Backers of a Ventura building-height initiative, frustrated by delays and alleged mishandling of gathered signatures, are now asking a judge to order the measure be placed on the June 3 ballot.

The request, contained in a seven-page lawsuit filed in Superior Court, is the latest volley by supporters to get the measure before voters this year. The initiative currently is scheduled for the next regular city election, in November 2009.

City officials and county election officials say they trying to be fair and practical and have promised to manually recount more than 10,000 gathered signatures in coming weeks.

A hearing is scheduled for Tuesday before Superior Court Judge Glen Reiser.

Written by Ventura Citizens' Organization for Responsible Development, the initiative proposes to cap the height of new buildings in much of the city at 26 feet for up to two years while a view-protection ordinance can be written by a special committee, appointed by authors of the measure.

The group's lawsuit contends a deadline for the recount has passed and 310 signatures they collected have possibly been lost or misplaced. Therefore, a random sample already conducted is flawed and getting an accurate count is impossible, the suit argues.

Without a speedy and adequate remedy, the measure should rightly go to voters at the earliest available election, in June, the lawsuit states.

That argument is highly speculative, Ventura City Attorney Ariel Calonne said Tuesday.

So far, there is no evidence to prove the measure has enough verified signatures to qualify for a special election, and the city doesn't have the authority to place the measure on the June ballot until such evidence exists, he said.

Supporters need 8,974 verified signatures — 15 percent of local registered voters — for a special election.

Currently the measure — with 8,295 signatures under the county's count — has qualified for the next regular city election, in November 2009.

The city agreed to pay for a full manual recount of more than 10,000 signatures submitted in November.

The count, however, has been delayed because county election officials say they are swamped with work.

As a result, it's unlikely the count can be completed by a March 7 cut-off date to get to the initiative on the June ballot, according to the lawsuit, which was written by Ventura attorney Robert McCord.

Ventura County Clerk and Recorder/Registrar of Voters Philip Schmit said Tuesday that the agency's 12 full-time employees and some 30 volunteers are still counting ballots from this month's presidential primary and preparing the June election.

"We can't very well just drop what we are doing to conduct the recount," he said.

Named in the lawsuit are Schmit, Ventura City Clerk Mabi Plisky and the city of Ventura.

Schmit vowed to get to the job as quickly as possible. "We are going to do everything we can in our power to start sooner and put as much manpower on it as we can," he said.

The Ventura City Council has agreed to revisit the issue at its regular Feb. 25 meeting.

The council could adopt the ordinance as written but has chosen not to because portions of the proposed initiative conflict with the city charter, raising legal questions.

Some members also contend the height limit, coupled with high land costs, would discourage developers from revitalizing the city's aging Thompson Boulevard and Main Street corridors.

"We all agree the sooner the count can be completed, the better," City Councilman Bill Fulton said.