County
Endangered Habitats League, Inc. v. County of Orange
Opinion
Opinion
Worth, J.
This is an appeal from a judgment that denied petitions for a peremptory writ of mandate to compel the County of Orange to set aside various approvals for a development project, along with other relief. The appellants are Endangered Habitats League, Sierra Club, Rural Canyons Conservation Fund, Sea and Sage Audubon, Inc., California Native Plant Society, California Oak Foundation, and Ray Chandos (collectively Endangered Habitats League). Rutter Development Corporation, Inc. (Rutter) is the developer.
Endangered Habitats League argues the project is inconsistent with the county’s general plan, and an environmental impact report (EIR) fails to provide sufficient information to make an informed decision on the project. We agree and reverse.
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The project at issue consists of two adjacent but noncontiguous sites in the Santa Ana Mountains, located near the intersection of Santiago Canyon Road and Live Oak Canyon Road. One is named Saddle Creek and the other Saddle Crest. They lie within the geographical area covered by the Foothill/Trabuco Specific Plan (specific plan).
On January 28, 2003, the Orange County Board of Supervisors (Board or Board of Supervisors)…