Plaintiffs Appealed on Significant CEQA Fire Impacts, Quino Protection, and Water Supply Impacts Issues.
Plaintiffs in Preserve Wild Santee v. City of Santee, Case Nos. D055215/D061030 (4th Dist., Div. 1 Oct. 19, 2012) (published) certainly deserve accolades for hanging in there and prevailing on CEQA challenges to fire impacts, Quino protection, and water supply impacts issues relating to the EIR for a development project in Santee’s Fanita Ranch area.
Certain defendants challenged that plaintiffs did not prevail and the lower court did not adequately explain the basis for the award, even though they were awarded $45,555.50 in postjudgment fees under California’s private attorney general statute, CCP § 1021.5.
The appealing defendant were not able to deflect the fee award; and, in fact, the appellate court found that plaintiffs (who also appealed) won some more challenges–Quino protection and water supply impacts–that cemented the determination that they prevailed. The reviewing court did not bat an eye in determining that vindication of key CEQA issues made plaintiffs the prevailing parties. (Center for Biological Diversity v. County of San Bernardino, 185 Cal.App.4th 866, 892-893, 895 (2010).)
As far as the argument that the trial court had to make a more detailed explanation of the fee award, this one lost because no statement of decision was ever requested by Santee or the appealing developer. (Ketchum v. Moses, 24 Cal.4th 1122, 1140-1141 (2001) [one of our Leading Cases].)
BLOG UNDERVIEW–So what is a Quino? It is shorthand for Quino Checkerspot, an endangered species, that is a member of the brush-foot butterfly family, needing large, unfragmented habitat areas having open scrub vegetation with larval host plants, nectar sites, and small to large topographic rises in close proximity.
Quino Checkerspot. Wikipedia.