Coto de Caza : Residents in Squabble on Club Rights

A group of about 600 members of the Club de Caza in the exclusive southeast Orange County community of Coto de Caza is squaring off for a battle with the owners of the development over membership rights.

Barnard F. (Barry) Klein, an attorney and resident of the community, said forms were mailed out in December seeking renewals of annual club memberships. In fact, Klein said, all present club members are supposed to have lifetime rights to the club’s facilities under the terms of their contracts with club management.

The club includes facilities for tennis, swimming, golf, riding, shooting, racquetball and other sports. It also provides members, some of whom do not live in Coto de Caza, with dining facilities and a private bar.

John Yelverton, president of Coto de Caza, said Monday that “it was not our intent to take away the rights of the club members.”

‘Varied History’

“What’s happening is that during the 18 years (of Coto de Caza’s existence) the place has had a varied history with several ownerships and club programs,” he said. “We’re on the verge of some new development here, and we’re simply trying to clear up the club documents.”

Klein, however, said signing the new membership agreements sent out by club management might cost members their privileges and rights to the club’s facilities.

“We were asked to sign the forms if we wanted to continue our memberships,” he said. “But the small type on a back page says if we do sign we must waive all of our present and prior rights. I don’t understand how they (management) can do that.”

Klein and several others, saying they feared that some club members might already have signed the agreement without reading it carefully, have taken two steps. They said that in meetings with Yelverton, they have obtained an extension on the deadline for signing the forms from Jan. 1 to Feb. 28.

They also have organized the Membership Rights Preservation Committee, which, in addition to meeting with Yelverton, has started a fund for possible legal action.

Yelverton said meetings and discussions with the club members will continue “in the hope of totally resolving” the issues.

The new development of which Yelverton spoke is the construction of 6,000 homes on 4,000 acres during the next 10 to 15 years.

The development, which includes a new golf course, is a joint venture of Arvida Disney and the Chevron Land & Development Co.

“What we were trying to do (when the membership forms were sent out) was to structure the club’s programs so that new residents will be integrated with the 200-plus who are living in the existing community,” Yelverton said.