Land Use Law Commons^™

Land Use Cases Highlight Lessons, Evolving Patterns: The Year In Review, John R. Nolon, Jessica A. Bacher

Elisabeth Haub School of Law Faculty Publications

New York courts busily decided a multitude of land use cases in 2008 due to the increased growth in magnitude and complexity of land use issues. This year, as in the past, the authors summarize some of the most important cases. This year’s cases include the following topics: judicial deference to land use board decisions, zoning boards of appeals discretion, standard local practice, the New York State Environmental Quality Review Act, statute of limitations, affordable housing, and eminent domain.

Shifting Ground To Address Climate Change: The Land Use Law Solution, John R. Nolon

Elisabeth Haub School of Law Faculty Publications

This article conceives and describes a Land Use Stabilization Wedge: a strategy that aggregates these five wedges and further organizes strategic energies. This builds on Socolow’s optimistic assertion that “an excuse for inaction based on the world’s lack of technological readiness does not exist.” I assert that the existing legal authority of state and local governments to regulate and guide land use and building is a powerful “technology already deployed somewhere in the world.” The Land Use Stabilization Wedge aggregates several of Socolow’s initiatives and employs multiple mitigation techniques available to citizens in every locality in the country.

Slides: Linking Growth, Land Use And Water, Jim Holway

Shifting Baselines and New Meridians: Water, Resources, Landscapes, and the Transformation of the American West (Summer Conference, June 4-6)

Presenter: Jim Holway, Global Institute of Sustainability, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Arizona Water Institute, Arizona State University

29 slides

Slides: Threats To Biological Diversity: Global, Continental, Local, J. Michael Scott

Shifting Baselines and New Meridians: Water, Resources, Landscapes, and the Transformation of the American West (Summer Conference, June 4-6)

Presenter: J. Michael Scott, U.S. Geological Survey, Idaho Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, University of Idaho

38 slides

Slides: Incorporating Community Values Of Sustainability Into Resource Management: The Red Lady Case Study, Wendy Mcdermott

Shifting Baselines and New Meridians: Water, Resources, Landscapes, and the Transformation of the American West (Summer Conference, June 4-6)

Presenter: Wendy McDermott, Executive Director, High Country Citizens' Alliance, www.hccaonline.org

33 slides

Crime Doesn't Pay And Neither Do Conflicts Of Interest In Land Use Decisionmaking, Patricia E. Salkin

Scholarly Works

Conflicts of interest, bias, and appearance of impropriety continue to plague players in the land use game whose conduct, as public sector officials, must be beyond reproach. This article provides an annual review of reported cases and opinions involving allegations of unethical conduct in land use decision making. Conflicts of interest cases focus on attorneys, and address issues including of counsel relationships, disqualification and fees. Conflicts based upon financial interests for board members are explored, as well as unique relationships that may arise when colleges and universities seek approvals. Criminal aspects of decision maker conduct are also reported. Appearance of …

The Future Of Our Land: Presidential Leadership, John R. Nolon

Elisabeth Haub School of Law Faculty Publications

Open letter to the President.

The Genesis Of Rluipa And Federalism: Evaluating The Creation Of A Federal Statutory Right And Its Impact On Local Government, Patricia E. Salkin, Amy Lavine

Scholarly Works

In 2000, Congress passed, and President Clinton signed, the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA), designed to provide protection from discrimination for the exercise of religion for incarcerated individuals and for those in need of various municipal permits or approvals in order to exercise their religion. With seven years of experience in the courts, this article examines the impact of RLUIPA on local governments across the country through an analysis of how the courts have been interpreting and applying statutory ambiguities and creating inconsistent doctrine in an effort to define terms and implement RLUIPA's protections. Whether an appropriate …

Understanding Community Benefits Agreements: Equitable Development, Social Justice And Other Considerations For Developers, Municipalities And Community Organizations, Patricia E. Salkin, Amy Lavine

Scholarly Works

The opportunity to develop a Community Benefits Agreement (CBA) typically arises when a developer announces plans to construct a major project, such as a stadium or a theater complex. Local residents and business owners may often welcome these projects, but they may also have legitimate fears, such as: Will the project displace local residents and local businesses, either physically or through gentrification? Will it cause traffic problems and generate noise, pollution, or other nuisances? Will the economic development benefits espoused by the developer actually create jobs that pay a living wage and offer decent benefits for residents in the neighborhood …

Negotiating For Social Justice And The Promise Of Community Benefits Agreements: Case Studies Of Current And Developing Agreements, Patricia E. Salkin, Amy Lavine

Scholarly Works

A community benefits agreement (CBA) is a private contract negotiated between a prospective developer and community representatives. In essence, the CBA specifies the benefits that the developer will provide to the community in exchange for the community's support, or quiet acquiescence, of its proposed development. The promise of community support may be especially useful to a developer seeking government subsidies or timely project approvals. The CBA is a relative newcomer to the toolbox of strategies that communities may utilize to ensure that development occurs consistent with the sometimes more narrow goals and desires of neighborhood residents, as opposed to the …

