READERS RESPOND

AT ISSUE: Allan Beek, a volunteer for the Greenlight initiative drive in

Newport Beach, was accused of roughing up a signature-gatherer for a

rival ballot measure.

I can understand Allan Beek’s frustration with the petitioners.

My husband and I signed the Greenlight petition several months ago. It

was brought to our house by a neighbor who was canvassing for signatures,

on her own time, in the mutual interest of safe and healthy neighborhoods

in which to raise out families.

On the other hand, my signature was also recently solicited at my

daughter’s school and at my grocery store by people who are combined

register-to-vote/petition canvassers. They do not live in this area and

are therefore unaware of the local issues.

These same people get paid for each signature they collect and gosh, I

wonder where their interests lie? One of those person’s comments to me

was that I was “one of those” when I told her that I couldn’t sign as I

had already signed the other petition.

I guess if I don’t want to see Newport turned into the Marina del Rey of

Orange County, I am “one of those.”

KIM DEEM

Newport Beach

I am writing to you about the veracity of the signature gatherers for

what I call the “redlight” initiative.

When I am asked by a petitioner to sign a petition, I always ask, “Are

you being paid to gather signatures?” If the answer is “yes,” I refuse

because, usually, paid petitioners are neither grass-roots nor

citizen-directed. They are hired hands working for special interests and

not for the citizenry.

The people who are gathering the so-called redlight signatures are paid

professionals who work for a signature-gathering firm in Anaheim.

In contrast to them, Allan Beek, their antagonist according to recent

articles in the Daily Pilot, is a lifelong city resident and gives his

own time and money toward its improvement.

For years Allan has worked tirelessly on quality of life issues in the

city. He has worked to prevent the expansion of the John Wayne Airport,

to limit the height of buildings around the bay, to get additional park

space, to stop the building of a freeway in Newport Beach, to protect the

Irvine coast, to pass a city ordinance to decrease traffic, to prevent

the building of a large condominium complex on the peninsula. The list

could go on.

In some of these efforts, Allan has been the leader and in some he has

been an enthusiastic volunteer. But without Allan Beek, Newport Beach

might have its own freeway, high-rise buildings ringing the bay, more

traffic gridlock, a larger John Wayne Airport and be Miami Beach of the

Pacific.

Special interests can’t buy volunteers such as Allan Beek.

PATSY HOLLANDER

Newport Beach