A court of appeal has rejected Coastal Act and CEQA challenges to the Coastal Commission’s approval of expansions at the San Diego Convention Center. San Diego Navy Broadway Complex Coalition v. California Coastal Commission, 40 Cal. App. 5th 563 (2019). The court held both that the plaintiff Coalition failed to timely sue all indispensable
Conditions for Coastal Development Approvals Must Be Reasonably Tailored to Accomplish Their Intended Purpose
The Fourth District Court of Appeal held that that while most of the California Coastal Commission’s conditions for construction of a home on an oceanfront lot were reasonable, a requirement that the home be removed from the parcel “if any government agency orders it not to be occupied due to a natural hazard” was “overbroad,
Coastal Development Permit Cannot Be Challenged in Court Until After Coastal Commission Decides an Appeal
A court challenge to a local agency’s decision to grant a coastal development permit becomes moot when the Coastal Commission accepts an appeal of the decision, the California court of appeal ruled in Fudge v. City of Laguna Beach, No. G05571 (4th Dist., Feb. 13, 2019).
In 2017, the Laguna Beach City Council approved
Port Master Plan Conflicted with Coastal Act Goals
A core principle of the California Coastal Act is to maximize public access to the coast, including recreational opportunities in the coastal zone. The Court of Appeal determined that the Coastal Commission acted within its authority in rejecting an amendment to a port master plan as inconsistent with this principle. San Diego Unified Port Dist.
Property Owner Who Proceeds With Development Under a Permit Cannot Challenge Land-Use Conditions Attached to the Permit
The California Supreme Court has ruled that a landowner who accepts the benefits of a permit by constructing the project forfeits the right to challenge land-use conditions imposed on the project. Lynch v. California Coastal Commission (Calif. Supreme Court, No. S221980, July 6, 2017).
Factual Background
After storms damaged a seawall and stairway structure beneath their bluff-top homes, plaintiffs sought a permit from the California Coastal Commission to demolish and reconstruct the seawall. The Commission granted the permit subject to conditions that included a prohibition against reconstruction of the stairway and a 20-year limit on the authorization for the seawall, after which plaintiffs would need to apply for a new permit to extend the authorization period.
Plaintiffs filed a petition for writ of administrative mandamus challenging the 20-year expiration condition and the condition prohibiting reconstruction of the stairway. They argued that the 20-year expiration date was unconstitutional because it did not mitigate impacts of the project, and that the Commission could not prohibit reconstruction of the stairway because that activity did not require a permit.
While the litigation was pending, plaintiffs satisfied other permit conditions, secured the coastal development permit, and built the seawall. The Court of Appeal held that plaintiffs’ challenge could not proceed because they had waived their claims by constructing the project.
California Supreme Court Decision
Under the Pfieffer/McDougal line of cases, a landowner may not challenge a permit condition if he or she has acquiesced to it either by specific agreement or by failing to challenge the condition while accepting the benefits of the permit. Instead, the landowner must file a timely challenge to the conditions and await the outcome before proceeding with the project.
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