Local News in Brief : Countywide : Riley Recall Leader Argues Ad is Political

The Mission Viejo Co. should be listed as a major campaign contributor to Supervisor Thomas F. Riley because the firm bought a full-page newspaper ad praising Riley and its Aliso Viejo development project after the recall campaign against Riley had begun, a key recall proponent asserted Monday.

Such a listing would prohibit Riley from voting on matters affecting the Mission Viejo Co., developer of the Aliso Viejo project.

County Registar Donald F. Tanney Monday rejected the argument that the ad was an attempt to defeat the recall drive. Tanney said County Counsel Adrian Kuyper reviewed the advertisement and decided that it is not political.

Thomas C. Rogers, a leader of the recall effort, said Monday that, if necessary, he will take the matter to the state attorney general’s office.

“Obviously their interpretation is different from mine and any reasonable person’s,” Rogers said. “But isn’t it curious that as soon as the recall papers are taken out, they (the Mission Viejo Co.) came up with this ad?”

Under a county ordinance, supervisors are prohibited from voting on matters that affect firms or individuals who have contributed more than $1,739 during the past 48 months.

The Mission Viejo Co. ad, which ran in color in the July 10 issue of the Orange County Register, cost between $5,477 and $8,276, according to a rate schedule quoted by a Register advertising saleswoman.

Mission Viejo Co. spokeswoman Wendy Wetzel said the ad is the second in a series designed to promote the Aliso Viejo project.

The recall effort was launched by residents angry about Riley’s support for development agreements that protect Aliso Viejo and other projects from zoning changes.