Activists fought City Hall and won -- but they won’t get their appeals fees back

Not long after Eastside Costa Mesa activists Ann Parker and Carrie Renfro won their respective appeals at City Hall, they asked for their money back.

Parker’s $690 — most of it from her own pocket — had led to the successful convincing of the City Council in July that a sober-living operator, Solid Landings Behavioral Health, shouldn’t be granted permission for group counseling sessions at a Westside office building.

Renfro successfully swayed the council in August to deny an Eastside church permission to hold a farmers market in its parking lot. After gathering money from her neighbors, she paid the $1,220 cost of filing the appeal.

On Tuesday, the women formally asked for refunds.

In the end, after much discussion by the City Council, which can grant refunds on a case-by-case basis, they did not get their money back.

“I knew I was right, and that’s why I did it,” Parker said of her original appeal.

Councilwoman Katrina Foley suggested granting half of the refund amounts. Her motion failed on a tie vote, with Foley and Councilwoman Sandy Genis in favor and Mayor Steve Mensinger and Mayor Pro Tem Jim Righeimer dissenting.

Councilman Gary Monahan left the meeting before the vote.

Though $690 or $1,220 may not be a lot to some, Genis said, “for someone on Social Security, it’s a lot of money.”

Former Councilwoman Wendy Leece lauded the women’s efforts.

“They were willing to put up money and preserve the quality of life in Costa Mesa,” she said. “We are smart. We are savvy and we can make a difference.”

City staff noted that such fees help cover the staff time needed to prepare appeals and adhere to state public-notice requirements.

The staff cited recent situations when the council granted a fee waiver and a refund request.

In 2013, $1,220 was given back to the Catalina Shores homeowners association, which had contested a housing development next to the tract off Tustin Avenue. On Tuesday, Righeimer said the association ended up withdrawing its case, which is why, at the time, he was in favor of a refund.

In 2012, Costa Mesa resident Al Morelli received a waiver of the $1,220 required to appeal a Planning Commission decision to allow the Harbor Boulevard Target store to open earlier for Black Friday — the day following Thanksgiving.

Foley said she had mixed feelings about giving Renfro and Parker their money back. She noted that, as an attorney, she pays such fees regularly.

“That kind of comes with the territory,” she said.

Foley also offered to personally give $50 each to Renfro and Parker toward their costs.

Mensinger noted that Costa Mesa residents don’t necessarily have to pay any fees if they can get a planning commissioner or council member to file a review on their behalf. He said he worries about too many appeals coming through City Hall, which would burden the staff, and argued that the fees act as a control mechanism.

Righeimer echoed the point, saying, “You can charge zero and you see how many things get appealed.”

In a follow-up interview Wednesday, Righeimer said an amount like $1,220 covers a fraction of staff’s time to organize an appeal, and that Costa Mesa is unusual in even offering refunds.

“I don’t know of other cities that when people appeal things, they get the money back,” he said. “I’ve just never heard of that.”