Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

San Diego pols got lots of Del Mar fair freebies

Political party class uses public clout to obtain and distribute free admissions to fair and rock concerts

It's an annual ritual of summer, the running of San Diego officials, both elected and non-elected, out to the county fair in Del Mar for a slew of free admissions and related gratuities, courtesy of the state's 22nd District Agricultural Association, commonly known in these parts as the Del Mar Fair board.

http://www.sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2013/oct/01/54032/

The board itself, which runs the fair, is a highly political party animal, being made up of members appointed by whoever rakes together enough cash and connections to get elected governor of California.

The positions offer no pay, but grant free access to the fair and, in season, to the Del Mar race track and its tony turf club, and are thus highly coveted by the party friendly big money campaign donors who vie for the high-status appointments.

As experts in the art of the political handout, the board members in turn share their wealth of freebies with friends, family, and associates.

The latest round of giving, revealed by recently posted disclosure reports required by the state's Fair Political Practices Commission, bestowed much beneficence.

Board vice president Frederick Schenk, the brother of Democratic Governor Jerry Brown's political intimate Lynn Schenk, a high profile fixture on the California High Speed Rail board that is bulling the bullet train through the Central Valley, was especially generous to his own family.

Apropos his sister's position in the Brown administration, Schenk picked up two free admissions for himself and wife Shari to the performance of Train on June 27. Admission value for each was given as $14 and concert value was $37.

The Schenks also got five tickets to Kendrick Lamar on June 28, taking along "two children and one friend of his child."

Then on July 2, the couple was off to see Adam Lambert with "two children and Randy and Lisa Kay” in tow.

According to the filing:

The official and/or job duties of the District Official require his or her attendance at the event, for which the District Official may receive enough tickets for the District Official and each member of his or her immediate family.

Board president Adam Day handed out his own round of free tickets to various concerts. Recipients listed were Christy Stamper, Brian Earp, Marsi Reyes, Donna Burton, and Diane Casey. The reason for those gifts was given as "economic or business purposes on behalf of the district" and "community relations."

Along with wife Kelly and two children, ex-San Diego chamber of commerce chief Ruben Barrales, a fair board member who now runs a Republican effort to round up more Latinos for the party's cause, was given a total of four Train tickets.

Democratic state Sen. Marty Block got two $14 passes to the fair, as did Solana Beach city councilman Peter Zahn.

GOP San Diego city councilwoman Lorie Zapf got 3 fair and concert admissions valued at a total of $55 each; Chula Vista’s Republican mayor Cheryl Cox picked up four tickets; and newly elected Democratic state Sen. Ben Hueso got two adult and four child admissions for "Economic and business development purposes,” according to the filing.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all

Previous article

Mother, daughter try Goat Canyon trestles

What would we do if bit by rattlesnake?

It's an annual ritual of summer, the running of San Diego officials, both elected and non-elected, out to the county fair in Del Mar for a slew of free admissions and related gratuities, courtesy of the state's 22nd District Agricultural Association, commonly known in these parts as the Del Mar Fair board.

http://www.sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2013/oct/01/54032/

The board itself, which runs the fair, is a highly political party animal, being made up of members appointed by whoever rakes together enough cash and connections to get elected governor of California.

The positions offer no pay, but grant free access to the fair and, in season, to the Del Mar race track and its tony turf club, and are thus highly coveted by the party friendly big money campaign donors who vie for the high-status appointments.

As experts in the art of the political handout, the board members in turn share their wealth of freebies with friends, family, and associates.

The latest round of giving, revealed by recently posted disclosure reports required by the state's Fair Political Practices Commission, bestowed much beneficence.

Board vice president Frederick Schenk, the brother of Democratic Governor Jerry Brown's political intimate Lynn Schenk, a high profile fixture on the California High Speed Rail board that is bulling the bullet train through the Central Valley, was especially generous to his own family.

Apropos his sister's position in the Brown administration, Schenk picked up two free admissions for himself and wife Shari to the performance of Train on June 27. Admission value for each was given as $14 and concert value was $37.

The Schenks also got five tickets to Kendrick Lamar on June 28, taking along "two children and one friend of his child."

Then on July 2, the couple was off to see Adam Lambert with "two children and Randy and Lisa Kay” in tow.

According to the filing:

The official and/or job duties of the District Official require his or her attendance at the event, for which the District Official may receive enough tickets for the District Official and each member of his or her immediate family.

Board president Adam Day handed out his own round of free tickets to various concerts. Recipients listed were Christy Stamper, Brian Earp, Marsi Reyes, Donna Burton, and Diane Casey. The reason for those gifts was given as "economic or business purposes on behalf of the district" and "community relations."

Along with wife Kelly and two children, ex-San Diego chamber of commerce chief Ruben Barrales, a fair board member who now runs a Republican effort to round up more Latinos for the party's cause, was given a total of four Train tickets.

Democratic state Sen. Marty Block got two $14 passes to the fair, as did Solana Beach city councilman Peter Zahn.

GOP San Diego city councilwoman Lorie Zapf got 3 fair and concert admissions valued at a total of $55 each; Chula Vista’s Republican mayor Cheryl Cox picked up four tickets; and newly elected Democratic state Sen. Ben Hueso got two adult and four child admissions for "Economic and business development purposes,” according to the filing.

Sponsored
Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.