Ailanto Properties, Inc. v. City of Half Moon Bay

• Decision Date: 30 August 2006
• Docket Number: No. A098920.,A098920.
• Citation: 48 Cal.Rptr.3d 340,142 Cal.App.4th 572
• Court: California Court of Appeals Court of Appeals
• Parties: AILANTO PROPERTIES, INC., Plaintiff and Appellant, v. CITY OF HALF MOON BAY et al., Defendants and Appellants.

48 Cal.Rptr.3d 340

142 Cal.App.4th 572

AILANTO PROPERTIES, INC., Plaintiff and Appellant, v. CITY OF HALF MOON BAY et al., Defendants and Appellants.

No. A098920.

Court of Appeal, First District, Division 5.

August 30, 2006.

Aaronson, Dickerson, Cohn & Lanzone, Robert J. Lanzone, San Carlos; Cassidy, Shimko & Dawson, Stephen K. Cassidy, Anna C. Shimko, San Francisco, Matthew D. Francois; McCracken, Byers & Haesloop and Michael D. McCracken, San Mateo, for Plaintiff and Appellant.

Adam U. Lindgren, City Attorney; Meyers, Nave, Riback, Silver & Wilson, Julia L. Bond, Armit S. Kulkarni; Jarvis, Fay & Deporto and Rick W. Jarvis for Defendants and Appellants.

SIMONS, Acting P.J.

Under the Subdivision Map Act (Gov Code, § 66410 et seq.),¹ the life of a vesting tentative map does not include "any period of time during which a development moratorium, imposed after approval of the tentative map, is in existence. However, the length of the moratorium shall not exceed five years." (§ 66452.6, subd. (b)(1).) Ailanto Properties, Inc. (Ailanto), a developer, challenges a decision of the superior court holding that under section 66452.6, subdivision (b)(1) the expiration of Ailanto's vesting tentative map was tolled for only five years, though a series of development moratoria imposed by respondents City of Half Moon Bay and City Council of the City of Half Moon Bay (collectively City) far exceeded this time period. The City, in turn, appeals from the superior court's ruling that Ailanto's delivery of a purported phased final map to the city engineer constituted an effective filing entitling Ailanto to a 36-month extension of its vesting tentative map under section 66452.6, subdivision (a)(1), despite the fact that the phased final map admittedly did not conform to the requirements of the vesting tentative map and was not in a form that could be approved by the City.

We hold that section 66452.6, subdivision (b)(1) limits to five years the length of any moratorium-related tolling of the expiration of a tentative map. We further hold that Ailanto's filing of a phased final map with the city engineer does not entitle Ailanto to a further extension of the life of its vesting tentative map because the phased final map does not conform to the requirements of the vesting tentative map. We therefore affirm in part and reverse in part.

FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND²

The property at issue in this litigation is a 114-acre parcel located in the City. Ailanto acquired the property in 1985 and proceeded with plans to develop the property for residential use.

In 1987, the City accepted as complete Ailanto's application for a vesting tentative map for subdivision of the property into 228 lots for single family residences and for a corresponding planned unit development zoning ordinance. The following year, the City prepared an environmental impact report (EIR) on the proposed 228-lot development project pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) (Pub. Resources Code, § 21000 et seq.). The EIR found that all potential significant environmental impacts of the project would be mitigated to a level of less than significant by the imposition of mitigation measures. The planning commission unanimously recommended certification of the EIR in 1989 and recommended approval of the Dykstra Ranch Planned Unit Development Ordinance as the zoning ordinance for the property.³ Around this time, Ailanto redesigned its proposed project to reduce the number of units from 228 to 216 in response to certain environmental mitigation measures set forth in the EIR.

The Vesting Tentative Map and Its Conditions

The city council approved the vesting tentative map for 216 units and certified the EIR on August 7, 1990. On August 21, 1990, the city council approved the Dykstra Ranch Planned Unit Development Ordinance, which sets forth the development standards and conditions for the property. The vesting tentative map imposed a number of conditions that Ailanto had to fulfill before a final map could be approved and recorded. One of these conditions was that Ailanto obtain "any permits required by the [California] Coastal Commission ... or other agency with permitting jurisdiction over the subject property ... prior to approval of a Final Map." Other conditions required that Ailanto obtain approval of water and sewer connections from the relevant agencies and officials.

