The city has approved a 13-building project at the North Berkeley station and is seeking developer proposals for the Ashby station. The move signify a big change in Berkeley's attitude toward new development.

The staff recommended upzoning half the the city, excluding the fire-prone Berkeley Hills. But the planning commission has recommended rezoning all of Berkeley including the hills.

Recent rulings from the high-profile cities of Berkeley and Beverly Hills got a lot of publicity. But less publicized settlement agreements from Davis and Clovis show just how scared cities are getting about housing litigation.

The City of Berkeley got hammered in court for violating SB 35 and the HAA by denying a project to be built on a parking lot on Native American shellmound property. Now the city has to pay the developer $2.6 million -- plus attorneys fees.

Dueling environmental groups disagreed over how much the university should thin non-native trees to reduce fire hazard. They both sued -- and they both lost.

But Berkeley neighbors lose two other cases in the appellate court -- one dealing with student enrollment levels and the other dealing with a different aspect of the People's Park development.

Especially in the Bay Area, cities are beginning to tax vacant units and vacant land in an attempt to bring more housing onto the market.

Two years ago, an appellate panel ruled that the controversial housing proposal should have been processed under SB 35 -- the first major ruling. Now the court has ruled that a local judge had the authority to rule on Housing Accountability Act violations as well.

Final ruling in People's Park case turns around on one issue and softens the argument on the other -- but prompts Newsom to vow CEQA reform.

Tentative People's Park ruling raises specter of NIMBYs using demographic information to challenge projects.