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Letter to the Editor I have been reading this blog for some time, and it appears to me that most if not all the content is accurate, and the bad news is, unfortunately, true. I would like to take a moment to discuss the "infamous lunch" involving Council Member Gail Reavis, her husband Rick and me. The lunch was held at the now defunct Elephant Bar restaurant, and it was the topic of many lengthy discussions and unfounded accusations. Originally, at my invitation, Council Member Trish Kelly was invited to attend, and she refused. At that time, I believed Kelley would honor her campaign promise to me and the entire town to bring harmony to the new council. I did, in fact, help persuade her to run for office – a mistake for which I now apologize to Mission Viejo residents. I knew at the time she was not qualified to serve on the council, but I felt I knew her to be a person of integrity and honesty and without hidden personal agendas. I was wrong about that also. It is a common practice for a commissioner (I was a Planning Commissioner at the time) to meet with one or two (but not more than two) council members to detail large proposed projects. The expansion of the Mission Hospital was the topic of the lunch, and the expansion was city business. As I said, Kelley refused to attend, and she made clear to me the reason was because Reavis was attending. That was my first insight that Kelley was a jealous and, later, a very vindictive person – completely contrary to the "ethical PTA mom" image she projected. At the lunch, all that was discussed was the hospital expansion. At the onset, Rick Reavis declared his intention to pay for the very meager lunch bill. When the waiter brought the bill, Mr. Reavis got cash out of his wallet to pay. Council Member Reavis proclaimed the lunch was city business – and it was – and she wanted to pay with her city expense account that all council members have for this purpose. Rick Reavis begrudgingly withdrew his cash but specifically reminded his wife not to forget to deduct his lunch expense when she submitted the receipt for reimbursement. This is a fact – I know because I was there. Later, some people made a sleazy attempt to make an issue of the fact that Council Member Reavis did forget to deduct her husband’s lunch from her expense account. I then relayed to Council Member Kelley the exact facts of the luncheon. Kelley's comment to me was, "It doesn't matter.” I believed it meant Kelley didn’t care what the truth was. She then proceeded to engage in and promote a ridiculously slanderous campaign tactic against both Rick Reavis and Council Member Gail Reavis. There are numerous occasions in which I have observed Council Member Kelley acting in a manner that I cannot conclude to be anything but deceptive, vindictive and intentionally destructive – possibly committing illegal acts, which I may disclose in the future. At this point, I do wish, again, to apologize to my fellow residents for supporting Ms. Kelley personally and asking others to do so. I have made a few mistakes politically in my efforts to serve Mission Viejo, and I will do my best to correct those mistakes. Part of that process is to ask readers not to support Council Member Kelley in her reelection nor to support any of her chosen running mates. Bo Klein |
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