same-sex married couples or partnerships. 1,498 households (28.4%) were made up of individuals, and 501 (9.5%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.37. There were 3,196families (60.7% of all households); the average family size was 2.87.
There were 2,366 people (18.7%) under the age of 18, 1,060 people (8.4%) aged 18 to 24, 2,291 people (18.1%) aged 25 to 44, 4,606 people (36.4%) aged 45 to 64, and 2,322 people (18.4%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 47.8 years. For every 100 females, there were 100.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.0 males.
There were 6,864 housing units at an average density of 346.2 units per square mile (133.7 units/km2), of which 3,716 (70.6%) were owner-occupied, and 1,551 (29.4%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.8%; the rental vacancy rate was 11.9%. 9,141 people (72.3% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 3,363 people (26.6%) lived in rental housing units.
According to the 2010 United States Census, Malibu had a median household income of $133,869, with 10.6% of the population living below the federal poverty line.[109]
The Malibu Chamber of Commerce was formed in 1949 to provide support to local Malibu business, and has over 500 members.[111]
Historically, there have been a number of firms across industries located in the city.HRL Laboratories, the research arm of the formerHughes Aircraft Company, was established in 1960 in Malibu. Among its research accomplishments was the first workinglaser. Despite the aerospace industry's downsizing in the 1990s, HRL is the largest employer in Malibu.Jakks Pacific, a toy company, is based in Malibu.[citation needed]
There are several shopping centers in the Malibu Civic Center area including theMalibu Country Mart. The Malibu Civic Center is known for being frequented by paparazzi and tourists looking to catch a glimpse of local celebrities.
TheSurfrider Foundation was formed in 1984 by a group of surfers gathered to protect 31 miles (50 km) of coastal waters from Marina Del Rey through Malibu to Ventura County, and represent the surfing community.[112]Heal the Bay, a nonprofit organization for environmental advocacy, was formed in 1985 to protectSanta Monica Bay, which extends from Malibu'sPoint Dume along the entire coastline of Malibu pastSanta Monica to the Palos Verdes Peninsula.
Following the opening ofPassages Malibu in 2001, the city has become home to numerous residential drug-abuse treatment centers. As of 2013, there are 35 state-licensed drug and alcohol rehabilitation facilities in Malibu, in addition to a multiplying number of unlicensed sober-living homes.[113]
Getty Villa, an art museum that is part of theJ. Paul Getty Museum, is just outside the city limits in thePacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles.[114] It is owned and operated by theJ. Paul Getty Trust, which also oversees theGetty Center in West Los Angeles.[115] The Museum at the Getty Villa houses Getty's collections of antiquities, sculptures, art pieces and cultural artifacts of ancient Greece, Rome, and Etruria.
Adamson House, the historic house and gardens of the 19th-century original owners of Malibu, the Rindge Family, is a state museum. The Malibu Art Association, a nonprofit organization to foster the arts in Malibu, produces shows, demonstrations and workshops for its members, and offers art for public display throughout the community.[116] The Malibu Garden Club holds an annual garden tour of private, residential gardens.[117]
Malibu High School offers musicals every spring and instrumental and vocal musical concerts every winter and spring.[118] Smothers Theatre ofPepperdine University's Theatrical Drama Department offers concerts, plays, musicals, opera, and dance.[119]
The Malibu Arts Festival is held annually on the last weekend in July by the Malibu Chamber of Commerce.[120] TheMalibu International Film Festival is held every year showcasing new films and filmmakers from around the world.[121] The Malibu Chili Cookoff, held everyLabor Day weekend, is sponsored by the Kiwanis Club of Malibu. Proceeds benefit children and youth organizations.[122] The Malibu Nautica Triathlon is held every September. In 2007, it raised $718,000 to benefitChildren's Hospital Los Angeles.[123]
The Polar Plunge (Los Angeles) is held each year in February atZuma Beach to help raise funds for theSpecial Olympics in Southern California.[124]
California State Parkland in the hills behind Malibu provides extensive horseback-riding, hiking, running, and mountain-biking options, affording many different views of theSanta Monica Mountains, the curve of theSanta Monica Bay,Santa Catalina Island, and theSan Fernando Valley. There are many points of access to theBackbone Trail System throughout the local canyons, as well as a variety of smaller, local trailheads.
