Habitat Trust for Wildlife, Inc. v. City of Rancho Cucamonga

Plaintiff, The Habitat Trust for Wildlife, Inc. (Habitat), appeals from a judgment in favor of defendants City of Rancho Cucamonga and city council of the City of Rancho Cucamonga (sometimes City Council otherwise, collectively City) on its petition for writ of mandate. By its petition Habitat sought to force City to set aside a resolution determining that Habitat is not a qualified conservation entity (QCE) and to enter a new resolution based upon substantial evidence and in compliance with California law. Habitat argues that the petition was wrongfully denied by the trial court because it employed the wrong standard of review, because City denied Habitat due process, because City’s criteria for determining what was a QCE were vague and uncertain and conflicted with federal and state law, and because City’s findings in support of its resolution were not supported by the evidence before it.

In a second, related case, plaintiffs Habitat and Spirit of the Sage Council, Inc. (Sage, collectively Habitat/Sage), appeal from a judgment entered in favor of defendants Henderson Creek Properties, LLC (Henderson), SPS Development Services, Inc. (SPS, collectively Henderson/SPS),…