A local agency’s environmental impact report must identify any areas on a project site that might qualify as “Environmentally Sensitive Habitat Areas” under the California Coastal Act, and must account for those areas in the EIR’s analysis of project alternatives and mitigation measures. Banning Ranch Conservancy v. City of Newport Beach, California Supreme Court Case … Continue Reading
Statutes awarding housing density and height increase bonuses do not take precedence over the California Coastal Act, according to a decision of the Second Circuit Court of Appeal. Kalnel Gardens, LLC v. City of Los Angeles, No. B264434 (2nd Dist. Sept. 29, 2016). Kalnel Gardens, LLC, proposed to build a 15-unit housing complex in Venice. … Continue Reading
The California Coastal Commission lacks jurisdiction to review a city’s adoption of a nuisance ordinance because a municipality’s enactment of an ordinance is not an appealable action. However, the city must demonstrate that it exercised its nuisance abatement power, pursuant to Coastal Act section 30005(b), in good faith, and not as a pretext for avoiding its … Continue Reading
