Photo of Maria Pracher

Maria Pracher

Subscribe to Maria Pracher's Posts
Contact:Read more about Maria Pracher

CREED-21 v. City of San Diego (2/18/2015, 4th Civil No. D064186)

The Fourth District Court of Appeal upheld a CEQA exemption related to the City of San Diego’s approval of a project comprising emergency storm drainage repair and site revegetation. The decision addressed various CEQA issues, including the environmental baseline determination, the “common sense” exemption, and the “unusual circumstances” exception.
Continue Reading CEQA “Common Sense” Exemption Upheld; Environmental Baseline for Project Following Improvements Pursuant to an Emergency Exemption Clarified

Saltonstall v. City of Sacramento (2/18/2015, 3d Civil No. C077772). For prior post on a related case, see here.

The Court of Appeal for the Third Appellate District of California has ruled in favor of the City of Sacramento with regard to a series of challenges brought under CEQA to certification of an EIR and approval of a project to build a new arena in downtown Sacramento. The project involves a partnership between the City and Sacramento Basketball Holdings LLC to build a downtown arena at which the Sacramento Kings will play. To facilitate the timely opening of a new downtown arena, the Legislature modified several deadlines under CEQA by adding section 21168.6.6 to the Public Resources Code. Section 21168.6.6 also allows the City to exercise limited eminent domain powers to acquire property for the project before its environmental review, but does not substantively alter other CEQA requirements. The court held that the City had not prematurely committed itself to the project; the EIR was not deficient for failing to address the remodel of the existing Sleep Train arena; the traffic analysis was not deficient; the failure to study “crowd safety” did not implicate CEQA; and trial court orders may be reviewed only by writ petition, not direct appeal.
Continue Reading Sacramento Kings Win Again; Second CEQA Challenge Rejected

Berkeley Hillside Preservation v. City of Berkeley (2015) ___ Cal.4th ___, Case No. S201116

This week the California Supreme Court issued its long-awaited decision in the Berkeley Hillside case, which considered whether the City of Berkeley properly exempted a large single-family home on a hillside lot from CEQA review. The court’s lengthy opinion announced a new two-part test for the “unusual circumstances exception” to CEQA exemptions and the applicable standards of review. In doing so, the court not only reversed the First District Court of Appeal, but also resolved several other conflicting interpretations of the unusual circumstances exception. The case is important for agencies and developers because the new test will apply generally to categorical exemptions, and as discussed below, it suggests a strategy for defending against potential challenges to exemptions.
Continue Reading California Supreme Court Announces New Test for CEQA “Unusual Circumstances” Exception