Backers of Slow Growth Regroup, Await Next Move by Antonovich

In the Santa Monica Mountains, where the voter revolt against Los Angeles County Supervisor Mike Antonovich and his generally pro-development policies began last winter, the disappointed organizers are regrouping and anxiously waiting to see what Antonovich does next.

Elated by his lopsided victory over Baxter Ward, Antonovich pledged, even before all the votes were counted, not to change his policies on development. But homeowner activists say they hope the conservative supervisor--who made some concessions during the political campaign--might have softened his views, if ever so slightly.

Just days before the last Tuesday’s election, Antonovich announced that he wanted Baldwin Co., a major contributor to his campaign, to greatly scale back a 1,500-home and commercial development it had proposed in Calabasas. In addition, the Board of Supervisors, in a surprise move during summer, rolled back the Montevideo Country Club project in Topanga Canyon that had turned into the longest-running zoning dispute in county history.

“We’re going to watch carefully on what will happen to the Montevideo and Baldwin projects, to see if he keeps his word on those,” said Patrick Lauerman, a Topanga activist who acknowledged that he is pessimistic about the outlook for the district’s dwindling wilderness.

“We’ll be right back where we were a year before the primary, probably in a worse position because the contributors who gave him so much money in the campaign are going to expect something in return.”

Antonovich spent at least $1.7 million this year fighting the challenge from Ward, a former supervisor, and an earlier primary challenge by eight others. He defeated Ward with 64% of the vote to Ward’s 36%.

The grass-roots coalition of homeowners and environmentalists that formed the core of the “dump Antonovich” movement will hold strategy sessions in the next few weeks to determine what should be done next, said Glenn Bailey, a coalition official.

“The coalition is not going to be going away,” Bailey said.

Support Questioned

Antonovich’s campaign pollster, however, questioned whether support for the slow-growth movement in the 5th District really exists. Two polls conducted after Antonovich was forced into a runoff in June indicated that anti-development sentiment in the district was minimal, said Arnold Steinberg, Antonovich’s pollster.

When asked what their primary concerns were, voters most frequently mentioned crime, drugs and gangs. Traffic and overdevelopment were rarely mentioned, Steinberg said. When further asked whether crime or growth was a bigger worry, most cited crime.

Polls also indicated that voters who lived in incorporated areas blamed their city councils and not county government for any congestion problems.

Calling the primary an “aberration,” Steinberg attributed Antonovich’s momentary setback last summer to a low GOP turnout and a last-minute mailer for candidate Don Wallace, a fire captain who received 20% of the vote.

Post-Primary Poll

Steinberg said his post-primary polling showed that Wallace’s name identification after the election was negligible. He concluded that the Democratic mailer listing the endorsement of Wallace helped him pull in thousands of votes.

“I think a lot of people misread the Don Wallace vote as an anti-growth vote,” Steinberg said.

But homeowner activists vigorously deny that the slow-growth movement is toothless. They contend that Ward’s unorthodox campaign style and Antonovich’s massive television, radio and mail effort are what sealed his victory last week.

Privately, Ward supporters expressed frustration at how Ward conducted his challenge. He opposed sending political mailers--a tool used by many politicians--saying they constituted an invasion of people’s mailboxes. He shortened and watered down the message volunteers staffing the phone bank could use, citing the same reason.

Unusual Tactics

He did not walk precincts or list on the ballot his former occupation, which conceivably could have increased his name identification. He also refused contributions of more than $250 and did not seek endorsements.

“It seems like he throws up every obstacle he can,” one volunteer grumbled on the eve of the election.

“Mr. Ward is so unique, we can’t draw many lessons from this other than the fact you have to run the kind of campaign that is proven to work,” Wallace said. “I don’t see it as a referendum on controlled growth or a license to pave the mountains.”

Jan Heidt, a Santa Clarita city councilwoman, said Ward’s showing in her city proves people are unhappy with unbridled growth. Ward carried the city with 19,515 votes to Antonovich’s 17,923, according to the county’s unofficial vote total.

“They spent $2 million in the district and they still lost out here,” Heidt said. “That tells you something. Out here people know what his policies meant.”