Anti-'A' group hits back
County general plan backers say LandWatch off base

The Salinas Californian
Posted April 27, 2007

By DAWN WITHERS

A week full of campaign rhetoric and "following the money" continued Thursday when opponents of the controversial Measure A released their own analysis of the June ballot initiative's campaign funds.

Opponents lambasted supporters of Measure A, a general growth plan for the county framed by slow-growth groups, for casting the Monterey County Board of Supervisors as being bought and sold by developers.
They especially targeted LandWatch Monterey County, a group that helped write the growth initiative.

"LandWatch is intentionally misleading voters," said Nancy Isakson, a planning consultant and member of Plan for the People, the opposition campaign to Measure A.

Chris Fitz, executive director of LandWatch, said Plan for the People is trying to protect its funding sources, including the California Association of Realtors. That organization gave Plan for the People $150,000 on March 28, according to the California Secretary of State Web site.

Measure A supporters held a news conference Monday showing the amount of contributions to supervisors from "developer interests," which they defined as "associations with specific development projects, real estate, finance, construction" among others, and how that money influenced supervisors' votes on development.

Opponents called that definition too broad.

Brian Finegan is a Salinas-based attorney and member of the Refinement Group, made up of land-use lawyers, business people and community members who support the supervisor-approved general plan, known as GPU4. When asked how a developer should be defined, Finegan said it's not the "proper definition" that matters - but how the word was used.

The analysis released by Plan for the People and prepared by the Refinement Group also took issue with the League of Women Voters' assessment of the initiative and GPU4. Both the Salinas Valley and Monterey Peninsula leagues endorse Measure A.

Contact Dawn Withers at withers@thecalifornian.com.