Updates and Articles
Court Halts Unnecessary Roadway Expansion in Rural Ventura County
The firm prevails in a CEQA challenge to a roadway expansion that would have transformed the Town of Somis in rural Ventura County. Caltrans then agrees to a modest project alternative proposed by the firm's traffic expert. (Save Our Somis v. Caltrans (2003).)
Read MoreProtected: Lake Tahoe Development Moratorium Upheld
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Read MoreRelaxed CEQA Guidelines Rejected
In a groundbreaking appellate decision in a case brought by the firm, the appellate court overturns new CEQA guidelines adopted by the Wilson administration that would have weakened environmental review requirements across the state. (Communities for a Better Environment v. Cal. Resources Agency, 103 Cal.App.4th 98 (2002).)
Read MoreSMW Negotiates Closure of Polluting Facility
The firm negotiates a settlement of a Clean Water Act case against Ultramar, requiring the operator of a petroleum-coke loading facility in Pittsburg to close its operations or install state-of-the-art technology. (S.F. BayKeeper v. Ultramar, Inc. (2002).)
Read MoreSMW Stops Tosco from Evading Liability By Selling Polluting Facility
The firm obtains a Ninth Circuit ruling that Tosco Corporation cannot escape liability for decades of pollution from its petroleum-coke loading plant in Pittsburg by selling that facility during litigation. (San Francisco BayKeeper, Inc. v. Tosco Corporation, 309 F.3d 1153 (9th Cir. 2002).)
Read MoreWatsonville Urban Growth Boundary Approved
Voters in Watsonville in 2002 pass an initiative, drafted by the firm, establishing an urban growth boundary around the City.
Read MoreProtected: SMW Defends the City of Lafayette in Complex Land Use Litigation
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Read MoreSMW Helps Residents Reduce Oakland Airport Impacts
On behalf of the Citizens League for Airport Safety and Serenity (CLASS), in 2002 the firm negotiates a comprehensive settlement of the long-ranging dispute over the Oakland International Airport expansion, limiting the size of the terminal and imposing restrictions on air cargo facilities. The firm continues to represent CLASS as it monitors airport operations and advocates for its neighbors.
Read MoreAppellate Court Victory Protects Saratoga Residents From Community College’s Noisy Athletic Stadium
The firm wins an appellate court case for the City of Saratoga, requiring a school district's athletic stadium to comply with the City's zoning ordinance. (Saratoga v. West Valley-Mission Community College District (2002).)
Read MoreGaviota Coast Protected
On behalf of Surfrider, the firm secures denial of a coastal development permit extension for the Dos Pueblos golf course along Santa Barbara's rural Gaviota coast in 2001. Seventeen years later the firm negotiates a settlement that permits the development of two homes on the property, while allowing for public access to the coast and placing the vast majority of the land under a conservation easement.
Read MoreAirport Expansion Requires Meaningful Noise Analysis
The firm succeeds in a CEQA challenge to a large expansion of the Oakland International Airport, obtaining a landmark appellate ruling that the environmental impact report must analyze the project's severe noise impacts on nearby residents. (Berkeley Keep Jets Over the Bay Committee v. Bd. of Port Comm'rs, 91 Cal.App.4th 1344 (2001).)
Read MoreSMW Defends Urban Growth Boundary Initiative and Stops City’s SLAPP Suit
The firm successfully defends against litigation by the City of Marina challenging an urban growth boundary initiative drafted by the firm and adopted by the City's voters. The court holds that the City's suit against the measure is an unlawful strategic lawsuit against public participation (“SLAPP”). (City of Marina v. Landwatch (2001).)
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