Malibou Lake becoming a destination for dirt

The bucolic, awayfromitall mountain lifestyle of the 130 Malibou Lake residents doesn't come cheap. But it's not the high price of real estate that is at the root of homeowner discontent.

The private community is at the center of lake-choking urban runoff. The water, sediment and trash from neighboring areas, including Agoura Hills, Westlake Village and the Santa Monica Mountains, wends its way downstream to Malibou Lake, a private lake wholly maintained by residents.

"We spend a lot of money getting rid of dirt," said Nan Kane, a 20year Malibou Lake resident. "We have so much sediment we don't know how to get rid of it."

"We feel like we're a big catch basin," said Jerry Hignite, president of the Malibou Lake Mountain Club.

Hignite said residents cope with the dirt in three ways: The sediment can either be stopped before it enters the lake, dredged out on arrival, or the lake can be periodically drained and the extra dirt dug out.

Kane, Hignite and other residents would prefer the runoff be stopped before it drains into the lake, the most economical solution.

Dredging the lake is costly. The community purchased a $300,000 dredger, but must renew permits each year to use it, Kane said. "They call it surface mining, like there's gold out there," Kane said.

The cost of dirt control is spinning out of control, she said. Lake maintenance costs up to $1 million per year, she said. The community pays for the upkeep by renting out the Malibou Lake Mountain Club for weddings and various e v e n t s , through fees garnered by renting out sites to film producers, and monthly homeowner dues.

The rising costs, however, have prompted homeowners to try a new approach. They want to raise awareness of the ongoing plight and forge a cooperative effort with local city officials on the outskirts of their community and with government agencies such as the National Park Service, the Army Corps of Engineers and the Department of Fish and Game. A consultant has been hired for advice.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency has periodically stepped in with financial aid after the area floods.

"FEMA has had to pay repeatedly," Kane said. Emergency money is now being used to raise homes above the flood level, she said.

Hignite said the biggest problems at the lake occur after heavy rains. "Several tons of plastic and trash stop up before the bridge," he said. "All runoff ends up in our lake."

While Malibou Lake residents have made some headway with agencies and studies are underway, agencies and outlying cities don't have jurisdiction over the lake and don't have to share the cost of upkeep.

Residents continue to take matters into their own hands. They want to install sewer lines on private roads, which Kane believes will help keep the lake healthy. The first phase of the project will cost $650,000, and the second is estimated at $500,000. The final cost of the sewer project will total $2.1 million, Kane said.

"We want help getting the debris out of the lake," Kane said.

Toward that end, the community has been giving away dirt to landscapers. "Our dirt is dirt cheap," Kane said. Anyone in the market for free dirt should call Nan Kane at (818) 706-7606.