Taconic Spent $335,000 for Dump Measure

A group of San Diego investors that wants to build a garbage dump at the mouth of the Ojai Valley spent $335,000 in a failed four-month campaign to place the Weldon Canyon issue on the November ballot, according to campaign finance statements.

The investor partnership, Taconic Resources, spent nearly all of the money on attorneys and consultants in a legal and public relations battle, according to finance reports filed with the Ventura County elections office.

“We were well within our budget,” said Jim Jevens, a Camarillo consultant hired to work on the Weldon project. “What was expended was actually about half of what was available to us.”

Despite a judge’s ruling in August that struck the landfill initiative from the November ballot, Jevens said the project is not dead and that Taconic Resources will pursue an appeal.

“We haven’t dropped the ball,” he said.

By contrast, the Ojai Valley-based Coalition to Stop Weldon Canyon Dump spent about $21,000 on its efforts to fight the landfill. Most of its money went to pay for surveys, advertising and signature-gathering for a petition opposing the dump, said John Nava, an activist with the coalition.

Members of the coalition said they were not surprised by the amount of money Taconic put into its campaign.

“They’re well-heeled entrepreneurs and gamblers who are willing to spend money,” Nava said.

Despite the name of Taconic’s campaign committee--Ventura Citizens for Environmental Solutions--all of the money it received came from outside the county, Nava said.

California Landfill Development, Inc. of Boston gave the partnership $209,363, the single largest contribution, according to the committee’s campaign finance report. Servcon-San Marcos Inc. of San Francisco was second with a contribution of $15,576.

“They’re all out-of-county speculators,” Nava said.

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Besides attorney fees, the committee spent about $100,000 on public relations consultants, polling and signature gathering for its landfill initiative. About 32,000 county residents signed a petition last spring to place the measure on the November ballot.

The committee paid Irvine consultant Mark Thompson nearly $40,000 for his services, according to its campaign finance statement.

Thompson, a longtime political consultant who has represented state Sen. Cathie Wright (R-Simi Valley) and other local politicians, is also working for the campaigns of Ventura County Supervisor candidates Scott Montgomery and Frank Schillo. Both candidates are ardent supporters of the Weldon Canyon dump, but have not received any money from Taconic.

Thompson could not be reached for comment Tuesday.

Jevens said he was not aware that Thompson was working for the candidates, but said as a private consultant he was free to do as he wished.

“I have no idea what he’s doing for Scott Montgomery or Frank Schillo, and I don’t care,” Jevens said.

Montgomery, a Moorpark councilman who so far has spent about $10,000 for Thompson’s services, said he also did not see any conflict with Thompson’s representation of Taconic. Montgomery is running for the 4th Supervisorial District seat being vacated by Vicky Howard, who represents Simi Valley and Moorpark.

“He’s just an employee of mine,” Montgomery said. “He’s free to represent whoever he wants.”

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Schillo, a Thousand Oaks councilman who has paid Thompson about $5,000 for consulting services, was not available for comment Tuesday. Schillo is running for the 2nd Supervisorial District seat being vacated by Maria VanderKolk, who represents most of the Conejo Valley and Port Hueneme.

While acknowledging that there is nothing legally wrong with Thompson representing the two supervisor candidates, Nava said his involvement in their campaigns raised some ethical issues.

“It’s a little shady,” he said.

Even if Taconic is granted an appeal, it is too late for the landfill initiative to make the November ballot. But Jevens said a new petition drive would be launched early next year.

If Taconic fails to win an appeal, he said the new board of supervisors will have to decide whether to open a landfill at Weldon Canyon. He said he believes the county, which is facing the closure of Bailard Landfill in Oxnard in 1997, has little choice.

“For all practical purposes, there’s still no alternative,” he said.