Friends of Juana Briones House v. City of Palo Alto
| Decision Date | 23 February 2011 |
| Docket Number | No. H033275.,H033275. |
| Court | California Court of Appeals Court of Appeals |
| Parties | FRIENDS OF the JUANA BRIONES HOUSE, Petitioner and Respondent, v. CITY OF PALO ALTO, Respondent; Jaim Nulman, et al., Real Parties in Interest and Appellants. |
Mitchell Herzog & Klingsporn, LLP, Gregory K. Klingsporn and Kent Mitchell, Palo Alto, for Appellants, Jaim Nulman and Avelyn Welczer.
Brandt-Hawley Law Offices, Susan Brandt-Hawley, Glen Ellen, for Respondent Friends of Juana Briones House.
At issue in this case is applicability of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA).1 This appeal is taken from a judgment granting a writ of mandate, which directs the City of Palo Alto to set aside its approval of a permit to demolish the historic Juana Briones House and to comply with CEQA before considering reissuance of the permit. According to appellants and real parties in interest, Jaim Nulman and Avelyn Welczer, CEQA does not apply to the demolition permit because its issuance is a ministerial act. According to respondent, Friends of the Juana Briones House, issuance of the demolition permit is discretionary and therefore subject to CEQA.
As we explain, based on our reading of the governing municipal code provision in light of pertinent CEQA principles, we agree with appellants that approval of the demolition permit is ministerial. We therefore reverse the judgment.
The seeds of this dispute were planted more than 10 years ago. In 1998, appellants applied to the City of Palo Alto for a permit to demolish their historic residence, the Juana Briones House. The City's denial of that application resulted in litigationbetween appellants and the City, which culminated in an appeal to this court.
Following remand in the prior litigation, post-appeal proceedings ensued, which resulted in an administrative hearing on appellants' application for ademolition permit. In 2007, the City approved the application and issued the requested permit. That prompted this action by respondent, which is an unincorporated association of community residents and concerned citizens with an interest in the historic importance of the Juana Briones House.
The Juana Briones House is located at 4155 Old Adobe Road in Palo Alto. The house is U-shaped, with a central section and two wings. The central section, which consists of three rooms, is believed to have been an old adobe, constructed in the 1840s and originally occupied by Juana Briones de Miranda. The structure's two wings, which are of wood-frame construction, were added at some point in the early 1900s.
In 1987, the City designated the Juana Briones House as an historic landmark.
In 1988, the Juana Briones House was owned by Susan Berthiaume, who entered into an historic preservation contract with the City of Palo Alto pursuant to the Mills Act. (Gov.Code, § 50280 et seq.) The contract was for a rolling 10-year term, subject to either party's written notice of intent to terminate. The contract was binding on the owner's successors.
In October 1989, the Loma Prieta earthquake caused structural damage to the Juana Briones House. Berthiaume undertook to make repairs. After consulting with a general contractor, who did some emergency shoring work, Berthiaume assembled a team of experts, including an architect and an engineer, who drafted plans for more extensive repairs. To fund the repairs, Berthiaume applied for assistance both to the City and to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). Unable to obtain funding from either entity, Berthiaume abandoned plans to repair the property and listed it for sale.
In August 1993, Daniel and Suzanne Meub purchased the property. Without securing permits, the Meubs began making substantial renovations to the wings of the structure. In June 1995, following a complaint about the renovations, the City inspected the property and notified the Meubs that the renovations violated the Mills Act contract.
In February 1996, the City's building inspector wrote to the Meubs, describing the structure as a "dangerous building" and a "substandard residential building" within the meaning of the Palo Alto Municipal Code. The inspector stated that the central portion of the building was not to be occupiedand was to be posted "restricted use." He also recommended that the structure's wings be vacated. He declared the structure a public nuisance and informed the Meubs that abatement was required, by either "repair or demolition."
The Meubs were unable to fund repairs, and none were undertaken. The Meubs moved out of the property in October 1996.
