CP&DR

Power Plant Opponents Kicked Out Of 'Inappropriate Forum'

Jan 30, 2009

Clean Water Act, CP&DR Staf, Legal Digest, Riverside County, Vol. 24 No. 02 Feb 2009

A challenge to a large power plant in western Riverside County has been rejected by the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which ruled that the plaintiffs could not contest the project in federal district court.

Air District's Dairy Rules Rejected For Lack Of Public Health Analysis

Jan 30, 2009

Central Valley, CP&DR Staff, Legal Digest, Vol. 24 No. 02 Feb 2009

A San Joaquin Valley Unified Air Pollution Control District permitting process for dairies has been rejected by the Fifth District Court of Appeal because the district did not conduct an adequate assessment of public health impacts.

L.A. Billboard Regulatory, Contractual Scheme Upheld

Jan 28, 2009

Legal Digest, Los Angeles County, Paul Shigley, Signs and billboards, Vol. 24 No. 02 Feb 2009

A 7-year-old City of Los Angeles ordinance prohibiting new off-site signs has been upheld by the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which rejected the argument that the ban combined with a city contract permitting advertising at city-owned bus stops violated the First Amendment.

Court Finds County Process Unfair, Orders New Rent Hearing

Dec 30, 2008

CP&DR Staff, Legal Digest, Rent control, San Luis Obispo County, Vol. 24 No. 01 Jan 2009

A mobile home park owner in San Luis Obispo County has won a state court order for a new county hearing on a rent increase. The Second District Court of Appeal ruled that Manufactured Home Communities is due a new hearing because it did not have the opportunity to cross-examine tenants who testified against the proposed rent increases at an earlier county hearing.

Coastal Commission Jurisdiction Upheld After Landowner Delays Challenge

Dec 30, 2008

Coastal development, CP&DR Staff, Legal Digest, Los Angeles County, Vol. 24 No. 01 Jan 2009

A property owner cannot participate in a California Coastal Commission appeal process for years and then assert that the Commission was prohibited from considering the appeal because it missed a procedural deadline years earlier, the Second District Court of Appeal has ruled. The court rejected a Pacific Palisades landowner's contention that the Commission had lost jurisdiction over an appeal of the landowner's three-lot development because the Commission did not conduct a hearing within 49 days of receiving an appeal in 1999.

EIR For Madera County Quarry Tossed Out

Dec 30, 2008

California Environmental Quality Act, CP&DR Staff, Legal Digest, Madera County, Vol. 24 No. 01 Jan 2009

An environmental impact report for a proposed quarry in Madera County has been thrown out by an appellate court, which found the document's consideration of water, traffic, noise and cumulative impacts to be inadequate. The court also determined a water supply assessment is needed for a mitigation measure that could require the quarry to connect surrounding property owners with a water system.

Pacifica Developer Loses Yet Again

Dec 29, 2008

Coastal development, CP&DR Staff, Legal Digest, San Mateo County, Vol. 24 No. 01 Jan 2009

A state appellate court has upheld the Coastal Commission's handling of a housing project appeal. The court ruled that although the Commission did not comply precisely with the state open meeting law's requirements, the Commission came close enough and did not portray an intent to avoid the law.

Public Records Case Costs Monterey County

Dec 29, 2008

CP&DR Staff, Legal Digest, Monterey County, Vol. 24 No. 01 Jan 2009

Monterey County has been ordered to pay more than $244,000 in attorney fees and costs in a California Public Records Act case involving a long-controversial development proposal in Carmel Valley.

Email Notice Doesn't Trigger Deadline

Dec 29, 2008

California Environmental Quality Act, Contra Costa County, CP&DR Staff, Legal Digest, Vol. 24 No. 01 Jan 2009

Sometimes, email is no substitute for snail mail. In a California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) case from Contra Costa County, the First District Court of Appeal has ruled that notification of a trial court's judgment via email did not trigger the 60-day deadline for filing an appeal.

AG Upholds City-Council Habitat Plan Deal

Dec 23, 2008

CP&DR Staff, Habitat conservation planning, Legal Digest, Riverside County, Vol. 24 No. 01 Jan 2009

Agreements approved by Riverside County and cities in the Coachella Valley in support of a multiple species habitat conservation plan did not violate a political corruption law, according to the state attorney general's office.

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