City of Malibu Celebrates Legacy Park Opening

MALIBU, Calif., Oct. 2 /PRNewswire/ -- The City of Malibu on Saturday held a community celebration of the opening of Legacy Park, the centerpiece of the City's more than $50 million commitment to improving ocean water quality and protecting the health of its nearly 13,000 residents and the approximately 15 million visitors who explore Malibu's mountains and shores annually.

Legacy Park's creation transformed 15 acres in the heart of the City into a central park that is one of the most ambitious and innovative stormwater and urban runoff projects in all of California.

This state-of-the-art project is an environmental cleaning machine capable of capturing up to 2.6 million gallons per day of stormwater and urban runoff for treatment and disinfection. Malibu is the only city in the state to build three stormwater treatment facilities, and Legacy Park vastly expands the City's capacity to capture stormwater for treatment.

The creation of Legacy Park also restored and developed important native coastal habitats, while creating open space for passive recreation and environmental education. It offers a living learning center, informational kiosks, an outdoor classroom, a cultural interpretive center and numerous other features to provide information and education about plant and animal life along the Southern California coast.

"This one-of-a-kind park in the heart of Malibu creates a legacy of ocean protection and environmental conservation for generations to come," said Malibu Mayor Jefferson Wagner. "The community came together to raise the money to purchase the land for Legacy Park, preserve it as open space and transform it into an innovative project that will improve ocean water quality and protect public health. We thank all of the supporters, donors, City Council and City staff who made this celebration possible today through their dedication to creating this vital legacy."

Wagner joined other members of the Malibu City Council in recognizing some of the hundreds of donors who contributed to the $25 million purchase and the $10 million design, engineering and construction of the project.

Individual donors gave more than $2.4 million and, in addition, the Annenberg Foundation awarded the City a $2 million matching grant for the project. The remaining funding came from Santa Monica Community College, the State Water Resources Control Board, Los Angeles County's Proposition A, MTA Proposition C, the City of Malibu, the Solid Waste Management Fund, Parkland Development and Certificates of Participation offered by the City.

Legacy Park is located at the center of other popular attractions, including the Malibu Pier, historic Adamson House and Malibu Bluffs Park. The new park provides a tranquil setting and scenic views for visitors to the Malibu Community Library, which is undergoing a renovation designed to take advantage of those views.

Photos available upon request.

The City of Malibu, incorporated on March 28, 1991, is a dedicated steward of its 21 miles of coastline along the Pacific Ocean. Located in northwest Los Angeles County, the City has a population of 12,575. For more information on the City and the project, please visit http://www.ci.malibu.ca.us/ and http://www.malibulegacy.org/.

SOURCE The City of Malibu