Nassiri

Filed 6/27/24; pub. & mod. order 7/18/24 (see end of opn.)

IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA

FIRST APPELLATE DISTRICT

DIVISION TWO

NAHID NASSIRI,

Plaintiff and Appellant,

A165324

v. CITY OF LAFAYETTE, et al., (Contra Costa County Super. Ct. No. MSN201971) Defendants and Respondents; 3721 LAND LLC, Real Party in Interest and Respondent.

This appeal concerns a proposal by a developer to construct a 12-unit residential condominium building in downtown Lafayette, California on a parcel that is mostly occupied by a vacant convalescent hospital, which is now in disrepair. After a lengthy planning process, the City of Lafayette, the Lafayette City Council, and the Lafayette Planning Department (collectively City) determined that the proposed condominium project was exempt from review under the California Environmental Quality Act (Pub. Resources

1 Code, § 21000 et seq., CEQA) because it qualified as infill development under the CEQA Guidelines. (Cal. Code Regs., tit. 14, § 15332.1) Nahid Nassiri, who owns an office building adjacent to the project site, filed a petition for writ of mandate challenging the approval of the project,…