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California Land Use & Development Law Report

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California Land Use & Development Law Report

California Land Use & Development Law Report offers insights into legal issues relating to development and use of land and federal, state and local permitting and approval processes.

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May 11, 2015

Court of Appeal Sinks Challenge to TMDL for Lake Bed Sediment

A Court of Appeal has upheld the Regional Board's adoption of the total maximum daily load (TMDL) for concentration of pollutants in the sediment in McGrath Lake, rejecting the claim that TMDLs may not be stated in terms of concentrations of pollutants in lake bed sediments.

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May 9, 2015

Appellate Court Reaffirms Broad Discretion of Trial Courts to Determine Appropriate Attorneys’ Fees

The Fourth Appellate District upheld the trial court's award of less than 10% of the fees requested by the prevailing petitioner in a CEQA case, finding no abuse of the broad discretion accorded trial courts in awarding fees. View blog post
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March 13, 2015

California Supreme Court Grants Review of Decision Invalidating SANDAG Regional Transportation Plan

The California Supreme Court has agreed to review the appellate court decision Cleveland National Forest Foundation v.

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March 5, 2015

Council Member Barred From Considering Own Appeal

In Woody's Group, Inc. v. View blog post
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March 3, 2015

California Supreme Court Upholds Most Commonly Used CEQA Categorical Exemptions

The California Supreme Court has issued its long-awaited decision in Berkeley Hillside Preservation v. City of Berkeley, No. S201116 (March 2, 2015). View blog post
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February 9, 2015 CEQA

CEQA Year in Review 2014

A Summary of Published Appellate Opinions Under CEQA

 By Stephen Kostka, Julie Jones, Barbara Schussman, Alan Murphy,  Ned Washburn, Laura Zagar, Kathryn Bilder, Christopher Chou and Marie Cooper

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January 30, 2015

25th Annual Briefing on Land Use and Development Law -- Materials Available

Perkins Coie attorneys -- most of whom contribute regularly to this report -- recently presented the 25th Annual Land Use & Development Law Breakfast Briefing in Palo Alto, San Francisco and Walnut Creek.   The presentation focused on 2014 developments and trends in land use, affordable housing, school facilities financing, CEQA, real estate and environmental and resources Law.& View blog post
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January 26, 2015

U.S. Supreme Court Tells Cities to Explain a Cell Tower Denial in Timely Fashion, Even if in a Separate Document

The tension between demand for high-quality, ubiquitous cell phone service and opposition to cell towers in residential neighborhoods has resulted in significant disputes between wireless carriers and municipalities over siting of such towers. Typically, the fight begins and ends at a city council.  Recently, however, one such dispute resulted in a U.S. View blog post
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January 5, 2015

California Supreme Court Poised To Decide Key CEQA Questions: The Court’s Lineup For 2015

The California Supreme Court's involvement in CEQA cases has been relatively limited since the statute's enactment in 1970, with the court taking review of at most one or two appellate court decisions a year.  The last two years have, however, seen a dramatic shift in this trend, with the result that the court now has nine pending cases on its docket.  The pending cases span a broad rang View blog post
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December 29, 2014

Federal Court Invalidates San Francisco Tenant Relocation Requirements

The Northern District of California has struck down part of San Francisco's rent control ordinance as an unconstitutional taking under the Fifth Amendment in Levin v.

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December 22, 2014

Conservation Easements Not Required As Mitigation For Permanent Loss Of Farmland

In Friends of the Kings River v.

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December 2, 2014

Court Blocks Opponents’ Shot at Halting New Kings Arena

The court of appeal recently upheld legislation modifying several deadlines for CEQA review of a project that includes a proposed new arena for the Sacramento Kings, rejecting a claim the statute violates separation of powers.  Saltonstall v. City of Sacramento, No. C077031 (3d Dist., Nov. 20, 2014).

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November 25, 2014

EIR For SANDAG’s Regional Transportation Plan Rejected By Court Of Appeal

In a long-awaited 2-1 decision, a court of appeal overturned the environmental impact report for the San Diego Association of Governments' 2050 Regional Transportation Plan and Sustainable Communities Strategy. Cleveland National Forest Foundation v. San Diego Association of Governments (4th Dist., Div. 1, No. D063288, Nov. View blog post
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October 29, 2014

Coastal Commission Erred In Finding Property Owner Is Stuck With Unconstitutional Dedication Condition

In an opinion on rehearing, the Second District Court of Appeal overturned a California Coastal Commission decision that a condition of a county-issued coastal development permit could not be eliminated by a second coastal development permit the county issued for the same project. Bowman v California Coastal Commission, No.

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October 17, 2014

Court Reaffirms City’s Discretion to Identify Local Historic Resources

In Citizens for Restoration of L Street v. City of Fresno, an appellate court affirmed that the substantial evidence test, not the fair argument test, governs an agency's determination whether buildings or districts should be treated as historical resources under CEQA.

Background

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