Klajic’s Letter to Developer Causes a Stir : Santa Clarita: Council members are critical after the mayor wrote that Newhall Land shows ‘an obstinate disregard’ for the community.

Santa Clarita Mayor Jill Klajic lambasted the area’s largest developer in a letter written on city stationery this week, saying the firm’s actions have been “substantially detrimental” to local residents.

Tuesday’s letter infuriated members of the City Council, who said Klajic had not consulted with them before using the city’s letterhead to communicate her dissatisfaction to Newhall Land & Farming Co., which built the master-planned community of Valencia and owns thousands of acres of vacant land in the area.

“I regret the mayor wrote such a derogatory letter without first reviewing it with the City Council and obtaining a consensus of opinion,” Councilwoman Jo Anne Darcy said Wednesday. “This is certainly not the policy or position of the majority of the council. It also sends out the wrong message to the entire business and development community.”

Council members Jan Heidt and Carl Boyer also expressed concern that the letter might damage the city’s relationship with Newhall Land. The city frequently negotiates with the developer over annexations and traffic and other infrastructure improvements.

“A little more diplomacy is expected from a mayor,” Boyer said.

But Klajic said she had an obligation to her constituents to express her opinion that Newhall Land’s policies on development-related issues, including its opposition to the city’s effort to extend its sphere of influence, demonstrate an “obstinate disregard” for the community.

“If they want to write Newhall Land & Farm and tell them how wonderful the company is, that’s their privilege,” Klajic said.

A spokeswoman for Newhall Land said Wednesday that the company is committed to the valley and concerned about what she called misinformation in Klajic’s letter. She said the firm needed time to study the letter before formulating a reply.

For instance, the letter contends that Newhall Land “considered only its own financial interests” and opposed the 1987 incorporation of the city.

Company spokeswoman Marlee Lauffer said the firm did contribute about $30,000 to the Southern California Caucus, a political action committee involved in many issues countywide, including the anti-cityhood campaign. But she said the firm was unaware at the time of the PAC’s opposition to Santa Clarita’s incorporation.

Once Newhall Land realized that its donation was being used in the anti-cityhood drive, it publicly apologized and remained neutral during the rest of the campaign, Lauffer said.

Klajic’s denunciation of Newhall Land comes after the firm’s chairman, Tom Lee, chided her in a Nov. 19 letter for criticizing the company in a local newspaper.

“It is irresponsible for you as a current city councilwoman and a future mayor to make derogatory comments regarding our reputation,” Lee wrote to Klajic.

“It’s not my responsibility to sell your positive image to the citizens of the Santa Clarita Valley,” Klajic responded in Tuesday’s letter. “I might suggest that if you are looking for success in your public relations campaigns, you would be better served if you used more substance than style in your statements.”

Klajic said she took more than two months to respond to Lee’s letter because she was thinking over her answer. However, Darcy said the letter was written by “Jill’s little clique,” an accusation that Klajic denied.

“Jo Anne has always claimed I’m not capable of writing or spelling or typing,” Klajic said. “She’s right that I’m a terrible typist, but Reagan, Bush and Newhall Land Chairman Tom Lee probably don’t do their own typing either.”

The correspondence is the latest salvo in a battle between Klajic and Newhall Land over development in the 550-square-mile valley. Klajic strongly supports a slow-growth measure that the company and other opponents claim would severely damage the local economy.

If voters approve it April 14, the initiative, known as Measure A, would allow only 475 units to be built in the city each year through 2002.

Last week, Klajic joined several construction unions in calling for Newhall Land to hire more local laborers to build the area’s first regional mall, the Valencia Town Center. But Lauffer said that of the 70 contractors hired for the mall project so far, 64 are Southern California companies employing local workers. The mall is scheduled to open in the fall.