CP&DR - Articles

Dawn Serpa

Apr 1, 2002

Paul Shigley, Q&A, Vol. 17 No. 04 Apr 2002

Dawn Serpa is president of The Surland Companies, a private, 13-year-old residential and commercial developer that builds 100 to 200 houses per year. It is currently building Redbridge in Tracy, a 450-home project that mixes an array of housing sizes and styles in one subdivision, and plans to build Tracy's first mixed-use urban village. Unlike some developers, Serpa does not fear the "smart growth" movement. She even complains that many local regulations prevent traditional neighborhood developments. CP&

Property Owners Reposition Vacant Offices

Apr 1, 2002

Stephen Svete, Trends, Vol. 17 No. 04 Apr 2002

Remember the "see-through" office building phenomenon that hit Houston during the mid 1980s and then Los Angeles in the early 1990s? Well, it's back. This time, it is the Bay Area that is afflicted with empty office buildings.

Court Rules Water Treatment Plant Not Exempt From Local Ordinances

Apr 1, 2002

Legal Digest, other, Vol. 17 No. 04 Apr 2002

A public agency's proposed water treatment plant is subject to local zoning and building ordinances, the Sixth District Court of Appeal has ruled. The court held that the Government Code exemption to local zoning for "facilities for the production, generation, storage or transmission of water" did not extend to a water treatment plant.

State Supreme Court Holds The Line On Takings Law

Apr 1, 2002

Legal Digest, Paul Shigley, San Francisco, Takings, Vol. 17 No. 04 Apr 2002

In its first takings case decision in three years, the state Supreme Court has upheld a San Francisco law that regulates the conversion of residential hotel rooms to tourist use. In a 4-3 decision based largely on its 1996 Ehrlich decision, the court ruled that exactions that are part of a broad plan deserve deferential review, while ad hoc exactions are subject to much closer court scrutiny.

Petaluma Marks 30 Years Of Growth Control

Apr 1, 2002

Initiatives and referendums, Local Watch, Paul Shigley, Sonoma County, Vol. 17 No. 04 Apr 2002

This year marks the 30th anniversary of the first voter-approved growth control initiative in California. In 1972, voters in the City of Petaluma — in Sonoma County, 40 miles north San Francisco — capped approval of new homes at 500 units per year, or about half the previous year's total. Growth has remained a hot issue in Petaluma, but today it lacks the urgency it had during the 1970s.

Complete Results Of Local Election In March

Apr 1, 2002

Elections, other, Vol. 17 No. 04 Apr 2002

This article contains CP&DR's complete listing of land use related election returns for the March 2002 election.

Central Valley Chokes While Regulators Point Fingers

Apr 1, 2002

Environment Watch, John Krist, Vol. 17 No. 04 Apr 2002

Quietly, while no one seemed to be paying much attention, the Central Valley has become one of the smoggiest places in the nation. Kern, Fresno and Tulare counties rank third, fourth and fifth among those counties that exceeded federal ozone standards the most days from 1997 to 1999, according to the American Lung Association's 2001 State of the Air report.

New Tax Credit Program Saves Coastal Open Space

Mar 1, 2002

Environment Watch, John Krist, Vol. 17 No. 03 Mar 2002

California's Revenue and Taxation Code contains provisions for all sorts of tax credits, most of them intended to encourage business or personal investment in activities deemed to have social value — creating jobs, saving energy, reducing waste, supporting charitable works.

In Brief

Mar 1, 2002

In Brief, other, Vol. 17 No. 03 Mar 2002

Here is California Planning & Development Report's patent pending digest of this month's hottest news briefs about planning and development in the Golden State.

Tiered EIR Thrown Out Because Higher Tier Invalid

Mar 1, 2002

Legal Digest, other, Vol. 17 No. 03 Mar 2002

A tiered environmental impact report has been thrown out because the program EIR on which the tired document was based had been invalidated. The Second District Court of Appeal ruling came in a case involving the Castaic Lake Water Agency's proposed purchase of water from Kern County to serve Newhall Ranch and other development in Los Angeles County's Santa Clarita Valley.

Housing, Bonds Top Lawmakers' Priority Lists

Mar 1, 2002

Featured Articles, other, Vol. 17 No. 03 Mar 2002

Consensus may be rare in Sacramento, but nearly everyone agrees on one thing this year: proposals that cost money are doomed. Despite the lack of money — or maybe because there is no money — lawmakers could still pass a number of policy bills related to planning.

County Prevented From Recoveing Criminal Code Enforcement Costs

Mar 1, 2002

Legal Digest, other, Vol. 17 No. 03 Mar 2002

Counties do not have the authority to recover the cost of investigation and criminal prosecution of code infractions, the Fourth District Court of Appeal has ruled. The court held that cities do have the power to recover the costs of criminal code enforcement activities, but state law treats counties differently.

San Mateo County Authority Over SFO Runway Expansion Made Clear

Mar 1, 2002

Legal Digest, other, Vol. 17 No. 03 Mar 2002

San Mateo County must approve plans for expansion of San Francisco International Airport before the project is considered by a state panel that decides on development along San Francisco Bay, according to a state Attorney General's opinion.

Court Rules Chula Vista Agency Can Take Non-Blighted Property

Mar 1, 2002

Legal Digest, other, Vol. 17 No. 03 Mar 2002

A Superior Court ruling that blocked the Chula Vista Redevelopment Agency from condemning a 3.2-acre parcel has been overturned by the Fourth District Court of Appeal. The appellate panel rejected all arguments from the landowner and ruled that the city's eminent domain lawsuit was an appropriate action that served the public use. In 1974, Chula Vista adopted the Bayfront Redevelopment Project for territory west of Interstate 5. In 1998, the redevelopment agency amended the project area to include land