I. BACKGROUND
The planning and zoning law establishes the authority of most local governmental entities to regulate the use of land. ( Topanga Assn. for a Scenic Community v. County of Los Angeles (1974)
In 2015, the City began the process for amending the housing element of its general plan to conform with state policies by committing to eliminate the conditional use permit requirement for multi-family dwellings within High Density Residential (HR) districts. In 2016, the City amended its zoning
Real party in interest Joe McGrath purchased the half-acre lot at 632 McCorkle Avenue, an area within the City's HR district, intending to build multi-family dwellings on the property. The lot contained a dilapidated single-family home and its soil had been contaminated with lead by a prior occupant. McGrath committed to remediating this contamination with Napa County. He submitted an application for a demolition permit to demolish the existing structure as well as a design review plan for the proposed eight units. The application was deemed complete by the City's Planning Commission staff in October 2016, who prepared a report concluding (1) the proposed project fell within the Class 32 infill exemption of CEQA Guidelines section 15332 and was thus exempt from CEQA; and (2) the project met the criteria for design review.
The project came before the full Planning Commission in a hearing held on December 6, 2016. It was opposed by several neighbors and by appellants, who argued the project should not be approved because: (1) the site of the proposed development was contaminated; (2) McCorkle Avenue contains no storm drains and routinely floods; (3) there is little public open space in the area and children are required to play in the street; (4) the space required for a firetruck turnaround was not adequate; (5) the proposed project was located in a historical district, and was not consistent with the design of four historical homes located across the street; and (6) the proposed project was next door to the pending multi-family Brenkle project, and the cumulative effects of those projects would be significant.
Appellants appealed to the City Council.
The City Council voted 3-2 to deny the appeal and approve the action of the Planning Commission. It issued a resolution making findings in support of its approval for design review. It additionally made findings in the resolution that the project was consistent with the general plan's goals of permitting infill development, encouraging a mix of housing types and prices, addressing workforce housing, encouraging higher density where appropriate, and allowing the conversion of single-family homes to multifamily housing. The resolution addressed specifically the arguments that the project was not consistent with the general plan.
The resolution also found that a Class 32 infill exemption to CEQA applied and specifically found the proposed project would not "result in any significant effects relating to traffic, noise, air quality or water quality" within the meaning of CEQA Guidelines section 15332(d). The resolution stated the CEQA exemption was consistent with the City's limited discretion to consider or address environmental impacts: "Multi-family residential land uses are permitted by right in the HR District. Thus, in the context of this design review approval, the Planning Commission's authority/discretion is limited to (design related) concerns stemming from the only discretionary actions required for project approval. The City Council's discretion on appeal is similarly limited. Section 17.164.010 of the Zoning Ordinance expressly restricts the Planning Commission's and City Council's discretion during design review to the general form, spatial relationships and appearances of the project's proposed design, and Section 17.164.040C expressly precludes the Planning Commission and City Council from disapproving a proposal for non-design related reasons. ... [¶] Accordingly, the City's discretion, and thus scope of its CEQA review, is limited to design issues such as scale,
Appellants filed a petition for writ of mandate and first amended petition for writ of mandate against the City and City Council, alleging violations of CEQA and local zoning laws. The City and City Council answered and, after briefs were filed, a hearing was held. The trial court denied the petition.
II. DISCUSSION
A. Standard of Review
We review an agency's determination that CEQA does not apply to a project for abuse of discretion. ( Pub. Res. Code, §§ 21168 [quasi-adjudicative proceedings], 21168.5 [quasi-legislative decisions]; Gentry v. City of Murrieta (1995)
B. General Principles
" 'The basic purposes of CEQA are to: [¶] (1) Inform governmental decision makers and the public about the potential, significant environmental
"To achieve these goals, CEQA and the implementing regulations provide for a three-step process. In the first step, the public agency must determine whether the proposed development is a 'project,' that is, 'an activity which may cause either a direct physical change in the environment, or a reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment' undertaken, supported, or approved by a public agency. ( [Pub.Res.Code], § 21065.) [¶] The second step of the process is required if the proposed activity is a 'project.' The public agency must then decide whether it is exempt from compliance with CEQA under either a statutory exemption ( [Pub.Res.Code], § 21080 ) or a categorical exemption set forth in the regulations ( [Pub.Res.Code], § 21084, subd. (a) ; [CEQA
CEQA applies only to "discretionary projects proposed to be carried out or approved by public agencies ...." ( Pub. Res. Code § 21080, italics added.) A "discretionary project" is defined as one "which requires the exercise of judgment or deliberation when the public agency or body decides to approve or disapprove a particular activity, as distinguished from situations where the public agency or body merely has to determine whether there has been conformity with applicable statutes, ordinances, or regulations." (Guidelines, § 15357.) The "touchstone" for determining whether an agency is required to prepare an EIR is whether the agency could meaningfully address any environmental concerns that might be
When a project involves both discretionary and non-discretionary actions, it will be deemed discretionary. ( Friends of Westwood , supra ,
C. Non-Delegation
Appellants argue the City and City Council did not proceed in the manner required by law. Appellants cite authority stating that CEQA requires a decision by the elected City body-here, the City Council-and contend that no such decision was made in this case because the City Council did not consider issues unrelated to aesthetics when determining that CEQA did not apply. We disagree.
