CP&DR

BIDS: Business Improvements District Is Told to Conduct Meetings in Public

Feb 1, 2001

CP&DR Staff, Legal Digest, Vol. 16 No. 02 Feb 2001

A Hollywood property owners association that governs a business improvement district must abide by local government open meeting laws, the Second District Court of Appeal has ruled. The unanimous three-judge panel held that the City of Los Angeles "created" the Hollywood Entertainment District Property Owners Association (POA) to assume the city's legislative functions regarding the Hollywood Entertainment District II Business Improvement District. The court rejected the argument that the POA, which i...

Municipal Liability: Neighboring Property Owner Loses Lawsuit Over City's Building Review

Feb 1, 2001

CP&DR Staff, Legal Digest, Vol. 16 No. 02 Feb 2001

A state appellate court has rejected the argument of a landowner who claimed that the City of Fort Bragg was liable for losses suffered when the city approved an adjacent building. In 1997, the city granted a building permit to David Codling for construction of a two-story building on a vacant lot next to the Barracks Mall, a two-story structure with businesses on the ground floor and apartments above. The Barracks Mall had been built to the lot line, and the city allowed Codling to do the same — putt...

Proposition 218: Courts Uphold Rental Inspection Assessment, Water Fees for L.A.

Feb 1, 2001

CP&DR Staff, Legal Digest, Vol. 16 No. 02 Feb 2001

Taxpayer organizations recently lost two lawsuits against the City of Los Angeles alleging violations of Proposition 218. In its first interpretation of the initiative, the California Supreme Court held that the city's apartment inspection fee was not subject to the voter approval provisions of Proposition 218. In the other case, an appellate court ruled that the city's water service fees and the transfer of money from the water fund to other funds were not subject to Proposition 218. In the apartment...

U.S. Supreme Court Limits Reach of Clean Water Act: Reducing Federal Oversight May Not HAve Major Effect in California

Feb 1, 2001

CP&DR Staff, Legal Digest, Vol. 16 No. 02 Feb 2001

A divided U.S. Supreme Court has limited the scope of the Clean Water Act by removing U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' jurisdiction over isolated waters and seasonal wetlands, such as vernal pools and ephemeral washes. Farmers, developers and property rights advocates hailed the ruling as an important limitation on intrusive federal regulation. Environmentalists decried the ruling as a step backward, although many observers said the decision's impact would not be as great in California because of extensive...

Cal Supremes Exempt Churches From Preservation Laws: On Divided Ruling, Court Upholds Constitutionality of Exemption

Jan 1, 2001

CP&DR Staff, Legal Digest, Vol. 16 No. 01 Jan 2001

A divided California Supreme Court has upheld a state law that allows religious institutions to exempt themselves from historic preservation ordinances. In a 4-3 ruling, the court found that the exemption — which applies only to noncommercial property owned by religious institutions — violated neither the First Amendment's free exercise clause, nor the state constitution's establishment clause. "These exemptions simply free the owners to use the property as they would have done had the property not be...

El Toro Airport Initiative Invalidated

Jan 1, 2001

CP&DR Staff, Legal Digest, Vol. 16 No. 01 Jan 2001

A Los Angeles County judge has invalidated an Orange County ballot initiative intended to block an airport at the former El Toro Marine Corps base. Superior Court Judge James Otero ruled that Measure F, which voters approved 2-1 in March 2000, was "fundamentally flawed and in violation of the constitution and laws of this state." Measure F required two-thirds voter approval for construction or expansion of airports, hazardous waste facilities or jails. Otero held that such a requirement "greatly impair...

California Supreme Court: builders Win construction Defect Case, But Impact Appears Limited

Jan 1, 2001

CP&DR Staff, Legal Digest, Vol. 16 No. 01 Jan 2001

The state Supreme Court has sided with builders in a case regarding construction defect liability. In a 5-2 decision, the court held that homeowners cannot sue for economic losses in cases where no property damage or personal injury has occurred. The ruling was a definite victory for the development industry. Builders for years have complained about the burden of construction defect liability, and they have blamed negligence lawsuits for their inability to construct condominiums and townhous...

Elected Body Cannot Certify EIR With 2-2 Vote, Court Decides

Jan 1, 2001

CP&DR Staff, Legal Digest, Vol. 16 No. 01 Jan 2001

A 2-2 vote on an environmental impact report is not enough to certify the document, the Fourth District Court of Appeals has ruled. The California Environmental Quality Act requires that the elected body make an affirmative decision on environmental documents, the court held. In this case, the Orange County Board of Supervisors, after one member recused himself, voted 2-2 on an EIR for a proposed 705-unit mobile home park. The county then determined that the Planning Commission's certification of the ...

LAFCO Approval of Giant Lathrop Annexation Upheld by Trial Court

Jan 1, 2001

CP&DR Staff, Legal Digest, Vol. 16 No. 01 Jan 2001

A lawsuit that has already reached the state Supreme Court is again making its way up the legal ladder. In mid-December, San Joaquin County Superior Court Judge Bob McNatt upheld the San Joaquin Local Agency Formation Commission's approval of the Califia project (formerly called Gold Rush City) in the City of Lathrop. Last year, the state Supreme Court allowed the case to go forward after McNatt and the Third District Court of Appeal ruled that project opponents did not exhaust their administrative re...

Orange County Wins Jail Lawsuit

Jan 1, 2001

CP&DR Staff, Legal Digest, Vol. 16 No. 01 Jan 2001

The Fourth District Court of Appeal has upheld Orange County's environmental impact report for expansion of the James A. Musick jail. In an unpublished opinion, the court overturned a trial judge's ruling in a lawsuit brought by the City of Lake Forest. (City of Lake Forest v. County of Orange, G023884.) The county wants to expand the existing jail, which is bordered by Lake Forest, Irvine and El Toro, from 1,250 beds to nearly 8,000 beds. However, the county has indicated it would pursue a smaller faci...

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