YCS Investments v. County of Santa Clara CA6

I. BACKGROUND

The description below is drawn in part from our opinion concerning the appeal from the judgment, of which we take judicial notice on our own motion. (Evid. Code, §§ 452, subd. (d), 459, subd. (a); see also Pacific Gas & Electric v. City and County of San Francisco (2012) 206 Cal.App.4th 897, 907, fn. 10 [noting that unpublished decisions may be cited to explain the factual background of a case].) A. The Settlement Agreement YCS is the owner (or agent of an owner) of the Young Ranch, a 2,150-acre property located partly in Santa Clara County and partly in the City of San José (San José or City). YCS sought to develop residential lots on the portion of the ranch in the County, which is located on a hillside and therefore subject to density limitations in the County’s general plan. To satisfy these limitations, YCS proposed to leave open space on the portion of the ranch in San José. However, the County’s planning commission denied YCS’s application for the proposed project on the ground that it was inconsistent with the County’s general plan. After YCS appealed, the County initiated settlement discussions, and in August 2014 YCS and the County entered into a…