Many Citizens Say City Hall Fighting and Recall Efforts Have Gone Too Far

From the bridge table at the senior center to the coffeehouse courtyard at the newest shopping plaza, the word is the same: The City Council is giving this well-mannered town a bad name.

“I’d like to see them all recalled,” said Barbara Bock, who has spent two decades in Thousand Oaks.

“They’re not getting much done by disagreeing with each other all the time,” said Jeanine DeGuardi, a 20-year resident, expressing what seems to be a growing sentiment about the City Council. “It’s ridiculous. I don’t think recalls are such a good idea. But then again, you need to have a board that works together. It’s not working. It’s not working at all.”

“There’s an underlying feeling of hostility here that I find offensive,” said Joanne Fleming, who moved to Thousand Oaks from London three years ago.

With Councilwoman Elois Zeanah facing a recall drive and Mayor Judy Lazar and Councilman Andy Fox confronting a retaliatory ouster, the ideological divisions that turned personal years ago have erupted into a political feud.

That, at least, is one point where city leaders can find consensus. There are two others: Interpersonal squabbles are deeply affecting the City Council’s ability to govern Thousand Oaks, and the increasingly chaotic political climate spreading through the city shows no signs of improving.

These are some examples of the out-of-control politics of Thousand Oaks:

* The Ventura County Sheriff’s Department has devoted an increasing amount of resources to breaking up confrontations involving backers and opponents of the Zeanah recall, as well as employees of the businesses where they gather.

None of the clashes has resulted in violence, said sheriff’s Cmdr. Kathy Kemp, who acts as the city’s police chief. But fearing the showdowns could spill into the City Council chambers and turn ugly, Kemp has begun planting plainclothes deputies in the audience at council meetings.

“You’ve got people up there saying some aggressive things, and sometimes we thought some of the things happening in the streets over the weekend could carry over to the council meetings,” Kemp said. “Fortunately, that has not happened. We’ve been spending a tremendous amount of time on this recall issue. It’s unfortunate.”

* Angry people on both sides of the City Council’s 3-2 split now dominate the public comment portion of the panel’s meetings, describing mysterious juntas and leveling unfounded felony accusations against council members and city officials. The rhetoric has become so hateful that some council members suggest public comments are no longer fit to be televised.

* Opponents of the Zeanah recall have resorted to boycotting and picketing businesses they believe are involved in the campaign to oust her. In at least two instances, they have mistakenly targeted people not involved in the recall.

Some former Thousand Oaks politicians say the time has come for fresh leadership. Former Mayor Larry Horner, who served on the City Council for 17 years, is among those who believe the entire council should be recalled.

“These are elected officials--they have to be judged on their ability to serve the community, their morals and their ethics,” Horner said. “The public is tired of this, and I think the important thing here is that these people just can’t get along, and they’re not even trying anymore. I’m not sure these council members understand why they are up there.”

Horner recalled that in his days on the council, he and then-Councilwoman Madge Schaefer had numerous, often heated, arguments.

“But then we’d have a cup of coffee afterward at one of the local restaurants and go on from there,” Horner said. “Madge was trouble. Madge and I used to have lots of disagreements. But it sort of ended after the vote. With this council, it never ends.”

Schaefer, who later served on the Ventura County Board of Supervisors, agreed. She too believes the entire council has lost sight of its purpose, though she mainly places the blame on one person for creating the divisive atmosphere.

“Feelings ran very high when I was on the council,” Schaefer said. “But the feelings were about the issues. I used to say, ‘I don’t want to be on your Christmas card list. But when we’re on that dais, we have to work together.’

“When Larry and I were up there, I knew he was up there because he represented a certain point of view, and he knew the same about me,” she added. “There seems to be no attempt on the part of Mrs. Zeanah to work on things, no chance for gray. When you have people with different opinions, your job is to reach consensus.”

For their part, Thousand Oaks’ current council members--including Linda Parks and Mike Markey--all insist they are behaving honorably, doing everything possible to take the high road.

