Right-to-Vote advocates should be wary of council

Yorba Linda’s low-density advocates are rightly wary of City Council actions involving the Right-to-Vote initiative petition and its 6,065 verified signatures. The initiative would require a public vote on major changes to the city’s general plan and zoning ordinances.

Council members voted to place the initiative on a future ballot, but they also directed the city attorney to seek declaratory relief from a court regarding the validity of the initiative.

Despite assurances from council members about the “integrity of the process” and the “citizen’s right to vote,” initiative proponents fear the city is looking for a legal reason to remove the measure from the ballot or invalidate the ordinance if it wins voter approval.

An attorney hired by the city advised that the initiative petition could not be certified because circulators didn’t attach affected portions of the city’s general plan.

But, in a Catch-22-type statement, the lawyer noted, “…they could not have done so, because it is impossible to predict whether or how the general plan will be amended between the time the petition is circulated and the effective date of the measure….”

Wisely, council members followed sound advice from the city attorney: “courts will not strike down initiatives lightly” and “petitioners are often given the benefit of the doubt.”

Petitioners say they expect the city to delay the election as long as possible in order to enact revised Town Center zoning regulations before voters can cast their ballots.

But if the council permits high-density development or building heights greater than 35 feet, opponents are ready to gather enough signatures to force another special election.

Of course, election-time activity always results in a certain amount of silliness over the posting of political signs. Last month an unknown individual placed some “Blight?” signs in the Old Town area that violated various provisions of the city’s strict sign ordinance.

City Manager Tamara Gates sent me a copy of her e-mail to former council candidate Ed Rakochy, who questioned the removal of these signs, while other signs remained.

Gates wrote: “I received a complaint on Saturday morning … regarding improperly placed signs on the city’s property at the corner of Yorba Linda Boulevard and Imperial Highway. I called Brea Police Department dispatch and asked them if they could have any signs removed that were in violation of the municipal code.”

When Rakochy e-mailed further questions about selective enforcement of the sign ordinance, Gates referred him to Brea police. She didn’t respond to my e-mail reply asking how the general public could contact her on weekends with sign complaints.

A FINAL NOTE--Developers of the 41 Presidential Walk homes south of the post office have installed a fence along the project’s southern border, cutting off access to a mini-park that was supposed to be available for public use.

According to a City Council resolution adopted in 2003, fencing was not to be placed between the project and the adjacent horse trail on the north edge of the Nixon Library.

Access to the mini-park from the horse trail needs to be provided and plainly marked, since it is a significant component of the pedestrian-friendly Town Center Master Plan.