Visalia Retail, LP v. City of Visalia

*354 *5 This appeal involves a challenge to an update of the City of Visalia's (Visalia) general plan. Included in the update is a land use policy affecting areas designated "Neighborhood Commercial." Under the policy, no tenant in a Neighborhood Commercial area may be larger than 40,000 square feet in size.

Appellant claims Visalia violated the California Environmental Quality Act ( Pub. Resources Code, § 21000 et seq. ; "CEQA") by failing to analyze the potential for the land use policy to cause a phenomenon called urban decay. "CEQA does not define urban decay" but some have defined it as "visible symptoms of physical deterioration that invite vandalism, loitering, and graffiti that is caused by a downward spiral of business closures and multiple long term vacancies." ( Joshua Tree Downtown Business Alliance v. County of San Bernardino (2016) 1 Cal.App.5th 677 , 685, 204 Cal.Rptr.3d 464 ( Joshua Tree ).)

Appellant, likely prompted by concerns as to how the general plan update would adversely impact property it owns, challenged the proposed land use policy. Appellant submitted to Visalia the opinion of an experienced local commercial real estate agent that the land use policy…