Vol. 18 No. 03 Mar 2003
27th Annual* *Land Use Law & Planning Conference Attendees, contact the Circulation Manager to access your special discount! 805-652-0695 or email sklipp@cp-dr.com!
Local Government Wins Old Map Fight
1 March 2003 - 1:00amIn a landmark ruling, the state Supreme Court has made clear that maps recorded prior to 1893 do not create legal, developable lots for today’s purposes. And the court at least hinted that maps recorded between 1893 and 1929 might not be valid unless a city or county somehow exercised discretion in approving the map.
City Not Allowed To Use Currrent Zoning In Setting Fair Market Value
1 March 2003 - 1:00amThe value of property being taken by eminent domain cannot be based on the property’s zoning if the same entity that is taking the property also imposed the zoning, the Fourth District Court of Appeal has ruled.
Sludge Disposal Ordinance Exempted From CEQA Review
1 March 2003 - 1:00amThe owner of a business that spreads sludge from wastewater treatment plants on fields in Kings County has taken a beating in court over a lawsuit that claimed the county could not exempt an ordinance regulating sewage sludge disposal from environmental review.
In upholding a decision by Kings County Superior Court Judge Peter Schultz, the Fifth District Court of Appeal ruled that Shaen Magan failed to present any evidence to support his claim that the ordinance was not categorically exempt from the Ca
Analysts Call Housing Development Essential For Next Wave Of Prosperity
1 March 2003 - 1:00amAn economic downturn that has forced up Bay Area unemployment and office vacancy rates shows little sign of abating. Business leaders, economic development experts and analysts say that righting the greater Bay Area’s economic ship will be neither easy nor quick.
Developer-Hired CEQA Consultant Could Be An Endangered Species
1 March 2003 - 1:00amMore than a decade ago, a state appellate court ruled that developers could hire their own consultants to prepare environmental impact reports required by the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). Now, prompted by events surrounding the controversial Newhall Ranch development in Los Angeles County, a Southern California legislator has launched an effort to outlaw the practice.
Despite Economic Slowdown, Housing Impact Fees Continue To Rise
1 March 2003 - 1:00amSupposedly we're in an economic downtown, which, if past behavior of local officials in California is any indication, ought to mean that development impact fees are heading south. After all, high fees often become a scapegoat in a down economy, and lowering those fees is often touted as a way to stimulate an economic recovery.
But that is not happening. Throughout California, fees are not going down. They're going up.
PPIC's Elisa Barbour
1 March 2003 - 1:00amElisa Barbour, of the Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC) in San Francisco, recently published a comprehensive study on regional planning, "Metropolitan Growth Planning in California, 1900-2000."
In her study, Barbour says that California has tried to create stronger metropolitan planning institutions for 100 years. She calls the most recent surge of regionalism the "third wave," after the establishment of home rule, and the rise of single-purpose agencies.
West Hollywood Apartment Building Owners Lose Rent Control Exemption
1 March 2003 - 1:00amThe owners of apartment buildings in the City of West Hollywood cannot avoid the city’s rent control ordinance by relying on 1980s-era approvals to convert the buildings to condominiums, an appellate court has ruled.
Power Plant Opponents Already Had Day In Court, Panel Rules
1 March 2003 - 1:00amOpponents of a proposed power plant in San Jose have lost an attempt to get their arguments heard in court.
The Third District Court of Appeal ruled that project opponents could not bring a case in Superior Court because the California Supreme Court has exclusive jurisdiction to review power plant certification decisions by the state Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission. The fact that the Supreme Court rejected the opponents’ lawsuit without reviewing the record did not matter, the Th
State High Court Rejects Pre-1893 Subdivisions
1 March 2003 - 1:00amIn its first ruling directly addressing the validity of "antiquated subdivisions," the California Supreme Court has held that maps recorded prior to adoption of the first precursor to the Subdivision Map Act in 1893 do not create legal parcels for today’s purposes.