Beverly Hills Faces Four New Builder's Remedy Lawsuits

West Coast Land Use and Environment attorney Ryan Leaderman was quoted in a Beverly Press & Park Labrea News article covering four new builder's remedy lawsuits filed against the city of Beverly Hills by developers and housing nonprofits after the city denied two major mixed-income housing projects on Wilshire Boulevard. The lawsuits argue that the city improperly blocked these developments, which consist of a combined 273 units with a significant portion designated as affordable housing, despite ongoing noncompliance with state housing requirements. Under the builder's remedy provision of the California Housing Accountability Act, private developers can bypass local code regulations if a project includes at least 20 percent affordable housing and a municipality's housing element is out of compliance – which would mean the city could not block the developments proposed here. With these latest legal challenges, Beverly Hills now faces at least six active lawsuits related to builder's remedy provisions, intensifying scrutiny of its response to the state's housing shortage.

"The city's actions here are egregious. The city has done everything possible to stop these two housing development projects, including by illegally preventing [developers] from appealing the unlawful denials of the projects to City Council," Mr. Leaderman said.

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