Developer shares e-mails on anti-referendum efforts
Newly released documents confirm that several city leaders were very much involved in an aggressive, behind-the-scenes campaign to keep Yorba Linda residents from signing petitions seeking a public vote on the since-rescinded Old Town zoning ordinances.
Low-density advocates eventually gathered 9,790 and 9,771 signatures on two petitions during a 21-day period last December and January. The council-approved ordinances would have allowed more housing units and commercial buildings in the Town Center.
Greg Brown, a principal with Michael Dieden and Walter Marks in Old Town Yorba Linda Partners, which had an exclusive negotiating agreement with the city, released the documents. They don’t reflect well on Dieden, Brown and some city officials.
Brown has since apologized to Yorba Lindans for his role in the campaign.
His documents include notes taken during council’s Town Center Ad Hoc Committee meetings and letters and e-mails among developers, consultants, lawyers and council members.
Brown said, “It was made very clear to the OTYLP team that the funding of an information and [petition] suppression campaign was a requirement of any future extension of the exclusive negotiating agreement beyond the…expiration date.”
Brown stated, “[City Manager Tamara] Letourneau directly asked me in an Ad Hoc meeting…if OTYLP had reserved sufficient monies to wage the campaign and what our projected budget was to be.”
Brown said he responded, “Yes” and told her that “political consultant Dennis DeSnoo had advised us to be prepared to fund up to $150,000” for the campaign.
Letourneau has said the city didn’t “ever require OTYLP to fight the Town Center zoning petition referendum drive, and it was not ever a condition of any contract or extension.”
The developers eventually put up $115,000 to fight the petitioners, which paid for a letter from four council members, recorded and live telephone calls and several other mailings.
Brown further stated that DeSnoo “designed the campaign with full approval of the Town Center Ad Hoc Committee and the Yorba Linda City Council.” DeSnoo at various times has worked in the election campaigns of all five council members.
Interestingly, one e-mail from Councilman Ken Ryan to DeSnoo (forwarded to Brown) noted, “I want to review anything published on the old town before it goes out….”
And another from DeSnoo to Brown: “We will need to modify [a brochure] to appease [Ryan] and his colleagues.” DeSnoo also e-mailed Dieden and Brown, “Joon will be there…he is a 250-pound Korean. Sounds like a central casting blocker.”
One big petitioner complaint was aggressive action from blockers who petitioners said interfered with signature gathering. A note from Dieden to DeSnoo and Brown stated, “The blockers should be more like guerillas (think Che)….”
Perhaps most alarming is Brown’s Ad Hoc committee note that a top city management official was “giving us intel[ligence] on gathering places for sig[nature]s,” and advising OTYLP to get blockers to the locations.
A FINAL NOTE
I’ve reviewed the 59 pages of documents released by Brown that involve the campaign against the Old Town zoning petitioners as well as city and developer efforts to oppose the citizen-sponsored Right-to-Vote on Land-Use Amendments initiative (Measure B).
More than one column would be needed to give readers a better sense of the noxious behind-the-scenes activities in both operations, so I’ll have more to say in the future.
But sadly for now, I’m reminded of writer Nora Ephron’s comment: “No matter how cynical I get, I just can’t keep up.”
Low-density advocates eventually gathered 9,790 and 9,771 signatures on two petitions during a 21-day period last December and January. The council-approved ordinances would have allowed more housing units and commercial buildings in the Town Center.
Greg Brown, a principal with Michael Dieden and Walter Marks in Old Town Yorba Linda Partners, which had an exclusive negotiating agreement with the city, released the documents. They don’t reflect well on Dieden, Brown and some city officials.
Brown has since apologized to Yorba Lindans for his role in the campaign.
His documents include notes taken during council’s Town Center Ad Hoc Committee meetings and letters and e-mails among developers, consultants, lawyers and council members.
Brown said, “It was made very clear to the OTYLP team that the funding of an information and [petition] suppression campaign was a requirement of any future extension of the exclusive negotiating agreement beyond the…expiration date.”
Brown stated, “[City Manager Tamara] Letourneau directly asked me in an Ad Hoc meeting…if OTYLP had reserved sufficient monies to wage the campaign and what our projected budget was to be.”
Brown said he responded, “Yes” and told her that “political consultant Dennis DeSnoo had advised us to be prepared to fund up to $150,000” for the campaign.
Letourneau has said the city didn’t “ever require OTYLP to fight the Town Center zoning petition referendum drive, and it was not ever a condition of any contract or extension.”
The developers eventually put up $115,000 to fight the petitioners, which paid for a letter from four council members, recorded and live telephone calls and several other mailings.
Brown further stated that DeSnoo “designed the campaign with full approval of the Town Center Ad Hoc Committee and the Yorba Linda City Council.” DeSnoo at various times has worked in the election campaigns of all five council members.
Interestingly, one e-mail from Councilman Ken Ryan to DeSnoo (forwarded to Brown) noted, “I want to review anything published on the old town before it goes out….”
And another from DeSnoo to Brown: “We will need to modify [a brochure] to appease [Ryan] and his colleagues.” DeSnoo also e-mailed Dieden and Brown, “Joon will be there…he is a 250-pound Korean. Sounds like a central casting blocker.”
One big petitioner complaint was aggressive action from blockers who petitioners said interfered with signature gathering. A note from Dieden to DeSnoo and Brown stated, “The blockers should be more like guerillas (think Che)….”
Perhaps most alarming is Brown’s Ad Hoc committee note that a top city management official was “giving us intel[ligence] on gathering places for sig[nature]s,” and advising OTYLP to get blockers to the locations.
A FINAL NOTE
I’ve reviewed the 59 pages of documents released by Brown that involve the campaign against the Old Town zoning petitioners as well as city and developer efforts to oppose the citizen-sponsored Right-to-Vote on Land-Use Amendments initiative (Measure B).
More than one column would be needed to give readers a better sense of the noxious behind-the-scenes activities in both operations, so I’ll have more to say in the future.
But sadly for now, I’m reminded of writer Nora Ephron’s comment: “No matter how cynical I get, I just can’t keep up.”
posted by Jim Drummond at 12:00 PM
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