Meyers Nave Secures Victory for City of Oakland as Court of Appeal Upholds EIR for A’s Baseball Stadium Project

In a lengthy published decision, the Court of Appeal upheld the City of Oakland’s environmental impact report (EIR) for the proposed Oakland A’s MLB stadium and mixed use project, rejecting numerous challenges and affirming the trial court’s decision in full. Meyers Nave represented the City of Oakland in the litigation and advised during the development of the EIR in the administrative process.

Subject to expedited judicial review under a special statute for the project (AB 734), the Court of Appeal decision was issued less than a year after the EIR challenge was filed in the trial court. The decision provides detailed guidance on many important issues under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), including:

• Deferred Mitigation: The Court of Appeal soundly rejected numerous claims that mitigation for the Project’s greenhouse gas impacts (GHG), hazardous materials and other impacts was improperly deferred.
• Exhaustion: The Court of Appeal discussed the level of detail required to exhaust administrative remedies before the agency, rejecting claims related to the Project’s rail safety and other impacts.
• Speculation: The decision affirmed the EIR’s approach regarding the speculative nature of impacts associated with displaced tenants from the Project site.

The Court of Appeal also addressed substantive issues related to GHG impacts, analysis and mitigation of at-grade rail crossings, hazardous materials and cumulative impacts analysis. Overall, the decision is a resounding affirmation that the City’s EIR complied with CEQA requirements.