Village Laguna of Laguna Beach, Inc. v. Board of Supervisors

Aliso Viejo Company owns a 6,623-acre property that occupies a significant portion of southwest Orange County near Laguna Beach. On this land, the company proposes to build a new city, Aliso Viejo, with a population of possibly 60,000 persons. A precondition to this massive development is the amendment of the Orange County General Plan for that area. And, before the general plan can be amended, the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requires that an adequate environmental impact report (EIR) be prepared. An EIR concerning the amendment of the general plan was submitted to and approved by the Orange County Board of Supervisors, who then adopted the proposed amendment. Appellants sought a writ of mandate to annul the approval of the EIR and the adoption of the amendment. The writ was denied and appellants have appealed, claiming that the EIR is legally insufficient and that the board of supervisors failed to make required findings prior to adopting the amendment. We find the EIR to be sufficient, but reverse because the board’s findings are inadequate.

Sufficiency of EIR

As this court recently stated in Santiago County Water Dist. v. County of Orange (1981) 118…