Court rules Coastal Commission violated local planning laws, says property owners can build
January 03, 2025
San Luis Obispo County, California; January 3, 2025: Two Cambria property owners will be able to build homes on their land after a California court ruled their building permits were illegally voided by the California Coastal Commission (CCC). A San Luis Obispo Superior Court judge ruled in favor of Al Hadian and Ralph Bookout, finding the Coastal Commission arbitrary blocked building permits that the county had approved.
“This is welcome news for Al and Ralph, who have been waiting for years to build homes on their properties,” said Jeremy Talcott, attorney at Pacific Legal Foundation. “The Coastal Commission has been unlawfully overriding local planning decisions, preventing badly needed housing from being built in the process. Today’s ruling requires the Commission to abide by the LCPs that it approved; it can longer reinterpret them on a whim.”
Hadian and Bookout purchased lots in a residential subdivision two decades ago with plans to build family homes. The Coastal Commission voided their permits, even though the owners were in compliance with the county’s Local Coastal Program (LCP). Today’s ruling allows the property owners to break ground on their homes.
Hadian and Bookout are represented free of charge by Pacific Legal Foundation. The case is Al Hadian, et al. v. California Coastal Commission.
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