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[WEBINAR] Planning in the Coastal Zone
Governor Gavin Newsom stepped up his intervention on the California Coastal Commission last Monday, chiding the agency for providing “legally erroneous guidance” that threatens to create confusion and delay the rebuilding...more
California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Jan. 12 issued an executive order in response to the devastating wildfires, suspending environmental reviews required under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and permitting...more
On January 12, 2025, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed an executive order (EO N-4-25) to suspend permitting requirements under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and the California Coastal Act, with the...more
On December 12, 2024, the Court of Appeal of the State of California reversed a writ of mandate and agreed with the California Coastal Commission’s (CCC) denial of a permit by the Casa Mira Homeowners Association for coastal...more
SB 684, which took effect on July 1 of this year, provides for streamlined, ministerial processing of certain residential projects in multifamily zoning districts consisting of no more than 10 single-family homes. The law...more
In a surprise monumental decision, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit held that the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) has no authority to issue regulations implementing NEPA and that CEQ’s NEPA...more
The California Legislature has continued to refine the Density Bonus Law over the years, making important updates to housing laws that impact developers across the state. Recent legislative changes include key updates on...more
A roundup of news and multimedia from the Unfamiliar Terrain team: San Francisco - Small and Mighty: How small businesses can reinvent downtown San Francisco (SPUR Policy Brief): SPUR’s research, drawn from a...more
The City of Malibu determined that an attached accessory dwelling unit (ADU) did not fall within the coastal development permit exemptions set forth in its local coastal program (LCP). The court overturned the City’s...more
The California Coastal Commission unanimously voted last Thursday to issue $4.7 million in fines to the Rio Del Mar Beach Island Homeowners Association. The violations, accruing since 1982, have to do with blocked beach...more
California recently enacted two laws—the Offshore Wind Expediting Act (SB 286) and the California Offshore Wind Advancement Act (AB 3)—to accelerate the development of offshore wind energy that could have significant...more
The Berkeley City Council opened the door to high-rise apartment buildings in the Southside neighborhood by signing off on new zoning regulations that could allow for thousands more homes at UC Berkeley’s doorstep....more
Managed retreat—the process of moving people and property away from the shoreline—is an unpopular but increasingly accepted response to rising sea-levels. In the inaugural issue of Nossaman’s California Water Views – 2023...more
It's no secret that the wealthy enclave of Coronado is flouting State housing laws. What's remarkable is that it is hoping the Coastal Commission will come to its rescue....more
In Pacific Palisades Residents Association, Inc. v. City of Los Angeles et al. (March 8, 2023, Case No. B306658) __ Cal.App.2d __, the Second District issued a strong opinion affirming the trial court’s ruling that a proposed...more
According to California’s projections, the miles of highways susceptible to coastal flooding in a 100-year storm event will triple from current levels to 370 miles by 2100, with over 3,750 miles exposed to temporary flooding....more
California’s first upcoming offshore wind lease sale, scheduled for December 6, 2022, is the next major step forward for clean energy in the Golden State. The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) and the State of...more
On October 21, 2022, the U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (“BOEM”) published a Final Sale Notice (“FSN”) for commercial leasing for wind power on California’s Outer Continental Shelf (“OCS”). Specifically, the FSN...more
Housing in California is a hot topic, particularly when the short-term rentals are thrown into the mix. Those opposed to short-term rentals often argue that it removes permanent housing stock from the market and that such...more
The Court of Appeal held that a writ petition asserting potential CEQA violations concerning the Campus Town project, a significant development project in Monterey County, was untimely because it was filed after the fixed end...more
The action marks the clearance of another significant hurdle toward BOEM’s offshore wind lease sales in federal waters offshore California, anticipated to occur this fall. In the first half of 2022, the Bureau of Ocean...more
On May 12, 2022, at the conclusion of a ten-hour hearing, the California Coastal Commission voted to deny Poseidon Water’s application to site and operate a desalination plant in Huntington Beach, in what could be a fatal...more
Southland air regulators threaten to sue EPA for failure to control federally-regulated emissions sources Bullet - Los Angeles Times - May 10 - The South Coast Air Quality Management District (District), which oversees a...more
The Court of Appeal held that absent a distinction between short- and long-term rentals, both are permitted under city zoning ordinances, and any ban on short-term rentals that changes the status quo is an amendment that...more
California attorney general subpoenas ExxonMobil, opens major investigation into plastic pollution - The Mercury News - April 28 - California Attorney General Rob Bonta on Thursday announced a major investigation into...more