Brea leaders have received another demand letter from a law firm representing a resident group known as Brea4All \u2014\u00a0this time demanding the city hand over what they claim are outstanding public records about the city\u2019s plan to bring a Costco store and gas station to the eastern part of the city.<\/p>\n
The letter<\/a>, dated Aug. 28, claims that the records the city provided to members of the public \u2014 regarding the Costco deal and in response to Public Records Act requests \u2014 are \u201cmaterially incomplete\u201d in multiple aspects.<\/p>\n While the city produced more than 15,000 pages of records in response to Brea4All\u2019s public records requests, the group claims that there are still missing records that legally must be handed over for public review.<\/p>\n The resident group previously requested documentation, including emails and text messages, regarding the Costco deal, specifically requesting text message conversations between city staffer Jason Killebrew and long-time Brea developer Dwight Manley.<\/p>\n Killebrew serves as the assistant city manager and community development director for the City of Brea, and Manley is the applicant and land owner for the property that\u2019s slated to become a Costco.<\/p>\n The letter claims that the text messages that were previously provided to the public have pieces missing, including cut-off messages and missing time stamps.<\/p>\n \u201cBrea4All demands that the City produce full text message chains in the proper chronological sequence, with no text cut off or otherwise omitted, and including the date and time stamp for every message exchanged to the extent they appear in the original text chain,\u201d reads the letter from the Shute, Mihaly & Weinberger law firm.<\/p>\n The Costco deal has come under controversy for what some residents critique as a front-loaded tax-sharing agreement that benefits Manley over the city for the first several decades the store would be open.\u00a0<\/p>\n [Read: Costco Is Coming to Brea As Concerns Grow Over Controversial Tax-Sharing Agreement<\/a>]<\/p>\n Killebrew said the city doesn\u2019t have a comment to offer at this time as they prepare a response to meet the letter\u2019s requested response deadline of Sept. 7. The city council meets next on Sept. 15.<\/p>\n Killebrew declined to answer any specific questions from Voice of OC.<\/p>\n \u201cCity Hall was closed on August 28, 2026, and as such, the City is received [sic] the referenced letter early yesterday morning,\u201d Killebrew wrote in an email to Voice of OC Tuesday morning.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThe City is currently reviewing this letter and is planning on preparing a response. However, given that the City just received the letter, the City has no comment at this time related to the questions you outlined in your email below.\u201d<\/p>\n Residents with the Brea4All group have criticized Killebrew and Manley\u2019s text conversations regarding the Costco, claiming their discussions are evidence of secret deliberations about the deal outside public meetings.<\/p>\n Text exchanges between Manley and Killebrew \u2014 unveiled by public records requests and reviewed by Voice of OC \u2014 showed the two talking about Killebrew getting consensus on the proposal from the council.<\/p>\n The exchanges appear to show the two talking about a tax split months prior to an economic development ordinance being approved and also show Killebrew coaching and advising Manley on what points to make during a December 2025 public hearing about the project.<\/p>\n In a previous interview with Voice of OC, Killebrew said<\/a> the text messages between him and Manley were \u201chighly typical\u201d for whenever he tries to attract a developer or a business to invest in the city.<\/p>\n Manley cited<\/a> the $140 million price tag for the land as why he will get a majority of the sales tax generated from the popular wholesale store in the span of 50 years, also in a previous interview with Voice of OC.\u00a0<\/p>\n He also said he\u2019s been involved with real estate in the city for 25 years, adding that none of his communications with city staff have been abnormal.<\/p>\n Mark Strom, a Brea resident who\u2019s been critical of the council in recent history and often speaks at city council meetings to represent Brea4All, said the group has been seeking complete public records from the city since March.<\/p>\n \u201cWe reached an impasse,\u201d he wrote in an email to Voice of OC Tuesday afternoon. \u201cThe purpose of the demand letter is to ensure the transparency that the law requires.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe are troubled by the City\u2019s over-reliance on a single staff member to provide records in response to our requests,\u201d Strom continued. \u201cIn particular, the screenshots provided are often missing portions of conversations or illegible. Undated texts make it difficult to understand context. We are also unclear why the City chose a labor-intensive screenshot process rather than a more efficient method of downloading and reviewing the messages.\u201d<\/p>\n It comes after the same resident group and law firm sent a cease and desist letter<\/a> to the city, alleging leaders reached a consensus on a sales tax sharing agreement for the Costco store and gas station outside public view.<\/p>\n While officials denied violating the Brown Act<\/a> in that case, they approved what\u2019s known as an \u201cunconditional commitment response\u201d \u2014\u00a0that means they agreed to cease and desist from the challenged actions without admitting wrongdoing.<\/p>\n