WILDOMAR -- Steve Beutz is opposed to incorporation. Right now, anyway.

The 45-year-old self-employed computer network consultant, who says he has a proven record as a taxpayer advocate, supports "feasible cityhood" in the future when the area rebounds from the housing slowdown and the general economy stabilizes.

Area voters will decide Feb. 5 whether to incorporate and, if so, which of the 14 candidates should serve on the inaugural five-person council. Voters also will be asked to decide if the council members should be elected on an at-large or a district basis. The other 13 candidates on the ballot are Sheryl Ade, Gary Andre, Martha Bridges, Bob Cashman, Harv Dykstra, Scott Farnam, Roger Le Clerc, Bridgette Moore, Darrell Ruff, Marsha Swanson, Michael Tierney, Tim Underdown and Paul Williams.

Beutz's anti-incorporation stance has put him at odds with most of the other candidates, who are solidly pro-cityhood. He also has been targeted because of his involvement with a Web site that calls incorporation a "money grab."

Beutz moved to Wildomar in the early 1990s because he has family in the area. He said he took on the role of taxpayer advocate earlier this year after he received a notice in the mail regarding Measure G, which would have allowed Mt. San Jacinto College to issue more than $700 million in bonds for campus construction.

Part of the district's plan for the money, Beutz said, was building a campus near his Wildomar home, which he felt would increase traffic congestion.

Following the measure's defeat, Beutz has moved on to opposing a local parks assessment and the push for incorporation.

He recently filed suit against the assessment, which passed last year, because he said supporters said a park would be opened on the east side of town if the measure passed.

Since then, the housing slowdown has caused a developer to postpone plans for a tract and park, which would have been Wildomar's fourth, on the east side of Interstate 15.

Beutz said the development and the park likely won't be built for years, if ever, but he stressed he's not opposed to parks.

"I'm opposed to illegal assessments," he said.

Supporters of the parks assessment counter Beutz's contention, saying voters won't be charged any additional annual amount for the fourth park until it opens.

The top issue facing the area, Beutz said, is taxes.

Supporters of incorporation said that Wildomar residents, not a city council, will decide how or if to raise taxes to pay for enhanced services.

If elected, Beutz said he'd make sure the city is run like a thin, lean fiscally responsible machine so that voters never will have to decide whether to raise taxes.

"I'm saying you won't see the tax question," Beutz said. "And I'll stand by it."

His experience as a self-employed consultant will help him back up that pledge, he said, because someone who is self-employed can't run a business in the red.

"You just don't do that; you don't stay in business very long," he said.

Another issue facing the area is the economy, Beutz said.

The fiscal analysis that was produced to determine if Wildomar could thrive as a city was based on 2005 valuations of homes, which, Beutz said, was the apex of the recent boom.

He said the market has since changed dramatically, which is going to negatively affect property tax revenue and the prospects of businesses that are tied to the housing industry.

Beutz also questions the regional appetite for another Wal-Mart, which has been proposed for a lot on the east side of I-15.

"There's a Wal-Mart in Temecula and a Wal-Mart in Murrieta," he said.

A third issue facing the area is the alleged influence of what Beutz called "special interests."

At a recent county Planning Commission meeting in Riverside, a general plan amendment was approved that changes some of the zoning for the Wildomar area.

Beutz said he spoke at the meeting, asking for the board to hold off until after the incorporation vote since the city council, if incorporation is approved, will be looking at the city's zoning.

That didn't happen. Beutz said it was due to "special interests" manipulating the process from behind the scenes.

"This was the equivalent of a lame-duck president passing something before he bows out," he said. "I don't know who got paid or what. It didn't smell right to me."

As for those who question his motivations, Beutz said, "My conscience is clear. I act based on my convictions. I don't need anyone's money to sway my decisions."

Contact Aaron Claverie at (951) 676-4315, Ext. 2624, or e-mail aclaverie@californian.com.