Takasugi Prepares for Costly Campaign : Elections: Two years ago, Oxnard’s mayor raised more than $160,000 and outspent his closest rival by $90,000. He may follow a similar path this year.

When Oxnard Mayor Nao Takasugi was recently asked how much money he intends to raise in his bid for an unprecedented fifth term in office, he said: “Whatever it takes to win.”

That statement sent a disquieting message to his challengers, who remember how Takasugi surpassed the city’s spending record two years ago by raising more than $160,000 for his campaign.

During that race, the mayor outspent his closest rival by $90,000. In fact, his campaign expenditures were more than double those of each candidate in that year’s Board of Supervisors.

“I’m still reeling from it,” said Councilman Manuel Lopez, who spent $55,000--including $10,000 from his own pocket--in an unsuccessful bid to unseat Takasugi.

Although Takasugi hopes he will not have to spend as much this year, he faces five candidates who “are going to take shots at me from every direction.”

“To counter those points, I’m going to have to use some means, and that requires some money,” he said.

His challengers agree that money will play an important role in this year’s election. They also acknowledged that it will be hard to beat Takasugi, whose experience includes two years on the Planning Commission and four years as a councilman before becoming mayor in 1982.

“Money is important because you have to have some means to communicate to the voters and there is no substitute for the media,” said Scott Bollinger, a self-employed investor.

Councilwoman Dorothy Maron, who is considered Takasugi’s most serious challenger, agreed. “Money does play a big part in the race and it should not be underestimated,” she said.

In 1988, Takasugi spent more than $61,000 on literature, including 2,800 lawn signs, 10,000 personalized letters and about 80,000 mailers. Nearly $10,000 was spent on postage, $4,420 on newspaper advertising and about $3,300 for broadcast advertising. Another $14,000 went to John Davies, his Santa Barbara-based campaign consultant.

A large portion of the remaining $70,000 or so went to pay for overhead costs of running the campaign, such as telephone and electric bills. A smaller portion went toward the cost of producing several surveys and fund-raisers.

The race put Takasugi $19,404 in debt, according to a campaign statement.

Maron said that during the final days of the 1988 campaign, Oxnard residents were “constantly seeing Takasugi’s picture and his name, and no matter what anybody says, that is power.”

Another 1988 mayoral candidate, Paul K. Dolan, who now is managing Bollinger’s campaign, said Takasugi “bombarded everyone with image rather than substance.”

Then-Councilman Michael Plisky, who spent almost $70,000 on his campaign against Takasugi, lost by almost 5,000 votes. Takasugi surpassed Lopez by about 9,000 votes and trounced Dolan by almost 14,000 votes.

According to campaign statements, the lion’s share of Takasugi’s money came from construction firms, real estate brokers and developers.

Almost all the donations of more than $1,000 came from developers like the Darrik Marten Co. of Ventura, the Martin V. Smith Co. of Oxnard, the Sammis Co. of Irvine and the William Lyon Co. of Newport Beach.

While Takasugi received a small portion of his money in the form of donations under $100, most of it came from donations in the $200-to-$500 range.

Dolan and Bollinger questioned Takasugi’s integrity for taking such large contributions from developers. They suggested that developers have given to Takasugi’s race in exchange for preferential treatment when they need approval of development proposals.

“Money has become the central issue in getting candidates elected, as opposed to issues,” Dolan said.

Davies called such allegations ridiculous and said that almost every candidate in the 1988 election received donations from developers. He said developers traditionally make large donations in Oxnard because they have a genuine concern for the community.

A major portion of Takasugi’s money was generated at two $100-a-plate fund-raising dinners at the Tower Club in Oxnard. “The Tower Club was a great fund-raiser,” Davies said.

Atop the 22-story Union Bank Building, the Tower Club has recently been the site of fund-raising parties for gubernatorial candidates Dianne Feinstein and Pete Wilson.

The club’s membership includes Takasugi; Police Chief Robert Owens; Dist. Atty. Michael D. Bradbury; Martin V. Smith, president of the development company of the same name; and John Gilbert, president of the TOLD Real Estate Corp., one of the county’s largest development firms.

In comparison, Takasugi spent about $43,000 on his 1986 mayoral campaign. He said he decided to raise extra funds for his 1988 campaign because Plisky announced early in the race that he would raise at least $75,000.

“We said if that is the case, we need to raise some money too,” Takasugi said.

Several months ago, before she announced her intention to challenge Takasugi, Maron proposed that council members informally agree to place limits on how much they spend on their campaigns.

However, City Atty. Gary L. Gillig, who researched the issue for the council, said that laws limiting spending are unconstitutional because they violate the First Amendment.

Maron suggested limiting spending to 50 cents per voter, or about $23,000 per campaign. The suggestion prompted adamant opposition from Takasugi, who said such limits would infringe on his constitutional rights.

“I will not give up my constitutional right to what I can do to keep my seat in office,” he said at the time.

In an interview last week, Takasugi suggested that Maron made the proposal because she wanted to place some restraints on his campaign, an allegation Maron denies.

Bollinger acknowledges that there is little hope of outspending Takasugi this year. “He’s done it in the past and I don’t see a reason why he can’t do it now,” Bollinger said.

However, he and Maron both believe they can beat the mayor in November by campaigning strongly on the city’s financial problems and the pace of current development.

In fact, Bollinger has already begun his attack on Takasugi in an advertisement he has put in three newspapers. The ad includes a photo of Bollinger and a headline that reads “Bollinger ‘Tackles’ Takasugi in Run for Oxnard Mayor.”

Dolan said Bollinger will offer himself as the “alternative candidate” and hopes to ride into office on a wave of anti-incumbency feeling.

Maron, who said she spent about $11,500 on her last reelection bid, said she also hopes to promote a “controlled-growth” development policy and focus her campaign on solving the city’s recent financial problems.

“He’s been there for eight years and has talked about growth being good,” she said. “But how come we still have money problems?”

Takasugi’s camp is not taking this year’s challenge lightly.

Within the next two weeks, Davies said Takasugi will have 15 to 20 full-time volunteers soliciting donations and planning campaign strategy. Davies said he will advise the mayor to promote his strongest asset: his experience in City Hall.

“No one has better experience,” Davies said.