CP&DR

State Supreme Court Accepts Prevailing Wage Case

Sep 2, 2009

CP&DR Staff, Legal Digest, San Diego County, Vol. 24 No. 11 Sep 2009 - 1

The state Supreme Court will review an appellate court ruling that California's prevailing wage law does not apply to a charter city's public works projects that are funded exclusively with city revenues.

SD Mall's Corporate Owners Fail To Avoid Reassessment

Sep 2, 2009

CP&DR Staff, Legal Digest, San Diego County, Vol. 24 No. 11 Sep 2009 - 1

An appellate court has upheld San Diego County's reassessment of the Fashion Valley Shopping Mall in San Diego. The court concluded that Equitable Life Assurance Company's transfer of the mall's title to the operating company of a limited liability corporation, in which Equitable owned a 50% stake, amounted to a 100% transfer of ownership and thus triggered a reassessment for property tax purposes.

SD Tax-Processing 'Fee' Declared Illegal

Sep 1, 2009

Legal Digest, Local government finance, Paul Shigley, San Diego County, Vol. 24 No. 11 Sep 2009 - 1

A fee that the City of San Diego levied on businesses and landlords for processing their taxes has been declared illegal by the Fourth District Court of Appeal. The court ruled that the fee amounted to a general purpose tax that should have been submitted to voters for approval.

SD County's Creeks, Farmland Key To New Habitat Plan

Jul 15, 2009

Environment Watch, Habitat conservation planning, Larry Sokoloff, San Diego County, Vol. 24 No. 08 Jul 2009 - 2

San Diego County has been a national leader in habitat conservation planning, setting aside areas where rare and endangered species can thrive in the midst of ongoing development. Now, 12 years after a plan for the southern, inland part of the county was adopted, a second habitat plan has been released, this time for the inland North County.

Charter Cities Dodge Prevailing Wage Law

May 19, 2009

Legal Digest, Paul Shigley, San Diego County, Vol. 24 No. 06 Jun 2009

A charter city does not have to comply with California's prevailing-wage law if its public works projects are financed exclusively with city revenues, a divided three-judge panel of the Fourth District Court of Appeal has ruled. The reason: The state law "does not touch upon matters of statewide concern sufficient to outweigh the power of charter cities over their municipal affairs," Justice Patricia Benke wrote for the court's majority.

Lawsuit Over National City Eminent Domain Authority Reinstated

Feb 26, 2009

CP&DR Staff, Legal Digest, National City, Redevelopment, San Diego County, Vol. 24 No. 03 Mar 2009

A lawsuit challenging National City's updated blight findings and extended eminent domain authority for about 700 parcels in a redevelopment project area has been reinstated after a trial court judge threw out the suit on procedural grounds.

Responsible Agency's Contract Fails CEQA Test

Feb 17, 2009

California Environmental Quality Act, CP&DR Staff, Legal Digest, San Diego County, Vol. 24 No. 03 Mar 2009

A San Diego County water district should have completed an environmental study before approving an agreement to provide recycled water to operators of a proposed landfill, the Fourth District Court of Appeal has ruled.

Even though Olivenhain Municipal Water District was not the "lead agency" for review of the landfill itself, the district was a "responsible agency" with obligations under the California Environmental Quality Act. The district did not fulfill those obligations with a contract that placed CEQA compliance in the hands of the landfill operator, the court ruled.

Stadium Could Replace Dead Chula Vista Bayfront Project

Nov 18, 2008

CP&DR Staff, Featured Articles, Redevelopment, San Diego County, Vol. 23 No. 12 Dec 2008

A proposed 400,000-square-foot convention center and 2,000-room resort hotel that was supposed to anchor the redevelopment of Chula Vista's waterfront is dead, but the demise of the convention center and hotel could open up the site to potential development of a San Diego Chargers football stadium. The Chargers have been seeking a location for a stadium and related commercial development and have considered two other sites in Chula Vista.

In Shadows Of Downtown, SD's Little Italy Thrives Again

Oct 29, 2008

Infill development, Larry Sokoloff, Redevelopment Watch, San Diego County, Vol. 23 No. 11 Nov 2008

Little Italy is one of San Diego's most popular neighborhoods today. In some ways a high-priced residential district with an Italian theme, Little Italy also provides an example of what a city can do to restore a down-on-its heels area. Twelve years ago, few had heard of this area north of downtown San Diego. But since the late 1990s, the area has grown and prospered.

9th Circuit Endorses Local Antenna Siting Regulation

Sep 25, 2008

Legal Digest, Paul Shigley, San Diego County, Telecommunications antennas, Vol. 23 No. 10 Oct 2008

In a major reversal, the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that wireless telecommunications providers can no longer challenge local zoning regulations on the basis that the zoning has the potential to prohibit telecommunications services. Instead, providers will have to show that local regulation does in fact prohibit telecommunications services.