Top Lobbyist For Controversial Anaheim Hills Housing Development Has Deep Ties to Aitken Family

Tom Daly with Mayor Ashleigh Aitken and his wife Debbie at the State of the City Address on June 6, 2024.

By DUANE J. ROBERTS
Editor & Publisher

Tom Daly, a lobbyist retained by SALT Development, a Utah-based real estate firm that is planning to build 498 luxury apartments, single-family estates, and commercial space on ecologically-sensitive land in Anaheim Hills, has deep ties to the family of Mayor Ashleigh Aitken.

Besides the fact Daly has been an advisor to the mayor, campaign finance records reviewed by The Anaheim Investigator show he was a member of the Democratic Foundation of Orange County, the political machine Wylie Aitken, her father, used to wield his influence over local politics.

Daly’s relationship with the Aitkens goes back to the mid-1990s. It was Wylie who told the OC Weekly that he first met Loretta Sanchez through him. Yet not much is known about his links to the Democratic Foundation then because some public records of that era no longer exist.

But Form 460s that were later filed with the California Secretary of State reveal that the former state assemblyman pumped $15,050 into the Democratic Foundation from 2014 to 2018, even paying their $1,100 annual membership dues. He also gave them $4,000 in 2002.

From the Secretary of State.

Additionally, other records disclose that Wylie himself wrote out big checks to help Daly in his bids for public office. Between the years of 2012 and 2017, he contributed about $6,500 to his state assembly campaigns, usually in dollar amounts ranging from $1,000 to $2,500.

Though the elder Aitken “retired” as chairman of the Democratic Foundation in 2009, he still maintained a tight grip on the group through close allies like Dan Jacobson, a Tustin-based attorney, and Michael Penn, his son-in-law, who has been married to Ashleigh since 2002.

Numerous photographs in the possession of The Investigator make it clear Daly was a featured guest at events sponsored by the Democratic Foundation. At one, he can be seen seated at a table not far from Penn. Across from them is Carrie Nocella, an executive with the Disneyland Resort.

Mayor Aitken isn’t the only person on the city council whom Daly has ties with. For example, he backed Councilman Stephen Faessel when he first ran for his seat. And Mayor Pro Tem Norma Campos-Kurtz’s resume states she was his district director for seven years when he served in the legislature.

Wylie Aitken with Daly in 2017.

Daly also isn’t the only lobbyist for SALT Development. Peter Mitchell first began representing this firm in 2019. However, in paperwork filed with the city clerk since that time, not only does he continue to report them as being a “potential client,” but insists they never pay him for his services.

Mitchell is no stranger to the political arena. He is a consultant for several law enforcement unions, including the Anaheim Police Association. Perhaps it should be noted that the latter spent $92,556 to help Mayor Aitken get elected in 2022, according to campaign finance records.

Furthermore, data from the Secretary of State shows the California Statewide Law Enforcement Association, which has 7,000 members, made a $2,500 contribution to the “Daly for Insurance Commissoner 2026” committee last year. Their website lists Mitchell as a consultant.

The Dalys with Berenice Ballinas, the Mayor’s Chief of Staff, and Peter Mitchell.

SALT Development’s proposal for their 76-acre site in Anaheim Hills has been met with fierce opposition. Residents argue it will increase traffic, pose a serious fire risk, and have a harmful impact on wildlife. They further claim it will “change the character of neighborhoods” surrounding it.

In response, the firm says that only half of the land will be developed, the rest being kept as open space. Potential fire risks will be mitigated by adding a dozen hydrants and removing excess vegetation. Moreover, public access to the nearby Deer Canyon Park Preserve will be improved.

For the record, The Investigator emailed questions to both Daly and Mitchell. With respect to the latter, we wondered why he has spent the past five years working for SALT Development for free and asked if he ever expects to be compensated. So far Mitchell has ignored us.

But Daly, to his credit, did send us a reply. Responding to a question we posed about whether or not his pre-existing relationships with Mayor Aitken, her family, and other council members might have played a role in the firm’s decision to hire him, he wrote as follows:

I was hired to join this project team, which will bring first-class housing and many community benefits, because I am deeply knowledgeable of Anaheim’s planning history as well as our current planning priorities. And I’m certainly aware of our pressing housing needs. 

As an Anaheim native, I represented the community as an elected official for thirty-seven years. Fourteen of those were at our City Hall, where I participated in many complicated public hearings on housing proposals. 

I know literally thousands of residents, including the entire city council and city staff.