Petitions Lack Enough Signatures : Agoura Hills Council Recall Effort Fails

An effort to recall four of the five Agoura Hills City Council members failed Tuesday, falling short of the number of petition signatures that were required to force a special election.

Robert Kasic, a developer and leader of the recall movement, said the group had gathered only 1,934 signatures, well short of the 2,237 valid signatures that were required. Tuesday was the deadline that concluded a four-month period in which the petitions were circulated.

Targeted for recall were Mayor Darlene McBane, Mayor Pro Tem Vicky Leary and council members Fran Pavley and Louise C. Rishoff. The group did not seek to oust Councilmember Jack W. Koenig.

Recall proponents blamed the four councilwomen for Los Angeles County’s closure of Medfield Street in August. They also accused the four of favoring the Old Agoura neighborhood over other areas of the city.

Videos Shown

On Tuesday, Kasic and recall proponent David Chagall showed videotapes they said demonstrated that the four councilwomen and their supporters illegally thwarted petition-gathering efforts. The tapes show the councilwomen and supporters approaching people and speaking to them outside supermarkets as recall proponents tried to get them to sign the petitions, sometimes successfully. The group will turn the tapes over to the district attorney’s office and will ask for prosecution, Kasic said.

Leary said Tuesday that she, Pavley, Rishoff, McBane and supporters went to the supermarkets merely to tell their side of the story. Residents had told them that recall proponents were trying to mislead people into believing that the petitions were about improving traffic, not about recalling the council, Leary said.

The fact that the recall movement fell short of the required number of signatures shows that it lacked substantial support in the community, Leary said.

Some who circulated the petitions were hired by the recall movement and were paid 50 cents to $1 per signature, Kasic said.

Movement Criticized

Leary characterized the movement as a developer-backed effort to take control of a council that had enacted strict laws on issues such as oak tree removal and developer fees to finance new streets.

“Just because I’m a developer, does that make me a criminal?” Kasic asked.

The recall effort was often emotional. In its final weeks, proponents charged that council supporters assaulted them. Earlier, Rishoff filed a libel suit against Chagall and Carole Dynda, another recall proponent.

Chagall, a free-lance writer, said recall proponents will field candidates in the November city election, when the terms of Pavley, McBane and Koenig are set to expire. Chagall said the group is unsure whether it will challenge Koenig along with the others. John Ellis, an accountant and recall backer, is the only announced candidate.