The removal of Abe Roy, the Malibu’s Rebuild Ambassador after the Palisades fire, has become a flashpoint that exposes the deeper dysfunction and political maneuvering obstructing recovery.
The announcement blindsided residents and council members alike, arriving just before the September 29th Council meeting which amended its agenda to include a ceremonial commendation for Roy’s service.
To many, the move reeked of politics. Families who trusted him to challenge a system “complicated by design” were left reeling. As one resident asked, “Why would the city remove a fellow resident that fire victims trust to deal with the collective power of City Hall?”
The decision was not a coincidence. It was clearly orchestrated from the top. A decision was made after interim city manager Candace Bond complained directly to Mayor Marianne Riggins that Roy was “micromanaging” staff, resulting in Riggins taking a personal interest to eliminate his role. Council member Doug Stewart backed her, lending political cover to the mayor’s maneuver.
By siding with Riggins instead of the very residents still fighting to rebuild, Stewart positioned himself not as an advocate for the displaced, but as complicit in their abandonment. What makes this betrayal all the more galling is Riggins’ own admission it took her more than five months to visit the burn areas. To Malibu’s displaced families, that confession was not simply tone-deaf, it was moral negligence. How can a mayor strip away their only advocate without ever standing in the ashes of their destroyed homes? How can Stewart defend her decision while families sleep in rentals and motels, their insurance running out, their futures uncertain? For victims, this is leadership in name only, absent when it counts, and dismissive when challenged.
Worse, Riggins was the one who personally demanded that Roy remove the damning slide from his first presentation to Council the slide that showed, based on Malibu’s current process, it would take nine to sixteen years for fire victims to rebuild. That single act of suppression transformed the crisis from incompetence into deception. By hiding the truth from the public, Riggins deliberately denied victims the transparency they deserve. This was not an isolated act either. Riggins has a history of orchestrating deals behind the scenes to benefit developers and staff over residents, most notably with the skate park project and in dealings with developer Steve Gillen, a pattern long noted by community watchdog Andy Lyon.
For that reason alone, Riggins should be immediately removed from the city’s fire rebuild ad hoc committee. Her lack of empathy, her blatant disregard for fire victims, and her disdain for their truth were made clear in her attempt to eliminate Abe Roy without accountability or public input. A mayor who silences victims and buries the facts has no business overseeing Malibu’s path back from fire devastation.
Roy’s brief tenure had already produced results organizing Zone Captains in fire areas, created direct lines of communication between victims and staff, and pressed for reforms to cut through unnecessary red tape. He identified the stark contrast between Malibu’s process and Los Angeles City’s: LA has approved 40 percent of rebuild applications, while Malibu has managed just one percent, two permits out of 150 applications in nine months. “We’ve worked so hard to give residents hope and support. Why walk back the trust we’re building?” Roy asked.
The dismissal of Roy has further inflamed anger. Residents credit him with preventing delays and forcing staff to address problems. Colin Drummond, a Big Rock resident, addressed the Council directly: “This whole Abe Roy fiasco is disturbing. It’s premature, and it’s confusing. Abe has been telling the truth, that the rebuilding process is complicated by design and needs to be uncomplicated for fire victims. He’s offered practical solutions, consolidating corrections, reducing consultant dependency, and putting fire rebuilds ahead of discretionary projects. Our homes are burning down faster than we can build them. We face unreliable water, brush we can’t clear, homes without defensible space. And we have no city manager. Five good people up here can only speak to each other every two weeks. My nephew would call this a Gong Show. Ending Abe’s role at this moment sends the worst possible message. Malibu needs vision and leadership, not silence.”
Roy himself has suggested that his removal was retaliation for speaking too candidly. In his resignation letter, he pointed to “intentionally complicated” processes, allegations spread behind closed doors, and efforts by city leadership to downplay data showing just how far Malibu has fallen behind. He noted that after he published remarks criticizing the City’s rebuild system, rumors surfaced accusing him of misrepresenting his title, seeking personal financial gain, or planning foreign business trips. He dismissed each as false. “The suggestion that I leveraged this role for personal gain is offensive,” Roy wrote. “Ask yourself: why would any successful private sector entrepreneur seek out public service? The prospects of retaliation are well known in our City to those challenging the status quo.”
The numbers speak louder than any defense. Malibu has roughly 4,300 households. Nearly one in four families remain displaced from recent fires. From the Palisades Fire alone, two permits have been issued in nearly a year. The Woolsey Fire, now seven years past, still has more than 70 applications unresolved. At Malibu’s current pace, families will be waiting decades.
The longer the process drags, the more families will be forced out. Rental insurance is running dry. Parents with children in Malibu schools are preparing to leave permanently. The people who gave Malibu its identity and “soul” are disappearing. As Roy warned, “Stop blaming residents; fix the process. You are here to enact the will of the people, not impose your will on the people.”
The Malibu Rebuild Task Force has outlined clear solutions: accept existing soils data, and give options to waive geotechnical reports using existing soils and compaction data, fast-track rebuilds where homes stood safely for decades, use neighbor reports as benchmarks, and publish progress transparently, reduce the administrative steps such as difficulties in uploading documents, etc., requiring multiple affidavits, and streamlining corrections to one review – this alone will save fire victims at minimum 6-12 months in the application process to achieve a rebuild permit. Instead, Council has chosen to silence one of the few advocates who had credibility with fire families.
For residents who lost everything, it’s about survival. Malibu has already failed one generation of fire victims. If City Hall continues to stall, it risks failing another. Families are not asking for shortcuts, they are asking for fairness, urgency, and compassion. Whether Malibu’s leaders can deliver on that will decide if these families come home, or if the city loses them forever.
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