CEQA Case – Creed-21 v. City of Wildomar

March 30, 2018

The California Supreme Court’s recent denial of petitioner’s request for review of Creed-21 v. City of Wildomar (2017) 18 Cal.App.5th 690 affirms that discovery can be sought to challenge standing in CEQA cases. Since publication in Dec 17 we have successfully obtained discovery orders to determine the true nature of petitioners’ members and others are doing the same. While there have been legislative efforts to require disclosure of petitioners’ interest, it is the courts that are defining and interpreting CEQA…

UC Hastings Moot Court

March 29, 2018

Joey Meldrum was honored to be a judge for the UC Hastings Spring Moot Court oral arguments on March 29, 2018. A very impressive group of students argued a complicated Endangered Species Act (ESA) case - huge kudos to Professor David Takacs for championing the Hastings Environmental Law Concentration and making it better everyday.

Court of Appeal Affirms Parking is Not a CEQA Impact for Transit Oriented Development Projects Approved After The Effective Date of SB 743

March 26, 2018

In a recently published decision by the Second District, the California Court of Appeal in Covina Residents for Responsible Development v. City of Covina (B279590, certified for publication March 22, 2018) affirmed California’s goal of encouraging transit-oriented development. Amanda Monchamp and Joey Meldrum (representing the project developer, City Ventures) worked with the City of Covina to defend its approval of a 68-unit, mixed-use, infill project located a quarter-mile from a Metrolink commuter rail station. Each unit in the project is…