Recall Update

Embattled Councilman Lance MacLean was treated to an anti-recall event last week by a Casta del Sol resident. Some Casta homeowners expressed surprise that anyone would have the nerve to host a get-together for MacLean in Casta del Sol after he demonstrated his support for housing on the Casta golf course. The outcome of the event, however, wasn’t a surprise.

A resident who learned about the event emailed this blog: “Very few people attended the meeting, which was set up by one of the board members who is a MacLean fan. Any hope MacLean had to get support went south very quickly when he got caught in a lie. The person who organized the event got mad and flustered. She was trying to gloss it over by saying, “Let’s move on, let’s move on.” MacLean was angry, and the whole thing backfired.”

Street-corner challenges between MacLean’s four-member fan club and the recall proponents continue to erupt each week. The same four people stage demonstrations, harass recall supporters and yell angry remarks. On the morning of Jan. 22, a group of recall supporters were holding signs and banners at La Paz and Chrisanta to greet rush-hour traffic. One of MacLean’s supporters walked up to the corner and began yelling at those holding “YES on Recall” signs. A woman holding a sign said, “If you don’t get away from me, I’m going to call the police.” The MacLean fan moved closer to her and yelled, “You’re standing on a corner, what do you expect?” As she grabbed her cell phone and dialed 9-1-1, the man literally ran away.

During the Jan. 18 council meeting, MacLean announced from the dais that he was about to release “new information” against the recall, which residents should expect to receive in the mail. His hit piece arrived in mail boxes on Jan. 23 – a series of claims about candidate Dale Tyler’s views. None of the claims was documented, nor was any reference or context provided. The return address on the mailer was Lance MacLean’s campaign.

In the city’s only prior recall effort, Councilman Bob Curtis survived a campaign to remove him in 1990. Some residents might remember that the campaign mailers became so negative against Curtis that voters reacted by supporting him. MacLean’s Jan. 23 mailer may have had a similar effect, sinking MacLean’s own ship with a final stink bomb.