Orange County\u2019s largest city has also been plagued by concerns over a lack of transparency and questionable ethical decisions made by former City Manager Jim Vanderpool, who most recently failed to disclose a Chamber of Commerce-paid Lake Havasu trip on the eve of the Angel Stadium sale in 2020, a deal that\u2019s since been torpedoed.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Now, Mayor Ashleigh Aitken is pushing for a more transparent ethics officer \u2013 a position created in the fallout of the corruption probe.\u00a0<\/p>\n
[Read: Where\u2019s Anaheim\u2019s Ethics Officer?<\/a>]<\/p>\n On Tuesday, she spearheaded an effort to publicly release a memo from city Ethics Officer Artin Berjikly about gift reporting requirements surrounding Vanderpool\u2019s Lake Havasu trip \u2013 a memo that city council members reviewed during a closed session discussion about potentially firing Vanderpool last week.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI think that it\u2019s something we should disclose to the public as well as the investigating authorities that are looking into these issues,\u201d Aitken said during Tuesday\u2019s meeting.\u00a0<\/p>\n Shortly before the city council\u2019s public portion of Tuesday\u2019s meeting began, Vanderpool resigned amid renewed scrutiny about his close ties to \u2013 and trips he\u2019s taken with \u2013 Disneyland resort interests.\u00a0<\/p>\n [Read: Anaheim\u2019s City Manager Resigns<\/a>]<\/p>\n The Fair Political Practice Commission \u2013 the state\u2019s chief enforcement arm of campaign finance disclosures and gift reporting requirements \u2013 is investigating Vanderpool\u2019s undisclosed Lake Havasu trip.\u00a0<\/p>\n Aitken also hinted at potentially releasing more material from Berjikly.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI would like to lean toward the side of showing the public what our ethics officer does. What they weigh in on, what guidance they provide to the council,\u201d Aitken said during Tuesday\u2019s meeting.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cStarting with this memo, maybe we can have a broader policy discussion at a later date about having ethics opinions online for our public to see when we ask our ethics officer to provide guidance,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n In order to release Berjikly\u2019s memo, city council members had to waive attorney client privilege \u2013 a move that drew pushback from some council members.<\/p>\n \u201cI almost feel it\u2019s a dramatic request to ask to waive attorney client privilege,\u201d Councilwoman Natalie Rubaclava said, adding that city officials could instead draft up a similar public memo.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI value attorney client privilege and work product and I think that we are setting a dangerous precedent by waiving it,\u201d Rubalcava said. \u201cIn order to eliminate the political theater, we could just ask for something similar to be created and shared with the public.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n But Fabela said Tuesday\u2019s vote isn\u2019t setting a precedent.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t think it necessarily sets a precedent for future privileged records. It\u2019s a pretty limited waiver. So it\u2019s not going to open up the door to other privileged information \u2013 that would require a future vote,\u201d Fabela said.\u00a0<\/p>\n Council members ultimately voted 6-1 to release the memo, with Councilwoman Norma Campos Kurtz voting against the move.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWhat I am hesitant to support is the fact that we are allowing documents to be shared like this,\u201d Kurtz said, adding that it could undermine trust in closed session meetings. \u201cI would like to think that what is discussed and shared in closed session, stays in closed session.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Yet Aitken\u2019s failed closed-door vote to fire Vanderpool was apparently leaked last week to a local Republican group.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n During Tuesday\u2019s meeting, Aitken said District Attorney Todd Spitzer\u2019s office is looking into the issue.\u00a0<\/p>\n [Read: Who Leaked a Failed Closed Door Vote to Nix Anaheim\u2019s City Manager?<\/a>]<\/p>\n It all comes as city officials gear up for another potential Angel Stadium deal.<\/p>\n [Read: Anaheim Officials Once Again Put Angel Stadium in Play<\/a>]<\/p>\n Anaheim\u2019s struggle with ethical questions and increased transparency continues in the wake of a 2022 FBI corruption probe, which saw former Mayor Harry Sidhu resign and eventually go to prison for lying to federal investigators about the failed Angel Stadium land sale.<\/p>\n Under Sidhu\u2019s time as mayor, former Anaheim Chamber of Commerce CEO Todd Ament became a constant presence at city hall, helping influence policymaking \u2013 especially the failed Angel Stadium deal.\u00a0<\/p>\n Ament is currently trying to reverse his federal guilty plea, which includes criminal charges like bank fraud and tax fraud.\u00a0<\/p>\n [Read: Key Figure in Anaheim Corruption Scandal Looks to Reverse Guilty Plea<\/a>]\u00a0<\/p>\n According to court filings, FBI agents alleged Ament and some lobbyists held outsized influence on city policymaking.\u00a0<\/p>\n [Read: FBI Reveals What Many Anaheim Residents Felt For Years, City Hall is Run By The Chamber of Commerce<\/a>]\u00a0<\/p>\n City hired investigators arrived at similar conclusions, also detailing how Visit Anaheim and a host of other resort interests were power players at city hall.\u00a0<\/p>\n [Read: Anaheim\u2019s Own Look at City Hall Finds Disneyland Resort Businesses Improperly Steer Policymaking<\/a>]\u00a0<\/p>\n At one point, Vanderpool was onboard with Ament\u2019s plan to withhold more than $100 million in bond repayment money from the city\u2019s general fund, according to a public report from city-hired investigators.\u00a0<\/p>\n The plan was originally pitched at a secret Chamber of Commerce retreat in late 2020.\u00a0<\/p>\n The Chamber was slated to get some of that bond repayment money as part of Ament\u2019s plan, according to the city\u2019s independent corruption probe.\u00a0<\/p>\n [Read: How Disneyland Resort Interests Planned to Withhold Tax Money from Anaheim\u2019s Working Class<\/a>]<\/p>\n In the wake of the corruption scandal, Anaheim City Council members have enacted some reforms \u2013 like beefing up lobbyist disclosures<\/a> and detailing who elected officials and city executives meet<\/a> with by publishing meeting calendars online<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n Editor\u2019s note: Anaheim Mayor Ashleigh Aitken\u2019s father, Wylie Aitken, chairs Voice of OC\u2019s board of directors.\u00a0<\/p>\n Spencer Custodio is the civic editor. You can reach him at scustodio@voiceofoc.org. Follow him on Twitter @SpencerCustodio<\/a>.<\/p>\n \n\tRelated\n<\/p>\n \t![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/1770316867_816_CityCouncil_Anaheim_Jan13_2026_Taylor-10.jpg\")
City Manager Jim Vanderpool at the Anaheim City Council meeting on Jan. 13, 2026. Credit: ERIKA TAYLOR, Voice of OC<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/OC-STADIUMS-ANAHEIM-2025-MCKENNA-20.jpg\")
The marquee sign at Angel Stadium is lit up in Anaheim, Calif., on Feb. 24, 2025. The ballpark has been home to the Los Angeles Angels since 1966. Credit: KADE MCKENNA, Voice of OC<\/p>\n