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billboard companies asked to have the process slowed down so that they could bring in competing offers for our City, but the offers were ignored. When the referendum process started, Allvision sent "blockers" to try and stop signature gatherers from talking to people. Blockers followed and harassed both petitioners and signers with loud verbal confrontations or placed themselves between the petitioner and signers. Some physical altercations occurred, resulting in arrests and more than one petitioner sought medical attention for injuries. In the 30 -day petition period, Allvision spent $120,000 to pay the blockers to take away the Constitutional right of voters to petition their government. I was outraged that a company that we might be doing business with would act in such a manner. The Inspector General of Metro investigated the claims of abuse by the blockers and on April 24, the blockers were told to stop interfering with the signature -gathering process. They ignored the order, and the abuse continued into May, when the petitions were turned in. The City incurred additional sheriff's expenses of time responding to these incidents and for additional patrols to ward off potential confrontations. When the issue was placed on the ballot, Allvision completely financed the "Yes on S" campaign, for an amount of $164,000, producing mailers and ads that were placed on radio, newspapers, and various websites in Santa Clarita. The mailers were misleading and sometimes patently false. On November 4, the people spoke and the Allvision deal was killed. This issue turned neighbor against neighbor and destroyed the trust many people had in their government. I hope that Santa Ana does not invite this predatory group into their community, and that you benefit from our experience. I encourage you look carefully at all possible partners, and if you choose to move forward with an outdoor advertising contract, let competition work to give your citizens the best deal which they have had input on. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me. In the Peoples Service, TimBen Boydston Councilman (not writing on behalf of the Council as a whole)