Lawsuit over San Clemente homes reinstated.(coastal commission)

Opponents of the proposed construction of two houses on a coastal bluff in San Clemente may pursue their lawsuit to overturn the California Coastal Commission's approval of the projects, even though the suit was filed after a statute of limitations had ostensibly expired, the Fourth District Court of Appeal has ruled.

Under the California Coastal Act, opponents of a commission ruling have 60 days from the date of a decision to file legal action. The San Clemente neighbors seemingly missed that deadline. They successfully argued, however, that their suit was timely not under the Coastal Act. but under a section of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) that authorizes the commission's regulatory program.

The properties in question are two adjacent lots in an undeveloped, nine-parcel stretch on the city's coastal bluff. The vacant land has afforded the public an unobstructed view of the ocean and access to the beach for years.

In November 2007, the Coastal Commission approved development permits that allowed the properties' owners to build multistory, single-family houses on the lots. The commission conditioned its approval on the property owners' signing a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the owners of five other undeveloped lots to provide for view corridors and pedestrian beach access.

While the commission approved the permits on November 14, 2007, it did not file the requisite notice of approval with the Natural Resources Agency until December 27. On January 28. the neighbors sued the commission, contending that the coastal panel had failed to adequately evaluate project alternatives; used the MOU to improperly defer mitigation; and violated procedural requirements by providing late notice of staff reports and failing to respond to written comments from the project opponents.

In response, the Commission and the two property owners contended the lawsuit was filed after the 60-day deadline in the Coastal Act. Orange County Superior Court Judge Thierry Patrick Colaw agreed and dismissed the neighbors' suit.

The Coastal Commission does not have to strictly abide by CEQA rules. Instead, it uses a certified regulatory equivalent of the CEQA process authorized by the act in Public Resources Code [section] 21080.5. Subdivision (g) of that section establishes a ...