COME TO STREISAND'S; AGENCY AGREES TO ALLOW PUBLIC VISITS ON PROPERTY; NEIGHBORS FEAR VENTURES.

Byline: Beth Barrett Staff Writer

Ever since Barbra Streisand donated her mansion and rustic estate to the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy, the agency has kept the complex closed to the public except as a high-priced setting for occasional weddings, bar mitzvahs and garden tours.

Now, in a legal tussle with the city of Malibu, the conservancy has decided to welcome visitors free of charge and has gotten the California Coastal Commission's staff to flip-flop on its environmental concerns.

But there is a catch.

To open the $15 million complex at the end of Ramirez Canyon Road to visitors, conservancy officials say they'll need as many fee-paying events as the center's fragile septic system, narrow access road and restrictions during fire season will allow.

Malibu residents are angry and skeptical at the conservancy's sudden ``public spiritedness'' seven years after Streisand donated the 22 acres. They charge it's a cover for expanding activity without regard to environmental and community concerns.

``We aren't opposed to some public access where the commercial use is ancillary,'' said Mindy Sheps, a community member and attorney. ``But this is establishing a center whose primary purpose is commercial catering, with an ancillary public park. Now they can say, every day, Let's party!''

Joseph Edmiston, the conservancy's executive director and mastermind of Southern California's open space conservation program, said reaching out to the disabled, seniors and others will require more staffers to make sure visitors are served, and that ``Barbra's things don't disappear.''

``This way we won't have to be so slanted toward paying customers,'' said Edmiston, who oversees more than 35,000 acres of parkland from an office in Barwood, one of the four Streisand houses.

Since 1993, visitors generally have either had to pay $30 for a garden tour or attend a special event, such as a wedding, that can run up to $6,000 just for the charm of the setting.

Groups under the new plan could tour free with reservations, similar to the Getty Museum.

The conservancy's coastal development permit application will be considered during a public hearing Thursday in Santa Monica.

Just three months ago, the Coastal Commission staff said center events should be limited to 40 people. Now, the staff says the center can handle up to 200 people at a time eight months of the year.

The conservancy initially proposed capping the number of special events at 30 a year, but that restriction also is gone.

WILDFIRE RISKS

In the Oct. 14 report, Coastal Commission staffers warned of possible fire danger, noting the isolation of the Streisand Center situated at the end of a long, winding 20-foot-wide road canopied by highly flammable exotic vegetation.

``The minimal firefighting capacity of the Conservancy rangers would be quickly overwhelmed, the sole evacuation route along Ramirez Canyon Road could become completely impassable, and consequently a large group of people could be trapped within a canyon inferno,'' the staff wrote.

``If the additional burden of attempting to evacuate 200 guests is added to the burden already placed on the roadway, the scenario for evacuation becomes virtually impossible to execute.''

Chuck Damm, senior deputy director for the California Coastal Commission, said conservancy staffers and a key Los Angeles County fire official later concluded that large crowds could be handled safely, and without undue harm to the environment.

``When we prepared the (first) staff recommendation, we took a very conservative approach, because we didn't have all the information from the conservancy. This recommendation reflects what the state fire marshal and county fire captain said, no more and no less,'' Damm said.

County Fire Capt. Jim Jordan said he has not seen a conservancy evacuation plan, nor proof that a wooden bridge a quarter-mile from the center's entrance could support a heavy fire truck. He said he won't sign off on the proposal until the bridge is tested and found fit.

Under county codes, he doesn't have authority over the evacuation plan and cannot limit guests at parties that usually are held in the open.

``It's kind of funky, but that's the way it is,'' Jordan said.

Edmiston said the conservancy worked hard to address officials' concerns. With the legal oversight of conservancy counsel Laurie Collins, it developed an evacuation plan with an on-site fire truck, water storage tanks, emergency vehicle turnouts and promises of additional rangers during events.

``Unless Jordan is happy, there's no plan; and there's no permit without a plan,'' Edmiston said.

Added Collins, ``We have addressed all of the fire safety, evacuation, traffic and water issues. We will comply with all the Coastal Commission recommendations.''

Malibu interim City Attorney Richard Terzian said it was strange the Coastal Commission staff changed its stance. The change came after the city sued the conservancy and center in Superior Court in November, claiming it was running a business in a residential zone, and asking that its commercial activities be shut down.

``The staff says there's a real fire hazard, and one month later they say, Never mind. What happened?'' Terzian said.

LIKE ANYONE ELSE

Damm said the conservancy isn't getting special treatment, though different standards apply because the state owns the property.

Furthermore, it's unlikely the commission would have overridden Malibu's residential zone restrictions for a private business, he said.

As public park land, the center is eligible to host special events despite local restrictions. It is not unusual for the commission to approve coastal permits for hotels and other commercial ventures, Damm added.

``If Joe Smith Co. was in the business of putting up a big hall for weddings and conferences and they'd bought the Streisand Center, there's not a chance in hell they'd get a coastal development permit,'' he said.

Malibu residents who want to have a large private wedding, social club gathering or family reunion must apply to the city for a temporary use permit: limited to four per year.

CAPTION(S):

3 photos, map

Photo: (1 -- color) Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy lawyer Laurie Collins stands in front of Peach House, one of four dwellings in Malibu's Ramirez Canyon donated to the open space agency by entertainer Barbra Streisand.

Michael Owen Baker/Staff Photographer

(2) An ornate gate guards the entrance to the luxurious Ramirez Canyon Park property tucked away in a Malibu glen.

Michael Owen Baker/Staff Photographer

(3) Las Vegas honeymoon-style amenities grace the master bedroom of the Deco House, once owned by Barbra Streisand and now open to the public.

Map: Former Barbra Streisand property.

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