Cal. Coastal Comm'n v. U.S. Dep't of the Navy

22 F.Supp.3d 1081

CALIFORNIA COASTAL COMMISSION, Plaintiff

v.UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY; Secretary of the Navy, Ray Mabus, in his official capacity; and Manchester Pacific Gateway LLC, Defendants.

Case No. 13cv0178 JMJLB.

United States District Court, S.D. California.

Signed May 28, 2014.

Baine P. Kerr, California Department of Justice, Los Angeles, CA, David Alderson, Jamee Jordan Patterson, State of California Office of the Attorney General, San Diego, CA, for Plaintiff.

U.S. Attorney CV, U.S. Attorneys Office Southern District of California, San Diego, CA, Anna Kristina Stimmel, Stephen Geoffrey Bartell, U.S. Department of Justice, Washington, DC, for Defendants.

ORDER GRANTING DEFENDANTS' MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT; DENYING PLAINTIFF'S MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT

JEFFREY T. MILLER, District Judge.

Plaintiff California Coastal Commission (“CCC”) moves for summary judgment on its claim that the Federal Defendants' decision not to conduct a supplemental consistency determination under the Coastal Zone Management Act (“CZMA”), 16 U.S.C. § 1451 et seq., is arbitrary and capricious under the Administrative Procedure Act (“APA”), 5 U.S.C. § 701 –706. The United States Department of the Navy (“Navy”) and Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus, in his official capacity, (collectively “Federal Defendants”) oppose the motion as does Defendant Manchester Pacific Gateway LLC (“Manchester”). All Defendants separately move for summary judgment. Having carefully considered the Administrative Record, pertinent legal authorities, the arguments of counsel and for the reasons below, the court denies CCC's motion for summary judgment on all claims and grants Defendants' motion for summary judgment on all claims. The Clerk of Court is instructed to enter judgment appropriately and to close the file.

A. BACKGROUND

On January 23, 2013, the CCC commenced this action against Defendants to enjoin them from proceeding with the redevelopment of the Navy Broadway Complex (“NBC”) until the Navy prepares a supplemental consistency determination (“CD”) as allegedly required by the Coastal Zone Management Act (“CZMA”), 15 C.F.R. § 930.1 et seq. (Ct. Dkt. 1, ¶ 1). As more fully described below, the present action is one of five actions concerning the redevelopment of the NBC.

The following facts are taken from the Administrative Record (“AR”).

I. Overview

The NBC site, located on federally-owned land in downtown San Diego, presently consists of Navy administrative facilities including the Commander, Navy Region Southwest, and the Fleet Industrial Supply Center San Diego. (AR 4772, 55664). The present Navy facilities, constructed primarily between 1921 and 1944, consist of about 400,000 SF of administrative office space and 500,000 SF of warehouse space. (AR 2431). The remainder of the site consists of asphalt parking lots, and the entire site is fenced and public access restricted. (AR 55682).

In 1982 the Navy considered options for the consolidation of various Navy installations in the San Diego area. In light of budget constraints, the Navy pursued a “co-location” program which allowed the federal government to retain title to real property and to lease portions of the property for private revenue-generating uses that could be used to offset the cost of new administrative facilities. Congress enacted legislation in 1986, Public Law 99–661, § 2732, 100 Stat 3816 (1986), authorizing the Secretary of the Navy to pursue a public-private venture to implement the co-location concept at the NBC site. The legislation mandated that “any real property leased shall be developed in accordance with detailed plans and terms of development which have been duly formulated by the Navy and the San Diego community through the San Diego Association of Government's Broadway Complex Coordination Group.” (AR 956).

To obtain the objective of updated Navy administrative facilities, an advisory group, the Broadway Complex Coordinating Group (“BCCG”), formed in 1985 under the auspices of the San Diego Association of Governments (“SANDAG”) to serve as community advisors for the planning of the NBC site and to initiate consultation with local governmental authorities. In June 1987, the Navy and the City of San Diego executed a Memorandum of Understanding (“MOU”) to establish the terms of potential future development on the NBC site. (AR 1100). On September 22, 1989, the BCCG adopted the design principles for the NBC site and established detailed plans and development terms required by the legislation.

