CP&DR

Sacramento County Approves 10,000-Unit Specific Plan

Aug 1, 2002

Local Watch, Paul Shigley, Sacramento County, Specific plans, Vol. 17 No. 08 Aug 2002

One of the largest housing developments ever proposed for the Central Valley received approval from the Sacramento County Board of Supervisors in July. After about a decade of planning, environmental reviews and public hearings, supervisors backed the 2,600-acre, 10,000-unit Sunridge Specific Plan — a detailed subset of the 6,000-acre Sunrise-Douglas Community Plan, which supervisors also approved in July.

Construction Defect Rules May Change

Aug 1, 2002

Featured Articles, Paul Shigley, Vol. 17 No. 08 Aug 2002

State lawmakers appear to be accepting the longstanding argument that needed construction of condominiums and townhouses is being chilled by construction defect litigation, and legislators might be ready to pass a reform bill this year.

San Diego Regional Authority Proposed

Jul 1, 2002

Featured Articles, Paul Shigley, Vol. 17 No. 07 Jul 2002

State legislation that would lead to the creation of a planning and transportation "super agency" in San Diego County is moving forward. Capitol insiders and a number of officials in the San Diego region expect bills that address San Diego regional governance to pass in some form before the Legislature concludes on August 31.

Texas Developer Proposes San Bernardino Cargo Airport

Jul 1, 2002

Economic Development, Paul Shigley, Vol. 17 No. 07 Jul 2002

Generating economic activity at Norton Air Force Base in San Bernardino has proven to be difficult since the base closed in 1994. But Norton is now the scene of a proposal to replicate a successful airport in Texas that was built during the 1980s solely for industrial users.

Q&A: Stuart Meck

by Paul Shigley on Jul 1, 2002

Paul Shigley, Q&A, Vol. 17 No. 07 Jul 2002

Stuart Meck is a senior research fellow for the American Planning Association (APA). For seven years, he spearheaded the APA’s "Growing Smart" project. That effort concluded earlier this year with the release of a 1,400-page legislative guidebook and user manual, which are intended to help states replace model planning acts. >>read more

Local Takings Initiative Heads to Ballot

Jun 1, 2002

Featured Articles, Paul Shigley, Vol. 17 No. 06 Jun 2002

An initiative that would require Nevada County to pay property owners if a land use regulation diminishes property value appears headed for the November ballot. Both opponents and supporters of the initiative expect that Nevada County will approve the initiative — and that it could lead to similar efforts in other parts of California, especially in conservative rural counties.

Chino, Ontario Move Forward On Developing Dairy Preserve

Jun 1, 2002

Infill development, Local Watch, Paul Shigley, San Bernardino County, Vol. 17 No. 06 Jun 2002

Once the largest concentration of dairy cows in the United States, the San Bernardino County Dairy Preserve is on the verge of becoming home to more than 200,000 people. The City of Chino is finishing work on a specific plan for 5,435 acres, and City of Ontario officials are refining a development fee schedule, the last document needed before the city begins processing development applications for 8,200 acres on the south end of town.

Religious Land Uses Vex Planners

May 1, 2002

Featured Articles, Paul Shigley, Religious Land Uses , Vol. 17 No. 05 May 2002

Local regulation of religious land uses has become the latest battlefield in California development. There are at least seven lawsuits pending over government regulation of church development, proposed private schools, and the use of facilities by religious ministries. Lawsuits have been filed against the cities of Concord, Cypress, El Cajon, Los Angeles and Morgan Hill, and against Alameda County and the California Coastal Commission. Additional lawsuits appear likely in Sierra Madre and Hun

Fight Between Developers Threatens El Segundo Project

May 1, 2002

Local Watch, Paul Shigley, Vol. 17 No. 05 May 2002

Not often does one developer slug it out with another developer at the ballot box and in a courtroom. But that is the case in El Segundo, where Kilroy Realty is trying to block Thomas Properties Group from developing 2.175 million square feet of office and retail space on the site for a former aerospace factory near Los Angeles International Airport (LAX).

Mining Rules: State Gets Tougher While Feds Back Down

May 1, 2002

Environment Watch, Paul Shigley, Vol. 17 No. 05 May 2002

These are both the best of times and worst of times for California's mining industry. The Interior Department has lifted some Clinton-era restrictions for hardrock mining on federal land. However, the State Mining & Geology Board is considering new regulations for implementing the Surfacing Mining and Reclamation Act (SMARA) that miners say will be burdensome.