That hasn’t stopped some backers of each of the council factions from taking the dispute to the streets of Thousand Oaks.

And in the case of the Zeanah recall, on several occasions, the result has been nothing short of a bumpy ride.

Lisa Lubin, who recently opened the Frontpage Newsstand at the Janss Marketplace, learned from the mall’s manager several weeks ago that she had been quoted and labeled an active member of the Zeanah recall in a pro-Zeanah insert published in the Thousand Oaks Star.

That surprised Lubin, who said she did not even understand the statement attributed to her--something to do with Zeanah’s dismissal from the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy.

Then things got worse: Lubin learned that Zeanah supporters had placed her business on a boycott list that they were circulating throughout town.

Lubin called the newspaper and had future inserts killed, but by then, she said, the damage to her reputation and business had been done.

“I was really upset and disturbed by this entire experience,” Lubin said. “I mean, it’s amazing.”

So how could it happen?

Joy Meade of Residents for Slow Growth, the pro-Zeanah group that put the inserts together, said she was convinced she recognized Lubin’s voice from a radio spot that the Zeanah recall group is airing.

The voice and the comment, Meade insists, sound exactly like a radio spot done by Lubin for Save Our City, a previous anti-Zeanah group.

“I really believe it’s her,” Meade said. “If she can prove that it isn’t her, then we wouldn’t do that.”

Meade does not believe the burden of proof lies in her court. “Even if they don’t like our fliers, everyone will benefit from slow growth and clean air,” she said.

Similarly, the owner of another business at the Janss Marketplace, the Beanscene Espresso, was recently handed a pro-Zeanah flier in front of her shop.

“I happened to be outside the store, and someone handed me a flier and said, ‘Your boss should enjoy this,’ ” said Kathy Herrington, who owns the shop with her husband, Jim. “I said ‘What boss would that be?’ ”

Herrington soon learned that her store was part of the boycott organized by Zeanah supporters because they mistakenly believed it was owned by Brian Collier, a resident who is active in the recall.

Herrington had once hired Collier’s son for a part-time job, but other than that, had no knowledge of Collier. And she had nothing to do with the recall.

She stressed that Zeanah supporters profusely apologized to her after learning of their mistake. But she remains shaken by the incident.

“I was appalled that a mistake like that could happen,” Herrington said. “I was amazed that they wouldn’t check records and do their homework before doing something like that.”

In the case of the Beanscene Espresso, Meade said Residents for Slow Growth had nothing to do with the boycott, arguing that the actions of one misinformed Zeanah supporter were to blame.

“You cannot control the loose cannon factor,” Meade said. “We’re just people, we’re not an expensive PR group. We’ve got feet and $25 checks, and we’re fighting against big developers. I’m sorry if we make some mistakes.”

Yes! Remove Elois Zeanah, the group Meade is warring against, is clearly more organized--and better financed, judging from the onslaught of radio, print and direct-mail advertising it has used to make its point.

The anti-Zeanah group has declined to reveal its spending, saying it fears harassment against its contributors.

But it has obviously topped all spending records for recalls in Thousand Oaks.

The advertising is tapering off now that the group has accomplished its goal of gathering the needed signatures to place a Zeanah recall measure on the ballot, said spokesman Peter J. Turpel.

Michael Hagopian, a filmmaker who moved to the Conejo Valley before the incorporation of Thousand Oaks, has been active in city politics for more than 30 years.

Like many longtime observers, he says the competing recall campaigns are both groundless.

“Unless someone is cheating, taking bribes, I don’t see how you can recall them,” said Hagopian, who managed the campaigns of former council members Frances Prince, Chuck Cohen, Lee Laxdal and Bob Lewis, among others. “The arguments for all three of these recalls, they’re all a bunch of lies and half-truths.”

Hagopian, though, says he does sense that others in Thousand Oaks are in a bloodthirsty mood.

A recall of the whole council is not out of the question, he said.

Although he too is disgusted with the “Tuesday Night Fights,” Hagopian said he can’t help but tune in.

“Sometimes it’s the best entertainment in town,” he said.