The 2010-2011 Legislative Session has now come to a close and a number of bills related to land use have been signed into law or vetoed by the Governor, including bills that impact primary land use areas such as the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), California Coastal Act and Subdivision Map Act, as well as issues such as air quality, greenhouse gas emissions and water, housing and redevelopment reform. The following is a list of the various land use-related bills that we have been tracking throughout the course of the past year and that were eventually approved by the Legislatu
Articles & Publications
Jan 11, 2012
Jan 11, 2012
The annexation process just became more complex, and perhaps too expensive in many cases, as the result of the Governor signing SB 244 (Wolk). The new law requires that nearby “disadvantaged unincorporated communities” be included as part of annexations for new development. Where a development project might have been embraced previously because it included things like missing links for existing streets, new commercial areas that generate sales tax, or new parks, cities must now ponder whether they can afford to provide city services and/or facilities to not only the new development, but a
by JDTP
Jan 06, 2012
While the light of economic recovery may be appearing on the horizon, many sectors of the economy continue to suffer slow growth and persistent or periodic struggles with liquidity as a result of low demand for goods and services. Until consumers determinatively shake off the historically low levels of confidence and reverse the current trends of debt reduction and increased savings rates, some businesses will fall on hard times.
by JDTP
Jan 04, 2012
As we move into 2012, there are a number of favorable federal tax provisions that are set to expire at the end of the year, absent action by Congress and the President. MORE
Jan 04, 2012
The 5th Amendment of the Constitution prohibits government from taking private property without just compensation being paid to the owner. Unfortunately, in the “regulatory taking” context of harsh land use laws or restrictive zoning, a “regulatory taking” case is very difficult to win, particularly in California state courts. California state courts have historically given considerable deference to a city council’s zoning decision. Against such odds, there was a recent regulatory taking victory by a landowner in the Court of Appeal case of Avenida San Juan Partnership v.
Jan 01, 2012
In Madera Oversight Coalition, Inc. v. County of Madera, Case No. F059153 (5th Dist. Sept.
Dec 30, 2011
Community Water Coalition v. Santa Cruz County Local Agency Formation Commission (Sixth Appellate District No. H036616, filed November 18, 2011)
Dec 30, 2011
On November 22, 2011, the Sixth District of the California Court of Appeal certified for publication its decision Pfeiffer v. City of Sunnyvale City Council ("Pfeiffer"), Case No. H036310, in which the Court upheld the use of a traffic baseline that included future projects, notwithstanding an earlier Sixth District case, Sunnyvale West Neighborhood Ass’n v.
by JDTP
Dec 08, 2011
Times are tough for many industries, and the development industry is no exception. As a result of the uncertain marketplace, projects in California have been replanned, restructured, redesigned, down-sized, foreclosed upon, have gone into bankruptcy and have come out of bankruptcy. MORE
Nov 07, 2011
On October 31, 2011, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals in U.S. v. Donovan, 2011 WL 5120605 (3d Cir., 2011) further widened the split among circuit courts in holding that the definition of wetlands articulated by either the plurality or Justice Kennedy’s opinion in Rapanos v. United States, 547 U.S. 715, 126 S.Ct. 2208, 165 L.Ed.2d 159 (2006) is sufficient for Clean Water Act jurisdiction to be established. The two tests have been coined the (1) “relatively permanent” and “continuous surface connection” test and the (2) “significant nexus” test.
