Updates and Articles
Top Ten Tips and Resources for Newly Elected Councilmembers
In the Public Interest extends its congratulations to newly elected city councilmembers and local public officials across the state. Many of you have worked for cities, counties, or special districts, and others are fairly new to local government. We hope all of you will benefit from this “Top 10” list of useful tips and resources as you transition into your new position. 1. Ralph M. Brown Act: Open Meetings The Brown...
Read MoreShute, Mihaly & Weinberger Announces New Partners Sara Clark and Sarah Sigman
San Francisco - Shute, Mihaly & Weinberger LLP is proud to announce the addition of two new partners, Sara A. Clark and Sarah H. Sigman. Both attorneys were associates of the firm before joining the partnership. “We are excited to have Sara Clark and Sarah Sigman join our team of partners,” said Richard S. Taylor, Shute, Mihaly & Weinberger’s managing partner. “They have both made significant contributions to...
Read MoreIf Your Community Is Concerned About the Threat of Wildfire, Here Is Some Useful Information
Introduction The risk of wildfire is increasing in both significance and prevalence in California. Wildfire poses a significant risk to public health and safety, economies, infrastructure and natural resources. This article addresses statewide actions recently taken by the Legislature and provides additional actions that local agencies can take to reduce the risk of wildfires and protect residents and property. The...
Read MoreMulti-Million Dollar Naming Rights Agreement for a Public Facility
In coordination with special counsel, the firm assisted the Transbay Joint Powers Authority (TJPA) in the negotiation of a 2017 agreement for the rights to name the Salesforce Transit Center in San Francisco. The agreement will produce more than $110 million in aggregate escalated revenue over the 25-year term, offsetting the cost to operate the transit center.
Read MoreLimits on Lead and Cadmium in Chocolate
In 2018, on behalf of As You Sow, the firm settles its Proposition 65 case against the leading chocolate companies over lead and cadmium in chocolate products. The settlement establishes limits on the amount of lead and cadmium in these products and convened an expert panel to identify methods for reducing these levels.
Read MoreNatural Gas Power Plant Denied
The firm represents the City of Oxnard in 2018 before the California Public Utilities Commission and the California Energy Commission in its successful opposition to the location of a natural gas-fired power plant on the beach in Oxnard. This effort sets the stage for California's adoption of energy storage and other preferred resources as a viable alternative to gas-fired generation.
Read MoreNo Vested Right to Quarry Expansion
The firm succeeds in the court of appeal in a case challenging Mendocino County's approval of a large expansion of a quarry. (Keep the Code v. Mendocino County (2018).) The court agreed with the firm's position that quarry activities occurring almost 50 years earlier did not establish a vested right to expand the mine.
Read MoreConservationists Set Sights on Preserving a Petaluma Historic Ranch, Enhancing a Regional Park
Working closely with the Earth Island Institute's Kelly Creek Protection Project, in 2018 the firm negotiates an innovative purchase and sale agreement with a property owner that will limit development on an environmentally and historically sensitive parcel of land and extend Sonoma County's Helen Putnam Regional Park.
Read MoreSMW Defeats New Railyard Next to Disadvantaged Long Beach Community
The City of Long Beach, represented by the firm and joined by five other petitioner groups and the Attorney General, prevails in a CEQA challenge to the controversial “SCIG” railyard, whose air pollution threatened the health of nearby residents and schoolchildren. The court of appeal orders the approval rescinded. (City of Long Beach v. City of Los Angeles, 19 Cal.App.5th 465 (2018).)
Read MoreGetting Infrastructure Right for People and Marine Life
The California Public Utilities Commission approves a desalination plant required to provide water to the Monterey Peninsula without overdrawing the Carmel River. Project proponents wanted an oversized plant, discharging excessive, harmful brine into the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary. If the plant is ever built, the firm's work will ensure the plant is a more reasonable size, reflecting actual demand on...
Read MoreHalting Sprawl on the Suburban Fringe
The firm's lawsuit stops the City of Highland's Harmony Specific Plan, which would have scattered development across a floodplain and required a bridge over — and in — a sensitive creek at the edge of the San Bernardino Mountains. (Greenspot Residents Association v. City of Highland (2018).)
Read MoreSMW Drafts and Defends Ballot Measure to Protect San Jose’s General Plan
In 2018, on behalf of the City of San Jose, the firm drafts and defends a first-of-its kind charter amendment to prevent a developer-sponsored initiative from gutting the City's General Plan.
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