In support of their argument, appellants rely on
The City Council did approve the project without requiring an EIR or issuing a negative declaration, finding the Class 32 infill exemption applied and in any event it could not consider issues other than design review in light of the local ordinance. Appellants argue that because the City Council limited its review of environmental issues, the case is akin to Vedanta . We disagree. In Vedanta , the court reversed after it found that a tie vote during an appeal to the board of supervisors, which left the decision of the planning commission in that case intact by default, did not amount to the required consideration by the board. ( Vedanta , supra ,
Sections 17.08.060, 17.08.180(A) and 17.08.180(H) of the St. Helena Municipal Code did not require the City Council to consider the environmental consequences of a multi-family project in an HR district as appellants suggest. Collectively, those ordinances provide that an appeal of a decision by the Planning Commission may be taken to the full City Council, that the City Council's review is de novo, and that the final decision-making body (here, the City Council) may modify a proposed discretionary project. They do not expand the City Council's discretion beyond the language of the Municipal Code itself.
D. Applicability of Class 32 Infill Exemption
Appellants complain the City Council's decision to deny the appeal was unsupported because it did not consider the whole of the project before approving it. Appellants contend that before the City Council could properly adopt a Class 32 infill exemption under CEQA Guidelines section 15332, it was required by the terms of that exemption to determine whether the proposed project would " 'result in any significant effects relating to traffic, noise, air quality or water quality.' " (CEQA Guidelines, § 15332(d).) They also contend the City Council should have considered the applicability of a blanket exception to this categorical exemption, as set forth in CEQA Guidelines section 15300.2, which provides, "[a] categorical exemption shall not be used for an activity where there is a reasonable possibility that the activity will have a significant effect on the environment
Assuming the City Council did not consider traffic, noise or air and water quality for purposes of the Class 32 exemption despite its findings to the contrary, it nonetheless properly found that its discretion was limited to design review, given that no use permit was required for multi-family housing in HR districts. (See Friends of Davis v. City of Davis (2000)
"A city is not, pursuant to general law, required to have a design review ordinance. Accordingly, where, as here, a city chooses to impose such an additional level of review, it is for the city to determine the scope that such review will entail." ( Friends of Davis , supra ,
In this case, the City Council found the design review ordinances prevented it from disapproving the project for non-design related matters. This was correct. Under section 17.164.020 of the St. Helena Municipal Code, "The purpose of design review is: [¶] A. To promote those qualities in the environment which bring value to the community; [¶] B. To foster the attractiveness and functional utility of the community as a place to live and work; [¶] C. To preserve the character and quality of our heritage by maintaining the integrity of those areas which have a discernible character or are of special historic significance; [¶] D. To protect certain public investments in the area; [¶] E. To encourage, where appropriate, a mix of uses within permissible use zones; [¶] F. To raise the level of community expectations for the quality of its environment." Under section 17.164.030, the Planning Commission (and City Council) should consider the following: "1. Consistency and compatibility with applicable elements of the general
The City Council made extensive findings pertaining to these elements and found that the proposed project met all of them. It concluded that CEQA review was "limited to design issues such as scale, orientation, bulk, mass, materials and colors," and the proposed project would not result in design-related CEQA impacts. These findings were supported by substantial evidence and must be upheld on appeal. (See Breneric Associates v. City of Del Mar (1998)
Appellants' complaints about the project include its appearance relative to the historical homes in the area. This does not mean review under CEQA was required. "[W]e do not believe that our Legislature in enacting CEQA... intended to require an EIR where the sole environmental impact is the aesthetic merit of a building in a highly developed area. [Citations.] To rule otherwise would mean that an EIR would be required for every urban building project that is not exempt under CEQA if enough people could be marshaled to complain about how it will look. While there may be situations
Because of the City's lack of any discretion to address environmental effects, it is unnecessary to rely on the Class 32 exemption and equally unnecessary to spend much time on appellants' contention that the proposed project did not qualify for an exemption because it was not consistent with the general plan. (CEQA Guidelines, § 15332(a).) We note the City Council found the proposed project consistent with the general plan and addressed appellants' arguments to the contrary in great detail. In light of these findings, which are supported by the evidence, it did not abuse its discretion in finding the proposed project was consistent with the general
It is also unnecessary to resolve whether the Class 32 infill exemption was inapplicable due to an exception because "there is a reasonable possibility that the activity will have a significant effect on the environment due to unusual circumstances." (CEQA Guidelines, § 15300.2(c).) Because CEQA was limited in scope to design review whether or not the Class 32 exemption applied, any exception to the exemption was irrelevant. In any event, the subdivision establishing the exception applies only when the challenger proves both an unusual circumstance and a significant environmental effect as a result of that circumstance. ( Berkeley Hillside Preservation v. City of Berkeley (2015)
III. DISPOSITION
The judgment is affirmed. Ordinary costs on appeal are awarded to respondents.
We concur.
SIMONS, ACTING P.J.
BRUINIERS, J.
Notes
Some of these arguments challenge the existing environment's effect on future users of the project. Analysis was not required under CEQA for this purpose. (California Bldg. Industry Assn. v. Bay Area Air Quality Management District (2015)
Under sections 17.164.080 and 17.08.180(A) of the St. Helena Municipal Code, a land use application in the City of St. Helena is heard initially by the Planning Commission and is appealable to the City Council.
It is unnecessary to resolve respondents' contention that appellants have forfeited their claim that the design review ordinances themselves contain language that renders CEQA applicable in this case. (See North Coast Rivers Alliance v. Marin Water Dist. Bd. (2013)
We deny as unnecessary real party in interest's request for judicial notice, filed July 27, 2018.
Retired Associate Justice of the Court of Appeal, First Appellate District, assigned by the Chief Justice pursuant to article VI, section 6 of the California Constitution.