In late 1996, appellants Jaim Nulman and Avelyn Welczer became interested in purchasing the property. In consultation with an engineer and an architect, they developed plans for preserving the old adobe portion of the structure and for removing and rebuilding the wings into a Spanish style building that would blendwith the old adobe. Their consultants concluded that the extensive remodeling done by the Meubs had compromised any historic integrity of the structure's wings. Towards the end of 1996, appellants presented their proposal to the City, but the City did not approve it. The City believed that the Mills Act contract required that the two wings of the structure be maintained and restored as well as the original three rooms. Appellants had discovered information questioning the architectural and historical significance of the property. Nonetheless appellants took title to the property in February 1997.
During 1997, appellants met numerous times with City representatives regarding the property. The parties could not agree about restoration of the property, and in November of 1997, appellants informed the City that they would not renew the Mills Act contract. After further negotiations during 1998, appellants abandoned efforts to incorporate the old adobe portion of the property into a new structure.
In October of 1998, appellants applied for a demolition permit. The City denied the application, and appellants asked for a de novo hearing under the Palo Alto Municipal Code. No hearing was ever noticed.
In February 1999, appellants filed an action against the City for administrative mandamus and declaratory relief. They sought a writ either compelling issuance of the demolition permit or requiring the City to provide a hearing for appeal of the permit denial. Appellants also sought a declaration of rights relieving them of further performance under the Mills Act contract and contractual attorney's fees.
In April 1999, the City answered the petition and filed a cross-complaint for specific performance and declaratory relief. The City sought enforcement of the Mills Act contract, restoration of the property to its historic condition, a declaration of rights under the contract, and attorney's fees.
A bench trial was conducted in December 2002. In April 2003, the court filed its initial statement of decision and judgment, which denied appellants' writ petition and found for the City on its cross-complaint to enforce the Mills Act contract.
Appellants successfully moved for a new trial. In June 2003, the court set aside the statement of decision and judgment and it reopened the case for further proceedings, which began in March 2004.
In April 2004, the court issued a statement of decision following the new trial. The court found against the City on its cross-complaint for specific performance of the Mills Act contract. The court also granted appellants' writ petition, directing the City to conduct hearings, as required by the Palo Alto Municipal Code, on appellant's application for a demolition permit. Judgment was entered in June 2004.
The City appealed the judgment as well as the court's subsequent award of attorney's fees. In September 2006, this court affirmed the judgment and the fee award in an unpublished opinion filed (H027764). A remittitur issued in November 2006.
In early October 2006, the parties' attorneys began communicating about further proceedings. Among other things, the attorneys discussed the applicability of CEQA. Initially, the City's attorney indicated the possibility that "CEQA may be applicable to a demolition permit application." Appellants' attorney acknowledged his understanding that the City's director of planning and community environment would be making the CEQA determination.In early January 2007, the City's attorney advised appellants' attorney that the City had "been evolving in its positions re CEQA." Shortly thereafter, he sent appellants' attorney a draft stipulation for a supplemental statement of decision, which reflected the City's determination that CEQA does not apply because the demolition permit is ministerial.
The attorneys' communications culminated in the parties' stipulation to a supplemental statement of decision and a post-appeal modified judgment. As reflected in the judgment, the parties stipulated to various factual and legal determinations, including these: demolition of the Juana Briones House "isgoverned by Palo Alto Municipal Code ('PAMC') § 16.49.070"; any allowable moratorium period under that provision had expired by November 1999; a "Director's Hearing" before the director of planning and community environment was the proper forum for consideration of appellants' demolition permit application; issuance of the permit is ministerial in nature and CEQA thus does not apply; and the condition of the structure presents a threat to the public. The judgment also limits the "subject matter" of the director's hearing to "whether Plaintiffs should immediately be granted a demolition permit pursuant to their original application" and "whether voluntary contributions by Plaintiffs of artifacts relating to the Subject Property"...
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