The July 20, 2023 Outlook Valley Sun article, “Judge Rules Against City in Housing Element Case,” paints an inaccurate picture of the judge’s ruling in the ongoing case of Californians for Homeownership (CFH) vs City of La Canada Flintridge.
The case involved three causes of action: 1) Compliance with Housing Element Law; 2) Requirement for Rezoning; and 3) a “Builder’s Remedy” Request. The results were 1) No decision, with a future trial to be scheduled; 2) the City must complete its re-zoning process, which the City is already doing; and 3) the court rejected Californians for Homeownership attempt to invoke the “builders remedy.”
With respect to the first cause of action, the City’s compliance with state Housing Element Law, the judge determined he was unable to reach a conclusion without expert witnesses at a full trial. This is not a decision on behalf of either side in the case, but instead a postponement to a trial sometime after August. Subsequently, CFH elected to dismiss this cause of action.
For the second cause of action – that the City comply with re-zoning requirements – the judge ruled that the City must complete its re-zoning process. We have been working on the re-zoning for some time now, and we hope to have it completed soon.
Finally, for the “builder’s remedy” cause of action, the judge found that Californians for Homeownership is not a developer and has no project in La Cañada Flintridge. Therefore, the group lacks standing to pursue the “builder’s remedy” and the judge rejected the group’s claim for this relief.
The City is considering with counsel what to do with the judge’s ruling on the second cause of action, including filing an appeal.
The City intends to continue to pursue what is best for our community.
