'Right to Vote' initiative good for voters

Yorba Linda voters invariably make wise decisions when they consider local ballot measures affecting the community’s quality of life. Now they’ll get another chance to shape the city’s future when they cast ballots on the Right-to-Vote initiative next June.

Of course, initiatives and referendums usually are pretty straight forward, since their texts remain the same before and after an election. But post-election votes cast by City Council members sometimes stray from their pre-election promises, very often on land use issues.

That’s one reason the city’s low-density advocates support the initiative. They want to codify the right of citizens to vote on major housing and commercial density questions.

Voters made two smart choices early in this city’s 38-year history. The vote for cityhood in 1967 and the adoption of a strict low-density General Plan in 1972 helped establish the community’s most valuable asset--a semi-rural environment with plenty of open space.

An advisory vote in 1986 led to banning “safe and sane” fireworks, and another in 1992 showed residents overwhelmingly favored limiting City Council members to two terms.

But some council members ignored the latter vote, so residents cast ballots on two measures in 1996, one a two-term limit and the other a three-term limit. Both won by large margins, but the three-term limit garnered more “yes” votes, so it became law.

The most recent controversy was over a citizen-initiated referendum to reverse a council-approved Imperial Highway improvement project in 1998. The measure was defeated by a 3 to 2 margin in an election fueled by big-dollar donations from the city’s developers.

The upcoming Right-to-Vote initiative election also will draw intense developer interest. Council members opposed to the initiative have proven their ability to attract significant contributions from developers and other individuals and businesses with ties to developers.

The money allows them to hire professional political consultants, post hundreds of roadway signs and, importantly, pay for numerous costly, colorful campaign mailers.

Council members are understandably touchy when developer donations to their campaign treasuries are discussed. But the real issue should be their acceptance of outside-the-city special interest money, not someone’s reports about the transactions in the newspaper.

Judging by the late-night rancor on both sides of the dais at the last council meeting, the Right-to-Vote initiative might become the city’s most controversial ballot measure yet.

A FINAL NOTE--The effort by downtown developers to “reincarnate the soul of Yorba Linda’s history” by restoring Old Town buildings and architectural styles got off to a less than auspicious start, when they revealed plans for their own Main Street headquarters.

Developer Michael Dieden and his partners recently submitted refurbishment plans for the former Frazzare Jewelers building at 4889 Main St., which they purchased in May.

But Bruce Cook, the city’s principal planner, noted, “…the proposed upgrades…do not meet the standard of quality as determined desirable by the city.” Cook recommended eight modifications before Dieden’s designs for the building’s façade are approved.

“This project will set the bar and be the precedent for future projects. As a consequence, staff believes the bar should be set high,” Cook wrote the city’s planning commissioners.

Dieden was expected to present new plans at last night’s Planning Commission meeting.

Initiative would allow citizens to decide Yorba Linda's future

So far, arguments advanced by some City Council members against the grassroots Right-to-Vote initiative are less than impressive.

The initiative would require a public vote on major changes to the city’s general plan and zoning ordinances. But the council appears reluctant to share the authority to increase housing and commercial densities in the downtown area and throughout the city.

One argument, raised by Councilman Jim Winder and others, is that the initiative represents “bad government.” Winder said, “The people elected officials to make decisions for them, because that is what a representative government is.”

However, this stance ignores the historic role of the initiative process in state and local government. Gov. Hiram Johnson and his Republican reformers won voter approval for initiative, referendum and recall measures in a special statewide election in 1911.

Johnson thus wrestled control of the California legislature from the Southern Pacific Railroad and other special interests, returning some authority to the people. The first state initiatives abolished the poll tax and aided University of California construction.

In Yorba Linda, the Right-to-Vote initiative would allow the city’s future to be shaped by citizens, not just the council members who collect thousands of dollars in campaign cash from developers and other individuals and businesses with ties to the building industry.

Although sitting council members promised to preserve the community’s low density and open space heritage, they’re now considering new zoning regulations that could increase density and traffic--not only around Main Street, but in a large central Yorba Linda area.

If Yorba Lindans want a more urban feel to their city, with development similar to Brea, Placentia and Fullerton, they can approve such projects at the ballot box. But if they don’t, they can hold the present and future councils to the city’s low-density heritage.

Another argument, advanced by Councilman Ken Ryan and others, involves the cost of holding special elections to vote on major developer-proposed projects.

Council already says that maintaining Yorba Linda’s many enjoyable amenities—from lush landscaping to reliable police protection to a wide-range of sports facilities and other community activities--requires spending more money than might be required elsewhere.

So budgeting a few extra dollars to preserve a low-density environment certainly would be worthwhile. Of course, a wise council could reduce costs by scheduling votes for regular election ballots and requiring developers to pay the costs of any special elections.

Ideally, the initiative will lessen developer influence in the city, as builders turn to more pliant, growth-oriented towns. A by-product of a successful initiative would be sensible council campaigns, rather than the present-day contests fueled by big developer dollars.

A FINAL NOTE--City officials and developers have promised a Whole Foods-type market, fine-dining restaurants and more upscale shopping for the Old Towne area.

To date, they’ve given us a Savon Food and Drug store on the Town Center’s northern Imperial Highway gateway and Panda Express, Cingular Wireless and Coffee Bean shops on the project’s eastern entrance at Lakeview Avenue and Yorba Linda Boulevard.

And the latter strip-mall-type units are built right to the streets, overshadowing the nicely landscaped setbacks previous councils required for all other businesses in the area.