Black v. City of Rancho Palos Verdes

The appellants (landowners) own eight lots in an area of Rancho Palos Verdes that is the subject of a 1978 building moratorium based on the resurgence of an ancient landslide. 1 In the trial court, the landowners sought relief from the building moratorium and damages for inverse condemnation *665 primarily on the basis of our opinion in Monks v. City of Rancho Palos Verdes (2008) 167 Cal.App.4th 263 , 84 Cal.Rptr.3d 75 ( Monks II ). Based on their erroneous interpretation of Monks II , the landowners did not first apply to the city for permission to build on their lots.

The landowners argued that Monks II absolved them of the need to exhaust administrative remedies or, alternatively, that exhausting administrative remedies would be futile. The trial court rejected those arguments and entered judgment for the city. We also reject those arguments and affirm the trial court's judgment.

BACKGROUND

Because much of the landowners' argument relies on Monks II and because our holdings in Monks II were dependent on the background of that case, we draw on that opinion for background here.

A. The Landslides

Between approximately 100,000 and 120,000 years ago, there was a landslide in…