Orange County Election ’86 : Costa Mesa : Homeowner Groups Suffer Election Setback

Homeowner groups and their political action committee, Mesa Action, suffered a political setback when their candidates failed to win either of two open seats on the City Council in Tuesday’s election.

Mesa Action, which backed council members Dave Wheeler and Mary Hornbuckle in 1984, were seeking a slow-growth council majority with the election of Planning Commissioner Joseph Erickson and businessman Doug Yates. But pro-development candidates Orville Amburgey and Peter Buffa won.

“We are terribly disappointed that we didn’t get some conservative growth people in there,” Mesa Action spokesman Jim Aynes said. “We were incredibly outspent and got buried in hit pieces.”

Slow-growth activists predicted Wednesday that developers would benefit from the results, particularly C.J. Segerstrom & Sons, which withdrew a planned 32-story office tower earlier this year for lack of political support.

“It looks like the Segerstroms bought their skyscraper,” Councilman Dave Wheeler said, referring to the builder’s financial support for the two winners. With the support of incumbent Councilman Donn Hall, Wheeler added, “they’ve got their three votes now.”

Segerstrom executives and Chamber of Commerce president Malcolm Ross did not return phone calls Wednesday. However, a prepared statement released by the company applauded the results. “We especially congratulate Orville Amburgey and Peter Buffa and look forward to working with them and other members of the City Council to develop solutions to important community concerns,” Thomas S. Santley, Segerstrom’s public affairs director, said.