Dennis RomeroU2 guitarist The Edge finally found what he's looking for: Five mansions along a ridge he owns in the Santa Monica Mountains above Malibu's Surfrider Beach.
But even though there are no sacred Joshua trees along the ridge, the California Coastal Commission rejected the development and basically called Mr. Edge out as an environmental hypocrite.
The Los Angeles Times has the stinging money quote from Coastal Commission honcho Peter Douglas:
In 38 years of this commission's existence, this is one of the three worst projects that I've seen in terms of environmental devastation. It's a contradiction in terms — you can't be serious about being an environmentalist and pick this location.
'The Joshua Tree.'
The commission, whose staff already rejected the proposal to scar the ridge twice before, said the proposal was deceptive because it was presented as five separate projects on a 156-acre parcel owned by the English-born, Irish-raised, ethnically Welsh rock star.
Environmentalists feared that, if approved, the deal would set a precedent for further development of the fairly virgin Santa Monica Mountains above Malibu.
Douglas said he expected The Edge (born David Evans) to sue in an attempt to get his way on land he bought in 2005.
The rocker tried to spin the thing as enviro-friendly, with solar panels, rainwater capturing systems and electric-vehicle charging stations.
U2, coincidentally, is in Anaheim for concerts Friday and Saturday.
We're glad The Edge is not being allowed to scar our native mountains while he spends most of his time elsewhere. People blame immigrants for a lot of the problems in L.A. Let's not let this one fuck up our view.
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