Anaheim Investigator

10/11/2025

Let’s stop drawing lines to win. Let’s start designing systems to represent.

09/02/2025

Internal emails, contracts, and PowerPoint presentations obtained by The Anaheim Investigator reveal that city planners are exploring the option of constructing an aerial gondola system to connect the Platinum Triangle with the Anaheim Resort in preparation for the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.

The gondola system, which an estimate suggests will cost $125.7 million, would be built by Swyft Cities, a high-tech firm based in northern California, and begin at a station near the Anaheim Regional Transportation Intermodal Center, a transit hub located close to the Honda Center and Angel Stadium.

Concept image of what a gondola stop at Anaheim GardenWalk, located on the northside of Katella Avenue, might look like. By DUANE J. ROBERTSEditor & Publisher Internal emails, contracts, and Po…

02/07/2025

Photographs obtained by The Anaheim Investigator reveal that City Manager James Vanderpool not only attended an annual holiday party thrown by Curt Pringle & Associates, a prominent lobbyist firm, in December 2022, but he was there along with two other elected officials, including then Councilman Jose Diaz and current Councilwoman Natalie Meeks.

Furthermore, The Investigator has photos of Vanderpool at other events either hosted or co-hosted by this lobbyist. One taken of a reception in May 2018 shows him mingling with Matt Cunningham, a political consultant who at one time had close ties to the Anaheim Chamber of Commerce, and Katie Cawelti, the daughter of Curt Pringle, the firm’s president.

Gloria Ma’ae, James Vanderpool, Jose Diaz, and Scott Voigts at a holiday party thrown by Curt Pringle & Associates in December 2022. By DUANE J. ROBERTSEditor & Publisher Photographs …

01/28/2025

The Anaheim Investigator has evidence which suggests that Councilwoman Natalie Meeks might have deliberately withheld information from her public calendar to conceal the fact she met with a registered lobbyist hired by a company that seeks future contracts with the city potentially worth millions of dollars.

The lobbyist, Curt Pringle, president of Curt Pringle & Associates, not only has known Meeks since 2007 when she served under him as director of public works while he was mayor, but campaign finance paperwork filed with the city clerk shows both he and his wife contributed $4,400 to her city council campaign in 2022.

Curt Pringle. president of Curt Pringle & Associates, with Councilwoman Natalie Meeks at OCV!be Unveiled on September 25, 2024. By DUANE J. ROBERTSEditor & Publisher The Anaheim Investigato…

01/17/2025

The Democratic Foundation of Orange County, the political machine the family of Mayor Ashleigh Aitken has used over the years to exert their influence over local politics, received about $22,710 in cash from The Walt Disney Company between the years of 2011 and 2019, according to campaign finance records reviewed by The Anaheim Investigator.

Moreover, The Investigator has compelling evidence the Disneyland Resort gave them free meeting space for a fundraiser that was held inside their Grand Californian Hotel, even providing food and drinks at no charge--an event which was attended by Michael Penn, the mayor's husband, and Carrie Nocella, the controversial Disney executive.

Ken Potrock (l), president of the Disneyland Resort, with Carrie Nocella (r) while Mayor Ashleigh Aitken’s father (c) sits at a table behind them. By DUANE J. ROBERTSEditor & Publisher On…

08/14/2024

More than 200 photographs currently in the possession of The Anaheim Investigator show that although the Anaheim Chamber of Commerce luncheon at Angel Stadium on June 7th attracted far less council members than it did back in 2023, there were more candidates. Furthermore, a number of new faces were present this year, including Paul Kott, a local realtor, and Josh Newman, a state senator that represents the 29th district.

Berenice Ballinas, Kristen Maahs-Kolberg, Mayor Ashleigh Aitken, and Pepe Avila at Angel Stadium on June 7, 2024. By DUANE J. ROBERTSEditor & Publisher More than 200 photographs currently in th…

08/05/2024

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 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.

Tom Daly with Mayor Ashleigh Aitken and his wife Debbie at the State of the City Address on June 6, 2024. By DUANE J. ROBERTSEditor & Publisher Tom Daly, a lobbyist retained by SALT Development…

03/12/2024

More affordable housing is a win-win situation for everybody involved.

02/13/2024

The Anaheim Investigator has learned that The Walt Disney Company is preparing to construct a massive 1,400 unit affordable housing complex on 80 acres of undeveloped land it currently owns in the state of Florida which will be privately financed, won't use any government funds, and cost $351 million to build.

Contrast that with the entertainment giant's proposal for DisneylandForward to only give $30 million to Anaheim for affordable housing, of which they then expect the city to leverage it using large amounts of government funds, making taxpayers subsidize building apartments for their low wage workforce.

Artist rendering of the 1,400 unit affordable housing project The Walt Disney Company plans to build on land it owns in Florida. By DUANE J. ROBERTSEditor & Publisher According to documents The…

01/03/2024

The Anaheim Investigator has discovered that Carrie Nocella, director of External Affairs for the Disneyland Resort, serves on the Board of Governors of Chapman University, a body that guides the educational mission of the school. Its current chair is Michael Penn, the husband of Mayor Ashleigh Aitken.

Records available from a website which archives what the university posts online show Nocella was appointed to it in 2018 while Wylie Aitken, the mayor's father, was chair of the Board of Trustees. This is the latest twist in our inquiry into the Aitken family's relationship with the controversial Disney executive.

Michael Penn and his wife Mayor Ashleigh Aitken celebrating his appointment as chair of Chapman University’s Board of Governors in February 2023. By DUANE J. ROBERTSEditor & Publisher Las…

12/14/2023

The Anaheim Investigator has uncovered evidence that a relationship existed between Mayor Ashleigh Aitken and Carrie Nocella, the controversial Disney executive under investigation by the FBI for alleged political corruption.

A year-long inquiry has not only led us to discover both Aitken and Nocella attended the same elite all-girls college-prep school between 1991 and 1993, but that the mayor isn't the only family member who has ties to her.

Photographs of Ashleigh Aitken (l) and Carrie Nocella (r) from a student yearbook published by Rosary Academy in 1992. By DUANE J. ROBERTSEditor & Publisher Earlier this year, someone with dire…

10/17/2023

Evidence uncovered by The Anaheim Investigator strongly suggests Mayor Ashleigh Aitken has been a longtime friend of Molly Jolly, senior vice president of Finance/Administration for Angels Baseball, a relationship which appears to have been formed through their past involvement in the Girl Scouts of Orange County, a well-known non-profit organization that both women have championed.

Ashleigh Aitken (c) and Molly Jolly (r) at an event celebrating the opening of a Girl Scouts facility in Newport Beach in 2017. By DUANE J. ROBERTSEditor & Publisher Evidence uncovered by The A…