Pacific Coast Highway is popular with road cycling enthusiasts for its vistas. The route also has a reputation for being quite dangerous for cyclists, which inspired the creation of the Dolphin Run, an annual community event commemorating local victims of reckless driving. The Dolphin Run was held each Autumn from 1990 to 2004.
In late June 2008, the Malibu Pier reopened after $10 million in renovations.[125]
Malibu Bluffs Community Park and Malibu Bluffs Recreation Area
The former Malibu Bluffs State Park ownership changed hands in 2006 after the California Department of Parks and Recreation transferred the park's 93 acres (38 ha) control to the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy,[126] They established theMalibu Bluffs Recreation Area, an Open Space Preserve of 90 acres (36 ha) on the bluffs between the Pacific Coast Highway and Malibu Road, directly opposite Pepperdine University andMalibu Canyon Road. The 100-foot (30 m) bluffs rise above Amarillo Beach and Puerco Beach across Malibu Road. Five public stairways (which adjoin private property) lead down to the shoreline from the base of the bluffs. The trails begin from the spacious lawns in Malibu Bluffs Community Park
The Malibu Bluffs Recreation Area surrounds the 6-acre (2.4 ha)Malibu Bluffs Community Park, whose 10-acre (4.0 ha) parcel the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy sold to the city.[127] It consists of the Michael Landon Community Center, baseball diamonds, and soccer fields.[128] Home of the Malibu Little League[129] (MLL), Malibu AYSO,[130] are youth soccer organizations that share practice fields. For over 20 years, the State Parks planned to return the land to its native wetlands and vegetation.[131] A rider to a California state law was written specifically in the 1950s to allow baseball, with its attendant field accoutrements, to continue being played in the state park.[132] Other city parks include Las Flores Creek Park, Malibu Bluffs Park, and Trancas Canyon Park.
Malibu Legacy Park is a restoration project undertaken by the city with broad community support.[133] A vacant, 20-acre (8.1 ha) plot of land owned byJerry Perenchio was sold to the City of Malibu in 2005 with strict deed restrictions prohibiting any further commercial use.[134][135] It had agricultural land with geraniums, other flowers and vegetables planted by the Takahashi family since 1924.[136] The state-of-the-art water treatment plant takesstormwater runoff that accumulates in the park to mitigate the stormwater pollution in Malibu Creek, Malibu Lagoon, and Surfrider Beach.[137] The Malibu Legacy Park Project responds to critical issues, including bacteria reduction by stormwater treatment; nutrient reduction in wastewater management; restoration and development of riparian habitats; and the development of an open space area for passive recreation and environmental education. In addition, the project will be linked by a "linear park" to neighboring Surfrider Beach, Malibu Pier, Malibu Lagoon, and Malibu Bluffs Park.[138]
Ball sports are prohibited in the park along with running/jogging and other sports.[136][139] The park includes many educational features, an outdoor classroom, and other informative features which explain the different habitats.[140]
Across the street from the civic center of Malibu, Surfrider Beach is adjacent to the Malibu Colony and Malibu Pier. This surfing beach was featured in 1960s surf movies likeBeach Party. The Surfrider point break stems from the Malibu Colony into Santa Monica Bay and carries the nickname "Third Point". Surfing at this spot is popular during the winter.[142]
Malibu is a general law city governed with a five-member City Council including the mayor and mayor pro tem. The City Council hires a city manager to carry out policies and serve as executive officer. Every even-numbered year either two or three members are elected by the people to serve a four-year term. Usually, the City Council meets in April and chooses one of its members as mayor and one as mayor-pro-tem. In 2006, this pattern was deviated from when the council decided to have a cycle of three mayors and mayors pro-tem in the coming two years. Malibu does not have a police force. The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department provides law enforcement services to Malibu.[143]
TheSanta Monica-Malibu Unified School District serves Malibu with two elementary schools: John L. Webster Elementary School (grades K-5, in central Malibu) and Malibu Elementary School (grades K-5, in northwestern Malibu's Pt. Dume district).Malibu High School (MHS) provides secondary public education for both middle school (grades 6–8) and high school (grades 9–12). MHS is in northwestern Malibu. Private schools include Calmont,[145] Our Lady of Malibu (Catholic),[146] Colin McEwen High School, New Roads,[147] and St. Aidan's School.