Law Of The Land – Year In Review, Patricia E. Salkin

Scholarly Works

This column reviews trends and interesting cases in land use law as reported on “Law of the Land” during the last half of 2007. “Law of the Land” is a blog created to be of interest to land use lawyers, planners, developers, professors, and students. The blog is updated daily with a review of a recent land use case decided by a state or federal court. In addition, the site has reported on relevant gubernatorial executive orders, offered book reviews, and occasionally starts a discussion on current events issues, such as climate change and has led to robust debate about …

Municipal Regulation Of Formula Businesses: Creating And Protecting Communities, Patricia E. Salkin

Scholarly Works

People have been trying to exclude chain stores from their communities for decades. This includes "big-box" chains - the behemoth retailers that prefer an architecture of rectangular, single-story unadorned structures reaching 200,000 square feet or more - as well as national and international businesses including well-recognized fast food restaurants, drug stores and clothing retailers. The reasons for restricting these large corporate businesses include concerns over community character and aesthetics, local economics and self-reliance, and corporate ideologies. Over time, many municipalities have been forced to accept that "formula retail" and "franchise architecture" are simply part of the American economy. In many …

Land Use Law And Active Living: Opportunities For States To Assume A Leadership Role In Promoting And Incentivizing Local Options, Patricia E. Salkin, Amy Lavine

Scholarly Works

Obesity, asthma and nutrition are just three public health challenges facing children and adults that can be addressed through land use planning and zoning. States must take a leadership role in providing statutory authority and guidance for local governments to enact and implement laws and ordinances designed to promote active living. Land use policies, transportation policies, redevelopment policies and open space and recreation policies are key areas where reform is needed. This paper highlights existing examples from various states and offers lawmakers, policymakers and advocates options for reforming state laws to incentivize and influence local actions.

Year In Review: 2007'S Most Significant Land Use Cases, John R. Nolon, Jessica A. Bacher

Elisabeth Haub School of Law Faculty Publications

New York courts busily decided a multitude of land use cases due to the increased growth in magnitude and complexity of land use issues. This year, as in the past, the authors provide a summary describing some of the most crucial New York land use cases. This year’s cases include the following topics: review of local board action, takings law, eminent domain, enforcement, jurisdiction, religious land uses, standing, moratoria, and New York’s State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA).

Municipal Lobbying: Regulations May Affect Land Use Practitioners, John R. Nolon

Elisabeth Haub School of Law Faculty Publications

Land use and real estate attorneys may find their practice areas impacted by recently passed lobbying legislation in both New York state, and New York City that require burdensome requirements for lawyers whose clients are seeking legislative action. This article explores the history of New York lobbying legislation, recent amendments to the lobbying laws, and the impact that lobbying legislation has on the practice of law. Notably, this review explores Article 1-A of the Legislative Law (known as the “Lobbying Act”) and the Public Employee Ethics Reform Act, both of which expanded the definition of lobbying, and significantly changed the …

H.R. 3355, The Homeowners Defense Act Of 2007: Hearing Before The Subcomm. On Housing And Community Opportunity And The Subcomm. On Capital Markets Of The H. Comm. On Financial Services, 110th Cong., Sept. 6, 2007 (Statement Of John D. Echeverria, Geo. U. L. Center), John D. Echeverria

Testimony Before Congress

No abstract provided.

The Taking Of America?, Stefanie Sovak

Pace Law Review

No abstract provided.

Federalism And Natural Resources Policy [Outline], Robert L. Fischman

The Future of Natural Resources Law and Policy (Summer Conference, June 6-8)

2 pages.

"Robert L. Fischman, Indiana University School of Law–Bloomington"

"Outline of Presentation"

Law Casebook Description And Table Of Contents: Constitutional Environmental And Natural Resources Law [Outline], Jim May, Robin Craig

The Future of Natural Resources Law and Policy (Summer Conference, June 6-8)

6 pages.

"James May, Widener University School of Law" -- Agenda

The Takings Clause, Version 2005: The Legal Process Of Constitutional Property Rights, Mark Fenster

UF Law Faculty Publications

The search for coherence in takings jurisprudence has resulted in a multitude of theories but no consensus. Each theory -- whether based on conceptions of common law property rights or constitutional conceptions of justice, or based on utility, natural law, or communitarian or republican conceptions of the good --offers significant insight into the vexing legal, political, and normative issues that judicial enforcement of the Takings Clause raises. But no single theory of property or of constitutional limits on state regulation and expropriation has proven capable either of satisfactorily rationalizing existing takings law or of persuading the courts or the theory's …

