Five Southern California charter cities need not worry about lot splitting in their single-family zoned neighborhoods thanks to a Los Angeles County superior court ruling on April 22. Depending on a forthcoming ruling, 120 cities may join them.
“A controversial housing law that abolished single-family zoning across California has been ruled unconstitutional by a Los Angeles County judge — but the narrow ruling is likely to be appealed by the state, and it’s unclear how it might ultimately affect the Bay Area,” reported Kate Talerico for The Mercury News on April 25 in a 'subscriber-only' article. [Other articles without paywalls are linked in this post.]
- See Planetizen's legislative tag for Senate Bill (SB) 9.
- Recommended: The End of Single-Family Zoning in California, September 19, 2021.
“Five Southern California cities — Redondo Beach, Carson, Torrance, Whittier and Del Mar — sued the state in 2022, claiming the law was unconstitutional because it interfered with local authority over land use and zoning,” adds Talerico. [See 'Related' posts on the lawsuit below this post.]
The Los Angeles County Superior Court judge’s ruling [pdf], issued Monday, means that SB 9 can’t be applied in these five cities. The judge is expected to produce a ruling in the next month that could strike down SB 9 in cities across the state.
Charter cities only
“Note that this only affects California cities that are 'charter cities',” writes Bob Silvestri, editor of The Marin [County] Post in blog post on April 26. “It does not affect 'general law' cities or county governments.”
Silvestri goes on to distinguish charter from general law cities in his post based on a fact sheet [pdf] prepared by the League of California Cities’ legal staff.
The nonprofit group had “filed an amicus brief [pdf] in the case, arguing land use and zoning regulations are municipal affairs and that SB 9 deprived charter cities of their home rule authority,” wrote their general counsel, Sheri Chapman, on April 26. “Over 240 cities opposed the bill when lawmakers sent it to Gov. Gavin Newsom in 2021.”
According to Wikipedia, “[a]s of January 21, 2020, 125 of California's 478 cities are charter cities.”
Additional reading on the April 22 ruling:
- Press release by the law firm representing the plaintiffs, Aleshire & Wynder, LLP, April 24. Additional release with document links.
- Court ruling deals blow to housing law on split lots, Palo Alto online, April 25.
- LA judge rules SB 9 unconstitutional in lawsuit brought by SoCal cities, The Coast News, April 25.
Additional related post (to those below this post): Are Charter Cities Subject to California's Housing Laws? January 24, 2020
FULL STORY: Court strikes down controversial California law abolishing single-family zoning
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Lafayette City Council Member Susan Candell penned an op-ed in support of a lawsuit to invalidate Senate Bill 9 by four Southern California cities, highlighting a recent supportive court filing by UCLA economic geographer Michael Storper.
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