Vol. 18 No. 04 Apr 2003

If ever there were a year that would seem ripe for housing element reform, it's 2003.

Yet there is little discussion of comprehensive reform, nor even much active discussion on whether to move forward into the next cycle of RHNAs and housing element updates in 2005.

Price: $2.95

Tejon Ranch owns what might be the largest contiguous stretch of land controlled by one property owner in California. Since the mid 19th century, the Tejon Ranch property, located along present-day Interstate 5 in Los Angeles and Kern Counties, has served primarily for cattle grazing and sport hunting.

But Tejon Ranch Company, a publicly traded corporation, is now pursuing major development projects on opposite ends of the ranch.

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Since 1996, California voters have approved $11.1 billion worth of resource bonds. However, tracking how that money has been spent, how the remainder is proposed to be allocated — and even determining how much money is available — have proven tricky.

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The California Coastal Commission did not have authority to modify a coastal development permit that the San Mateo County Superior Court had ordered the City of Half Moon Bay to approve, the First District Court of Appeal has ruled.

Price: $2.95

Placer County did not violate state law by including two projects in one environmental impact report, the Third District Court of Appeal has ruled. The county did not abuse it discretion by covering a 31-lot subdivision and a large church — which started out as two parts of the same project — in one EIR, the court held.

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After two years of life under the Bush Administration, what we might call the "General Plan" for American is in the midst of a serious update. And it's not surprising that "smart growth" doesn't appear to be on the list.

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From a distance, the Gaia Cultural Center in Berkeley does not appear to be an unusual building. But up close, we see it is no ordinary building.

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The State Department of Water Resources has settled a lawsuit filed by the Planning and Conservation League over the 1995 "Monterey Agreement," which, among other things, spelled out how State Water Project (SWP) water would be allocated during droughts. The settlement calls for the agency to more fully disclose its ability to deliver water.

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Spurred by several pieces of legislation approved during the last few years, California’s state government agencies are gradually making advances in environmental justice.

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An environmental impact report for a proposed subdivision that would rely heavily on the State Water Project has been invalidated by the Second District Court of Appeal.

The EIR for the 2,500-unit West Creek project in Los Angeles County failed to say that deliveries by the State Water Project (SWP) are not reliable, and the study appeared to postpone a final decision on water until the subdivision approval process.

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