Inland Oversight Comm. v. City of San Bernardino

I. INTRODUCTION

This matter relates to a proposed development in the Highland Hills area of the City of San Bernardino that has been pending in various permutations for decades. Plaintiffs and appellants The Inland Oversight Committee (IOC), CREED-21, and Highland Hills Homeowners Association (HOA) filed the present lawsuit in 2015, contending that proposed changes to the project violate the California Environmental Quality Act, Public Resources Code § 21000 et seq. (CEQA), and certain provisions of the Water Code. Real party in interest and respondent First American Title Insurance Company (First American) is the developer that proposed the changes at issue. Defendant and respondent City of San Bernardino (the City) approved the changes under an expedited procedure for minor modifications. The expedited procedure was incorporated into a stipulated judgment in a previous lawsuit regarding the development brought by HOA against the City and the former developer (First American's predecessor in interest) concerning the development.

This is the second appeal regarding the same proposed changes to the project to *458 come before this court. In a related but separate lawsuit ("the…