Vol. 20 No. 06 Jun 2005

Legislation that would permit certain redevelopment agencies to extend the life of redevelopment project areas has stalled for the year. Four Assembly bills hit a roadblock in the Assembly Housing and Community Development Committee when Chairman Gene Mullin (D-South San Francisco) decided that a broader discussion of redevelopment time extensions was necessary.

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A new opinion issued by the state attorney general's office regarding housing elements appears to allow cities and counties to skirt their mandated fair-share housing numbers if the local government lacks the resources sufficient to provide the units.

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When a development project straddles the coastal zone boundary, the Coastal Commission may not use its jurisdiction over the portion of the project within the coastal zone to influence development outside of the zone, the state Supreme Court has ruled.

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Santa Cruz County is not allowed to regulate the height of mobile homes because state law has pre-empted the possibility of a local ordinance, the Sixth District Court of Appeal has ruled.

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West Sacramento appears to be a city whose time has come.

For many years before and after its incorporation in 1987, West Sacramento has been a manufacturing and logistic industry hub. While the Sacramento region has grown in recent decades, that growth has gone mostly east and south of Sacramento to suburbs such as Roseville, Folsom and Elk Grove. Meanwhile, West Sacramento - right across the Sacramento River from the capital city - bided its time. Now, developers have “discovered” the Yolo County city

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Developers suffered two losses during recent special elections. Voters in the fast-growing Riverside County city of Murrieta recalled the mayor and nearly threw out a second councilman. Meanwhile, the San Luis Obispo electorate rejected a 650,000-square-foot power center and the finance deal supporting the project.

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This month's selection of In Brief items includes: California awards $45 million to victims of 1997 Feather River levee break; Dept. of Water Resources releases draft of new California Water Plan; San Jose and Santa Clara County race to build a performing arts hall; Roadless areas in California's national forest will remain roadless; Local Indian Tribe to help Yolo County purchase farmland and habitat; and more...

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Most government budget crises get bailed out by increasing tax revenue, and the current situation in California appears to be no exception. With tax receipts on the rise throughout California, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger was able to throw several billion dollars into the kitty as part of the “May revise” - the annual revision of the governor's budget proposal to the Legislature.

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The California Supreme Court has accepted two more land use cases, one of which is a California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) case that has generated quite a bit of discussion. The second one is an inverse condemnation case involving street landscaping that blocks a view of billboards.

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The First District Court of Appeal has blocked a developer's request to collect from its courtroom opponents the cost of preparing the administrative record in a California Environmental Quality Act lawsuit.

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