Vol. 21 No. 09 Sep 2006

I mean no disrespect to the developers of Liberty Station when I suggest that they would have to go out of their way to screw up this elegantly organized project.

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In a decision handed down shortly before the state Supreme Court opinion on California State University project impacts, an appellate court ruled that a San Diego community college district is responsible for off-campus traffic impacts caused by campus expansion.

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A mitigated negative declaration for a never-built project cannot be used for a subsequent, similar project proposed for the same site, the Third District Court of Appeal has ruled.

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Voters in three Bay Area counties have the opportunity in November to cement in place existing policies that steer nearly all growth to cities and away from unincorporated territory. Measures in Contra Costa and Solano counties appear to face limited opposition, but an initiative that would increase parcel sizes and require voters to decide rezoning of some agricultural land and hillsides in Santa Clara County appears to be drawing stiffer protests.

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A decade ago, a team of federal scientists and researchers unveiled the most comprehensive report card ever compiled on the ecological health of the sprawling Sierra Nevada region. At about the same time, the Sierra Business Council released a landmark survey of its own, the first Sierra Nevada Wealth Index, which painted a comprehensive portrait of the communities scattered up and down the mountain range. The prognosis they delivered was not a hopeful one.

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Two San Bernardino County deals go public while a judge rules their flood control easements no longer exist. In Kern County, a federal court lawsuit stems from banned sewer sludge. Conflict of interest allegations result in the arrest of recalled Murrieta mayor and the firing of Siskiyou County Planning Director. In San Mateo, voters will not decide the fate of Bay Meadow's horsetrack, nor will Monterey County see a referendum of a proposed development in November.

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Although it’s city has been in the redevelopment business since 1948, San Francisco has recently created its largest redevelopment project area. The new, 1,300-acre Bayview Hunters Point project might also be the most controversial redevelopment project in a city where land use planning and development are always contentious.

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A unanimous California Supreme Court has upheld lower court decisions rejecting an advertising company’s claim that it deserves compensation because trees planted along a public street obstructed visibility of six billboards.

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The Coastal Act does not protect views of the coast from off-shore locations, the Second District Court of Appeal has ruled. In a case from San Luis Obispo County, the court ruled that the Coastal Commission did not have authority to require that a proposed house be relocated and downsized to protect the views of boaters and surfers.

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Property owners who received an $850,000 loan from the Carson Redevelopment Agency must return the money because they acquiesced to the mayor’s demand for a $75,000 bribe, the Second District Court of Appeal has ruled.

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