Residents Seek Recall Drive Against Councilwoman

Political bickering on the Thousand Oaks City Council reached new heights Tuesday when a resident announced plans to initiate a recall drive against Councilwoman Elois Zeanah.

During the council meeting, Peter Turpel handed City Clerk Nancy Dillon a form signed by 20 residents detailing their reasons for the proposed recall.

Zeanah’s critics listed numerous reasons why they believed she should be removed from the five-member panel. In the form, the residents accused her of exposing the city to expensive lawsuits and refusing to participate in the governance of the city.

Zeanah told the audience she had been prepared for the surprise announcement by an anonymous telephone call earlier in the day.

“I do not believe that a recall will be successful,” she said. “This seems to be the act of a vindictive council majority.”

Zeanah added that the anonymous caller suggested that Councilman Andy Fox was probably behind the recall effort. She also said the caller told her a recall drive against Fox could be underway.

Fox, who did not attend Tuesday’s meeting, was unavailable for comment.

Lazar said during a break in the meeting that she also had heard rumors about a move to recall Zeanah. “But I heard that several people were going to be recalled. This is ugly,” she said.

Zeanah, a slow-growth advocate who has served on the council since 1990, has regularly been at odds with developers and other council members.

Last week, Mayor Judy Lazar accused Zeanah of failing to represent the residents of Thousand Oaks at intergovernmental meetings and of failing to ask city officials for help in understanding complex issues.

At that meeting, Lazar voted along with Councilmen Mike Markey and Andy Fox to elect Markey as mayor pro tem instead of Zeanah, who was in line for the post because of her seniority on the council.

But before the recall effort was announced Tuesday, several residents praised Zeanah and said she was owed an apology by Lazar.

Before a recall election would be scheduled, Dillon said, a recall petition has to be signed by 10% to 15% of the city’s registered voters.