Established in 1937 in south-central Los Angeles,Pepperdine University moved to its Malibu campus in 1972. But when Malibu incorporated as a city, the boundaries were drawn to exclude Pepperdine, at the college's insistence.[148] The university is a private college affiliated with theChurch of Christ, located today in central Malibu, north of the Malibu Colony at the intersection of thePacific Coast Highway andMalibu Canyon Road. Malibu is also served bySanta Monica College, acommunity college in the nearby city ofSanta Monica to the south.
Exterior of the Malibu branch of the LA County Library
Malibu Public Library, a 16,530-square-foot (1,536 m2) branch of theCounty of Los Angeles Public Library, is in the Malibu Civic Center Complex. The branch has an adult reading area, a children's reading area, a 125-person meeting room, and free parking. The library opened in 1970. Before that, residents were served by a bookmobile.[149]
Malibu has three local newspapers:The Malibu Times, founded in 1946, theMalibu Surfside News, and Pepperdine University's student newspaper, theGraphic. There are also three magazines in Malibu:Malibu Arts Journal,Malibu Magazine, andMalibu Times Magazine and "Malibu Biz".
TheU.S. Postal Service operates the Malibu Post Office at 23838 Pacific Coast Highway,[157] the Colony Annex at 23648 Pacific Coast Highway, adjacent to the Malibu Post Office,[158] and the La Costa Malibu Post Office at 21229 Pacific Coast Highway.[159]
The Pacific Coast Highway (SR 1) is the central route through the length of the city. PCH handles approximately 40,500 vehicles per day during peak hours in the summer.[160] TheLA Metro bus line 134 runs along PCH from Trancas market to Santa Monica.[161]
Malibu is the setting for the TV seriesTwo and a Half Men. The TV seriesSo Little Time (2001) portrayed two Malibu teens (Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen) who attend the fictional West Malibu High. Fictional teen starHannah Montana / Miley Stewart (portrayed byMiley Cyrus) and her fatherRobby Ray Stewart (portrayed byBilly Ray Cyrus) live in Malibu on theDisney Channel Original SeriesHannah Montana. In the Fox TV seriesThe O.C., both the Cohen house and the Cooper home were actually in Malibu.[163]Malibu Shores, a teen drama that aired on NBC, was set in Malibu. Some scenes fromThe Even Stevens Movie were filmed on Westward Beach in Point Dume. The small hit TV showSummerland was also filmed and set in Malibu. The TV series “Good Trouble,” a spinoff of “The Fosters,” and the latest season of the anthology series “American Horror Story,” titled “Delicate,” also featuring scenes shot in Malibu.[164]
In 2006,Bravo television airedMillion Dollar Listing, a real-estate related show based on million-dollar listings in Malibu, as well as Hollywood, including real-life Malibu agents such as Chris Cortazzo, Scotty Brown, Madison Hildebrand, and Lydia Simon.[165]
The MTV reality showBuzzin' starringShwayze andCisco Adler is mostly filmed in Malibu, at locations including Westward Beach, Malibu Courthouse, Pacific Coast Highway, Point Dume Trailer Park, Malibu Inn, and the outside of PC Greens.
^abPoole, Matthew Richard (2010).Frommer's Los Angeles 2011. Hoboken: Wiley. p. 49.ISBN978-0-470-91715-2. RetrievedMarch 1, 2012.With plenty of green space and dramatic rocky outcroppings, Malibu's rural beauty is unsurpassed in L.A., and surfers flock to "the 'Bu" for great, if crowded waves
^abTaylor, Jennifer Brandt (2008).Vintage L.A.: Eats, Boutiques, Decor, Landmarks, Markets & More. HarperCollins.ISBN978-0-06-112278-1.Archived from the original on June 12, 2023. RetrievedMarch 1, 2012.About 10 miles north of Santa Monica, Malibu (or "The Bu" as locals and wannabe gangstas like to call it) is where much of Hollywood hangs on the weekends to breathe its clean salt air and catch some rays.
^McCall, Lynne & Rosalind, Perry, red. (1991):The Chumash People: Materials for Teachers and Students. Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History. San Luis Obispo, CA: EZ Nature Books.ISBN0-945092-23-7. Page 29.
^Marcus, Ben and Marc Wanamaker (2011).Malibu. Arcadia Publishing. Page 7.ISBN9780738576145.
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