ELECTIONS / CALABASAS COUNCIL : Man Bows Out Over Alleged Ties to Soka, Qualifications

The locally touchy issue of Soka University has played a role in eliminating one candidate in the Calabasas City Council campaign. Barry Sullivan dropped out, saying he was unqualified for office and tired of defending himself against allegations that he was backed by Soka and other development interests.

Sullivan announced the end of his candidacy late Thursday--just minutes after an explosive candidates forum at which Councilman Marvin Lopata claimed a Soka lobbyist was soliciting contributions from local developers on behalf of Sullivan and another candidate. Both the lobbyist and the school denied it.

Although the allegations that he was aided by Soka were demoralizing, Sullivan said, he had also been considering withdrawing from the race for several days because he felt his command of local issues was not as strong as that of the three incumbents.

“I don’t feel I’m qualified to hold the position,” a shaken Sullivan said after conferring privately with Lopata and Councilwomen Lesley Devine and Karyn Foley. “Sitting at the table tonight, it became very apparent that I just don’t have the qualifications. It would be unfortunate for the voters to accidentally elect me.”

Sullivan’s withdrawal leaves four candidates in a race for three seats. The election is April 14.

It was an abrupt end to the candidacy of an underdog neophyte. His campaign had raised only $399 and the only contributor aside from Sullivan was his sister. Sullivan, a real estate attorney, moved to Calabasas last summer and said he decided to run for public office after serving as a U.S. Naval Reserve lieutenant in the Persian Gulf War.

But throughout his campaign, Sullivan was plagued by rumors that he was in league with developers. He was pegged almost from the outset as a “Soka candidate” by critics who cited his business connection to real estate interests and questioned why anyone who had lived in the community only a short time would run for office.

Sullivan denied the accusations but was never able to put them behind him.

At Thursday’s meeting, Lopata alleged that Mike Lewis, a Soka lobbyist and former deputy to Los Angeles County Supervisor Pete Schabarum, solicited donations from six local developers or their attorneys on behalf of Sullivan and candidate Keith Ward.

The charge could be damaging because potential development--especially a proposed expansion of Soka--has emerged as the key issue in the campaign.

Soka’s plans to expand its campus at Las Virgenes Road and Mulholland Highway to a 4,400-student institution has drawn sharp criticism from local officials and has become one of the major issues of the campaign. The Japanese-owned school sits on land long coveted by the National Park Service as a visitors center for the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area.

Calabasas officials have no jurisdiction over Soka’s proposed expansion because the school is just outside the city limits. Even so, candidates are campaigning on the promise that they will do all they can to prevent Soka’s expansion.

Although all of the candidates portrayed themselves as advocates of careful planning and say they oppose Soka’s expansion plans, the three incumbents had claimed that the Ward and Sullivan campaigns were financed by developers.

After talking to Sullivan after the forum, Lopata withdrew his comments about the candidate, saying Sullivan probably was unaware of the fund solicitation. “I think he was a pawn,” Lopata said.

Sullivan and Ward both denied knowledge of any campaign efforts by Lewis, saying that if Lewis took any action on their behalf, his help was unsolicited and unwanted. Both said they were upset by the allegation.

Ward said of Lewis: “I have no idea what this guy is doing. Whatever he’s doing, he’s doing it without authorization.”

Lewis, too, denied any involvement in the campaign, saying in an interview earlier this week that he had no interest in Calabasas politics. “I don’t even know any of the people in Calabasas,” Lewis said. “I haven’t the faintest idea what they are talking about.”

But one of the six developers and attorneys mentioned by Lopata called Lewis an “unmitigated liar.” The source, who asked not to be named, told The Times that Lewis called him last week and asked outright for a donation to Sullivan’s campaign.

“When I told him that I was disinclined to make a donation, he said, ‘You know, you can make it for $99. Then it does not have to be reported,’ ” the source said.

Another developer, who asked not to be identified, said he had talked informally with Lewis about the campaign but but Lewis never solicited a donation from him.

Soka spokesman Jeff Ourvan said the university did not direct Lewis to do campaign work for any of the candidates, saying it would be against the school’s policies. “We don’t get involved in the election campaign,” he said. “The rumor is not true.”