Westminster : Recall Drive Runs Behind Schedule

Leaders of an effort to recall Mayor Charles V. Smith and three other City Council members are optimistic they will gather the required number of voter signatures by the Feb. 19 deadline to force a recall election.

So far, recall proponents have gathered about 4,000 signatures, said Rebecca Danna, one of the recall leaders. The group needs 6,937 signatures before the end of the 120-day period allowed by state law to complete the signature drive.

If they succeed, a recall vote must be held 88 to 125 days from the time the signatures are verified, according to City Clerk Mary Lou Morey.

The recall, triggered by an October cost-cutting reorganization of the Fire Department, also targets council members Craig Schweisinger, Charmayne S. Bohman and Tony Lam. The fifth member of the council, Frank Fry Jr., is not a recall target, although he voted for the reorganization.

Five firefighters were laid off and one firetruck was put out of service as part of the reorganization. Recall proponents say the move reduced public safety, but city officials said it was intended to make the Fire Department more efficient and to reduce its overtime expenses.

“People are mad,” said Danna, a mother of three young children. “Nine of 10 people we ask are signing the recall petition.”

Supporters of Smith and the other council members are working to foil the recall drive.

Two weeks ago, the Westminster Taxpayers and Citizens Against the City Council Recall sent out mailers, including a card addressed to the city clerk that allows a voter who has signed the recall petition to withdraw the signature.

“It’s foolish,” said Earl French, who opposes the recall. An election, he said, “will cost us money.”

According to city estimates, a recall election would cost about $75,000. If the recall succeeds, a special election next year to seat new council members would cost another $75,000.

French said it’s all unnecessary because the terms of Schweisinger, Smith and Lam expire in November, 1994.

If the recall proponents gather enough signatures, “we’ll just have to defeat them in the polls,” French said.