The Water and Sewer Moratoria

At the time the city council approved the vesting tentative map, the area in question was subject to a water service moratorium that the Coastside County Water District (District) had imposed by ordinance in 1976. The District imposed the moratorium because the water supply was inadequate to serve the increased demand brought on by additional building. The moratorium was not for a set period of time. Rather, the ordinance by which it was imposed provided that it would expire when the water system supply was expanded to meet additional demand. The District ultimately lifted the moratorium in March 1994, when the District completed the Crystal Springs Water Supply Project.

When the vesting tentative map was approved, it required that a coastal development permit be obtained from the California Coastal Commission (Commission) before the property could be developed. In early 1991, Ailanto sought a coastal development permit from the Commission, but the Commission returned Ailanto's application on April 5, 1991, because the property lacked sufficient water rights.

On March 28, 1991, the City adopted an urgency ordinance finding that the capacity of the City's existing sewer treatment plant was inadequate to serve any new development for which a building permit had not been issued, regardless of whether a vesting tentative map had been approved for the development. The ordinance prohibited future allocation of sewer connections until the sewage treatment plant was expanded. The Pacific Ridge subdivision was subject to the sewer moratorium, and as long as the moratorium remained in effect, Ailanto was precluded from obtaining necessary approvals from the Commission or the City, including a coastal development permit, a final subdivision map, or building permits. For the next eight years, the city council acted periodically to extend the sewer moratorium, and it did not expire until March 31, 1999.

Coastal Development Permit Proceedings

On February 5, 1998, in anticipation of completion of an extension of the City's sewer plant, Ailanto filed an application with the City for a coastal development permit.⁴ After the planning commission voted to deny the application, Ailanto appealed to the city council, which formed a subcommittee to negotiate with Ailanto regarding the project. As a result of the negotiations, the number of lots in the Pacific Ridge subdivision was reduced from 216 to 197. On March 16, 1999, the city council overturned the planning commission's denial of Ailanto's application and approved the coastal development permit for Pacific Ridge. The City issued a notice of final action with respect to the coastal development permit on March 23, 1999.

On April 6, 1999, certain individuals appealed to the Commission the City's issuance of the coastal development permit to Ailanto. In simplest terms, the appeals contended that development of the project was inconsistent with the local coastal plan. On March 17, 2000, the Commission made a "substantial issue" finding in the appeals, meaning that it would hear the appeals de novo pursuant to Public Resources Code sections 30603 and 30621. The Commission ultimately denied the appeals on February 16, 2001, and it approved the coastal development permit for Pacific Ridge subject to a number of special conditions. Ailanto has challenged the legality of these conditions in a separate action against the Commission.

Delivery of the Phase 1 Final Map to the City Engineer

Ailanto delivered a purported phased final map to the city engineer on May 10, 2001, and supplemented that submission on May 11 and August 6, 2001. The city engineer returned the phased final map because he could not make the finding that the phased final map substantially conformed to the vesting tentative map. The city engineer specifically noted that the City was prohibited from approving any final map for a project that lacked a coastal development permit, and because the Pacific Ridge development had not obtained such a permit, the City did not have legal authority to approve the phase 1 final map.

Ailanto's Action and the Expiration of the Vesting Tentative Map

On April 17, 2001, Ailanto filed the action below, seeking declaratory relief pursuant to Code of Civil Procedure section 1060. In its first cause of action, Ailanto sought a declaration that the sewer moratorium extended the life of the vesting tentative map for the entire eight-year life of the moratorium from March 28, 1991, to March 31, 1999. In its second cause of action, Ailanto sought a declaration that a separate "development moratorium" existed during the time the City and the Commission processed Ailanto's application for a coastal development permit and that this development moratorium tolled expiration of the vesting tentative map. Ailanto's third cause of action requested a declaration as to whether the filing of a final map occurs upon delivery of the final map to the city engineer or upon the meeting of the city council at which the City receives the map.⁵

Voter Initiatives Limiting Development Within the City of Half Moon Bay

Since Ailanto's vesting tentative map was approved, the City of Half Moon Bay voters have enacted two growth control measures that significantly limit residential development within the city. In May 1991, the voters adopted Measure A, an initiative that limited growth to a 3 percent increase in population per year. The provisions of Measure A were incorporated into chapter 17.06 of the city municipal code, which establishes...