Otting denies ties to Croul

Newport Beach City Council hopeful Dolores Otting claims that she had nothing to do with a political mailer endorsing her campaign sent out to Newport Beach residents this week, and says she hardly knows the man who put up the money for the flier — a claim her opponent, Councilman Keith Curry, disputes.

“I’m just as shocked as anyone else is,” Otting said. “In my life, things like this don’t happen. I’ve had to work very hard for everything. This is like a windfall. It’s a nice flier, and never in my wildest dreams would I expect this from anybody.”

The flier, paid for by the political action committee Taxpayers for Safer Neighborhoods, features Otting’s photograph and campaign logo, points from her campaign platform and also takes a few jabs at Curry.

Former chairman of the paint manufacturer Behr Process Corp. Jack Croul donated $25,000 to Taxpayers for Safer Neighborhoods, public records show.

Croul, who also claims that he knew nothing about the flier, was the only contributor to the group from July 1 to Sept. 30 this year, according to campaign documents.

“I don’t know the exact pieces of literature that are being sent out by the group,” Croul said. “People know better than I how to promote a person.”

Newport Beach limits how much money one person can donate to an individual city council candidate to $500, but there’s no cap on how much an independent group can spend on fliers and things like television ads and billboards promoting one candidate — as long as a group works independently from the candidate.

“I don’t know that it’s necessarily illegal, but it’s immoral and it’s a circumvention of the campaign contribution limits we have in this city,” Curry said. This isn’t the first time Croul has invested money in local politics. He poured $680,000 into the City Hall in the Park group, which campaigned to successfully pass Measure B earlier this year.

Curry campaigned against the measure, which requires the city to built its next city hall on a piece of land in Newport Center.

“After spending $680,000 to move city hall 700 feet, Mr. Croul has apparently determined it is more cost effective to buy City Council members. Dolores Otting was available,” Curry said.

Otting said Wednesday she has met Croul only twice.

“I’m not being financed by Jack Croul,” Otting said. “I run my own campaign.”

Political consultant Matthew Cunningham, who said he acts as an informal spokesman for Taxpayers for Safer Neighborhoods, said Croul merely wants to help Otting get more recognition.

“He’s supporting Dolores, so he wants to help the kid out. It’s hard for non-incumbents to get the word out and to communicate their message,” Cunningham said. “The primary motivation is to get a fresh perspective in Newport Beach.”

BY THE NUMBERS

2008 campaign contributions to Sept. 30 in the Newport Beach District 7 City Council race

Keith Curry: $60,816

Dolores Otting: $25,922

BRIANNA BAILEY may be reached at (714) 966-4625 or at brianna.bailey@latimes.com.