MISSION VIEJO : Developers Dig Deep to Recall Councilman

Three major developers fueled the drive to recall Mission Viejo City Councilman Robert A. Curtis by contributing nearly all of the $37,619 raised by the campaign between Oct. 13 and Jan. 14, records showed Friday.

The Mission Viejo Co. continued to be the largest supporter of the recall movement, spending $22,044 to raise its campaign total to $57,761.

With developers Barratt American Inc. of Irvine and the William Lyon Co. of Newport Beach contributing $10,000 and $5,000 respectively, development firms accounted for $37,044 of the amount raised by pro-recall forces. Of the $194,041 raised by the recall group overall, developers have contributed $168,511, records show.

Curtis, meanwhile, raised $14,748 in cash and services to defeat the recall effort, according to his financial statement. The councilman will face a recall election Feb. 27.

“Most of my contributions have come from people sending less than $100,” Curtis said. “Now that’s a real grass-roots campaign.”

Curtis’ largest contributor was developer J.M. Peters Co. of Newport Beach, with $1,250. M.V. Management Co. of Riverside gave $500. No other source gave more than $300.

Formerly known as the Coalition to Recall Councilman Curtis, the newly named Alliance for Mission Viejo accuses the councilman of a power grab for his efforts last spring to annex Aegean Hills, an almost 600-acre section of land bordering Mission Viejo.

Curtis has responded by charging that the recall group is a front for developers who are angered over his slow-growth stance.

Alliance for Mission Viejo leader Helen Monroe denied that the recall group is run by developers, adding that she has no problem with development companies bankrolling the recall.

“They are entitled to protect their interests,” she said. “This is just another example of Mr. Curtis attacking his accuser instead of the accusation.”

Wendy Wetzel, spokeswoman for the Mission Viejo Co., said Curtis’ plan to annex Aegean Hills would destroy the integrity of Mission Viejo. The $57,000 spent by the company so far “is a very small price to pay for maintaining Mission Viejo as a planned community.”

In their financial report, the alliance’s major expense is listed as $15,880 to political consultant Arnold Steinberg & Associates of Sherman Oaks for running a phone survey of Mission Viejo residents in late November.