Davis Demands Schabarum Quit Cityhood Panel

State Sen. Ed Davis (R-Valencia) called Friday for the ouster of Los Angeles County Supervisor Pete Schabarum from a commission overseeing city incorporations because of his involvement in campaigns to defeat Santa Clarita cityhood.

Davis angrily accused Schabarum of leading a movement that has raised tens of thousands of dollars from the building industry to pay for political advertisements and mailers and a telephone campaign urging voters to defeat cityhood in the election Tuesday.

Davis said he will ask the Board of Supervisors to remove Schabarum from the Local Agency Formation Commission, which rules on proposed city incorporations. Davis said the change should be made before Nov. 18, when the commission is to decide the fate of a cityhood request in Calabasas.

Supervisor Mike Antonovich, who represents the Santa Clarita Valley, also expressed dismay Friday about his Republican colleague’s involvement in the Nov. 3 election.

Schabarum, who was out of the country, responded to Davis in a written statement issued by his office. “It’s ridiculous for anyone to suggest that I have an interest in promoting or defeating the incorporation effort,” the statement said. “It’s strictly a local issue.

“To the extent that the proponents feel they need to distract the voters from the real issues of cityhood by focusing on someone clear across the county, all I can say is that is politics,” the statement said. “On the other hand, if my supposed interest is the only issue that the proponents of cityhood can muster, I would suggest that the voters take a long hard look at the proposal.”

‘Travesty of Justice’

Speaking at a press conference Friday morning, Davis said “one member of the Board of Supervisors seems to be the kingpin of the opposition. Pete Schabarum. Peter the Terrible.

“It would be an absolute travesty of justice to have him sit on the 18th to decide the fate of Calabasas,” he said.

As a LAFCO commissioner, Schabarum voted against placing the Santa Clarita cityhood question on the Nov. 3 ballot. He said he believed the proposed city was too small and that cityhood supporters had reneged on a promise to pay for services the county would provide during the first months after incorporation.

Mike Lewis, Schabarum’s chief deputy, denied that the supervisor is actively involved in opposing cityhood.

“If anybody thinks Schabarum is going to spend his time and money fiddling around with something as inconsequential as the vote out there next week, they should think twice,” Lewis said.

The Southern California Caucus, a political group that Lewis said Schabarum belongs to, is soliciting thousands of dollars in contributions from developers and others opposed to cityhood. Schabarum’s political action committee, the Alliance for Representative Government, paid the first three months’ rent for the caucus’ Los Angeles office, according to campaign disclosure statements.

Lewis said the purpose of the Southern California Caucus is to influence many elections in Los Angeles County. He declined to answer questions about caucus activities aimed at Santa Clarita cityhood.

Right to Vote

Antonovich, who has remained neutral on the cityhood election, issued a statement Friday saying that he was “surprised to learn that Supervisor Schabarum is involved in the Santa Clarita cityhood election. He should have been up front and forthright in stating his involvement instead of hiding behind a political committee.

“My position has always been that the people of the Santa Clarita Valley should have the right to vote on this issue,” the statement said. “Their decision should be based on their desires and not on outside political influences.” Antonovich was in Washington and could not be reached for further comment.

In the campaign’s final days, three political groups, financed primarily by the building industry, have emerged to fight cityhood.

As of Friday, the Coalition for the Right City had raised $100,000 and the Santa Clarita Caution Committee had received $1,783. The Southern California Caucus had obtained $113,000, but not all the contributions are being funneled into the Santa Clarita fight.

Among the developers who contributed to the caucus this week was the Irvine-based Baldwin Co., which is a key opponent of Calabasas cityhood. On Nov. 18, LAFCO is expected to rule on Baldwin’s request to remove 1,300 acres of mountainous ranchland from the heart of the proposed city of Calabasas. Baldwin has proposed building 1,500 houses and a 70-acre commercial development, a project decried by environmentalists.

Baldwin, like other developers who work in Santa Clarita and Calabasas, worries that a new city might not approve its construction project. Over the years, the building trade has contributed heavily to the Board of Supervisors.

The developers generally prefer to have the supervisors decide planning and zoning issues. They believe city councils might impose stricter controls on growth.

Cityhood supporters estimated Friday that the three developer-backed groups will spend more than $200,000 in their last-minute bid to derail cityhood.

The City of Santa Clarita Formation Committee, the group that has fought for cityhood for more than two years, has raised $45,000 and financed two mailings. The committee says most of the money has come from valley residents.

One of the committee’s major contributors is a Los Angeles attorney who has donated $16,100 worth of legal advice. Louis Garasi, committee vice chairman, said attorney Charles S. Vose offered to help in hopes of obtaining legal work from the new city. He said no promises were made to him and none were solicited.

As the campaign headed into its final days and tempers flared, the formation committee filed a complaint with the California Fair Political Practices Commission protesting two full-page advertisements that appeared Friday in the Newhall Signal newspaper. The committee accused the Coalition for the Right City of false advertising, wrongfully using the committee’s name and misrepresenting facts.

The commission has no jurisdiction to handle such a complaint, said Sandra Michioku, its media director.