Disaster Mitigation Through Land Use Strategies, John R. Nolon

Elisabeth Haub School of Law Faculty Publications

The persistent question this book raises is who should decide whether and how to mitigate the damages caused by natural disasters. Our understandable preoccupation with response, recovery, and rebuilding makes it hard to focus on this question as a central, even relevant, one. But it persists, nonetheless. The high-profile “blame game” played following Hurricane Katrina’s devastation of the Gulf Coast is emblematic. In pointing fingers first at the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), then at the city of New Orleans, and then at the state of Louisiana, public officials exhibited an appalling lack of understanding of the roles that each …

Back To The Future: Is Form-Based Code An Efficacious Tool For Shaping Modern Civic Life?, Lolita Buckner Inniss

Publications

This Essay serves as a critique of the New Urbanism in general and of form-based code in particular as a tool of the New Urbanism. It may be true that form-based code offers more flexibility than traditional zoning schemes and thus may offer some respite from acknowledged ills such as social and racial divisions created by exclusionary zoning and other tools, and from the relative inutility of single or limited use districts. However, I will argue that these benefits are eclipsed by some of the problems of form-based code. Form-based code is frequently hailed as a back to the future …

Squaring The Circle On Sprawl: What More Can We Do?: Progress Towards Sustainable Land Use In The States, Patricia E. Salkin

Scholarly Works

With almost ten years of nationwide dialogue and experimentation with the legal implementation of smart growth concepts at the state and local levels, this paper pauses to consider whether and to what extent success has been realized. The one certainty in this dynamic intersection of land development and conservation is that there is no one best model adaptable to all fifty states. Rather, to accommodate national diversity in local government structure, cultural relationships of people to the land, and differences in geography and a sense of place, the best lesson learned is that advocates and lawmakers alike must shape and …

Ensuring Continuing Community Amenities Through Golf Course Redevelopment, Patricia E. Salkin

Scholarly Works

This article examines some of the issues faced by municipalities hoping to preserve their golf courses or to ensure their strategic redevelopment and focuses on how local governments can most effectively employ planning and zoning techniques to ensure that community amenities, including affordable housing and recreational areas, are an important part of golf course redevelopment projects.

Courts Have Decided A Wide Range Of Issues, John R. Nolon, Jessica A. Bacher

Elisabeth Haub School of Law Faculty Publications

In 2006, as in most years, the New York courts have decided a broad range of land use issues. This article summarizes the impacts of several of these important decisions. Specifically, this article covers the following land use topics: affordable housing, statute of limitations, res judicata, standing to sue, enforcement of injunctions, takings law, vested rights, property annexation, religious land uses, New York’s State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA), and judicial review of local board actions.

Real Estate Law, Paul H. Davenport, Lindsey H. Dobbs

University of Richmond Law Review

This article surveys significant cases concerning real property law decided by the Supreme Court of Virginia between the spring of 2004 and the spring of 2006. This article also details significant legislative changes flowing from the 2005 and 2006 Virginia General Assembly sessions.

Historical Overview Of The American Land Use System: A Diagnostic Approach To Evaluating Governmental Land Use Control, John R. Nolon

Elisabeth Haub School of Law Faculty Publications

This article describes how the American land use system has evolved to address recent environmental and economic development problems. It begins by tracing the history of the legal system used in the United States to control private sector land development and demonstrates how it achieved the flexibility needed to respond to modern challenges. The American land use system has paid a price for this flexibility: it is not a coherent whole, but rather a fragmented mosaic of legal influences. Impressive examples of cohesion are cited that suggest a strategic approach to reforming the system so that it can become an …

Slides: Adapting To Climate And To Climate Change, Roger S. Pulwarty

Climate Change and the Future of the American West: Exploring the Legal and Policy Dimensions (Summer Conference, June 7-9)

Presenter: Roger S. Pulwarty, Research Scientist, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration/CIRES, Boulder.

50 slides.

Slides: Taking The Long View: Doing Something About Climate Change, David Getches, Susan Avery, Maggie Fox, Roger Pielke

Climate Change and the Future of the American West: Exploring the Legal and Policy Dimensions (Summer Conference, June 7-9)

Presenter: Maggie Fox, President, America Votes, Boulder, CO.

Presenter: Susan Avery, Interim Provost and Executive Vice-Chancellor for Academic Affairs, University of Colorado.

Presenter: Roger Pielke, Jr., Professor, Environmental Studies, Center for Science and Technology Policy Research, University of Colorado.

4 slides.

Thou Shalt Love Thy Neighbor: Rluipa And The Mediation Of Religious Land Use Disputes, Jeffrey H. Goldfien

ExpressO

Religious land use disputes are characterized by high levels of conflict and the potential to seriously undermine social capital in affected communities. Contemporary land use procedures reflect an antiquated heritage and reliance upon adversarial means that are inadequate to successfully resolve these socially complex local conflicts. While there are practical obstacles, mediation holds advantages over these existing procedures in terms of dispute resolution, and has greater potential to preserve and build social capital at the local level. This article examines the theoretical justification for mediation in this context, and argues for moving beyond the status quo.