Vol. 21 No. 04 Apr 2006

Urban sprawl has been blamed for everything from vanishing farmland and dwindling wildlife to Baby Boomer obesity. Central Valley air pollution regulators are blaming it now for much of the region’s persistently dismal air quality, and they have embraced a radical fix never before tried.

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A scandal involving development of a hub for cargo carrier DHL has raised questions about reuse of the March Air Force Base in western Riverside County.

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A decade-long effort to adopt a plan for protecting endangered species in the Coachella Valley is threatening to unravel, at least partially. Some cities that would be covered by the multiple species habitat conservation plan (MSHCP) appear hesitant to approve the plan because it could block large-scale development projects.

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A Santa Barbara County property owner’s takings claim has received new life, thanks to a Second District Court of Appeal ruling. The appellate panel overturned a lower court that had ruled the property owner filed the claim too soon.

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An unusual collection of more than 30 farm groups, environmental organizations and regulatory agencies has signed onto a California Rangelands Coalition, marking the first time that some of the entities have worked together.

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It was a case of hopeless infatuation in 2001, when the City of Los Angeles finally landed a developer who was rich and optimistically cock-eyed enough to build that long-dreamed-of-but-never-consummated project, the convention center hotel.

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A lawsuit over an annual fire assessment on property owners in the Oakland hills has been revived by an appellate court. Overturning a Superior Court decision, the First District Court of Appeal ruled that the lawsuit should go forward because the City of Oakland did not provide for an adequate administrative appeal of the tax.

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While a developer argues the private agreement impinges on city's police powers, the settlement that Rohnert Park signed to resolve a lawsuit over the city’s general plan did not illegally abridge the city’s police power, the First District Court of Appeal has ruled.

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Some San Bernardino cities will receive more tax revenue from the county while Encinitas property owners vote down a stormwater runoff tax. The new Monterey County general plan still mired in battle over ballot intiative and San Jose and Santa Clarita each lose court battles. Moorpark voters reject a proposed subdivision while Riverside culls 600 acres from redevelopment project. To county officials' dismay, Marin County will get a new death row.

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With the debate over infrastructure crashing to a halt, state lawmakers have turned their attention to housing legislation.

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