II. Initial Environmental Review Proceedings

To comply with its environmental obligations under the National Environmental Policy Act (“NEPA”), the Navy completed an Environmental Impact Statement (“EIS”) in 1990 and issued a Record of Decision (“ROD”) in July 1991. (AR 25795–96). The ROD memorialized the Navy's decision to redevelop the NBC site and identified essential uses for the site. The ROD also identified that the next step in the process was for the Navy and the City to enter into a Development Agreement (“DA”), as contemplated under the 1987 MOU. Among other things, the MOU provided that the Navy, in consultation with the City, would prepare a development plan and urban design guidelines (i.e. land uses, density, viewscapes, building heights, open space, etc.).

In August 1990, the Navy released a Coastal Consistency Determination for the project pursuant to the CZMA. (AR 2424–91). The CZMA directs that each federal agency must consider activities affecting the coastal zone “to the maximum extent practicable, consistent with approved state management programs.” 16 U.S.C. § 1451 et seq. Following this mandate, the 1990 CD concluded—with the consultation and approval of the CCC—that the NBC project was, to the maximum extent practicable, consistent with the California Coastal Act (“CCA”). Cal. Public Resources Code Section 30000 et seq. (AR 2427). The CCA, Chapter 3, articulates the state's coastal resources planning and management policies. The NBC project was evaluated and found to be fully consistent with the CCA.

In its determination, the Navy analyzed the impacts of the NBC project on coastal resources and uses in the surrounding coastal zone to ensure that the NBC project was consistent to the maximum extent practicable with the coastal policies of the CCA. (AR 2422, 2427). As a part of the CD, the Navy described the preferred development for the NBC and adopted the Urban Design Guidelines (“Guidelines”) and the DA. (AR 2481–91). The DA identified a four-block development scheme with commercial offices, Navy offices, hotel, retail, public attractions and parking uses. The proposed action called for the development of up to 3.25 million SF with approximately 1 million SF of Navy administrative space. (AR 2438). Among other things, the Guidelines also specified building setbacks, sidewalk depths, architectural designs, and the existence of a 1.90 acre open space at the foot of Broadway. (AR 2481–85).

After review and consideration of potential adverse environmental impacts, the City completed an Environmental Impact Report in 1991. A mitigation monitoring program (“MMP”) was prepared as part of the environmental review. The City and the Navy agreed that all required environmental processing had been completed and that no further environmental review would be required. In October 1991, the CCC adopted the findings of the Navy, agreeing that the development of the NBC was consistent to the maximum extent practicable with the state's coastal zone management plans and issued the CD. (AR 3723). The CCC noted that “no further Commission action is required for the redevelopment to proceed as presented in the consistency determination,” but any “proposed deviation from the plan and guidelines will require the Navy to submit a new coastal consistency determination or its developer to obtain a coastal development permit.” (AR 3746).

Following further public review, on November 2, 1992, the City enacted an ordinance approving the DA for the NBC site. The DA incorporated, among other documents, the MMP and provided a guide for the planning and approval process for the project. The original DA provided for the termination of the DA by January 1, 2002, unless a Developer Lessee was selected and recorded. Following public hearings, the original deadline was extended first to January 1, 2003 and later to January 1, 2007. (AR 4830).

III. Subsequent Environmental Review Proceedings

Due to adverse conditions in the San Diego real estate market, implementation of the DA did not commence immediately. By 2004, the real estate market in San Diego improved; and the Navy took steps to implement the DA. Further, in 2005, the Base Realignment and Closure Commission (“BRAC”) issued a directive to the Secretary of the Navy to either implement the DA or close the NBC and relocate the units and functions of the NBC to other Navy-owned sites in San Diego. (AR 30908).

To facilitate implementation of the DA, in 2006, the Navy prepared an Environmental Assessment (“EA”) analyzing the environmental impacts associated with implementing the 1991 ROD and the 1992 DA. Among other things, the EA examined the environmental impacts of implementing the DA in then-current 2006 conditions. (AR 25772). Concurrently with the preparation of the EA, the Navy, on March 31, 2006, selected Manchester to participate in exclusive negotiations for the NBC project. (AR 26615–16). On November 22, 2006, the Navy signed a lease with Manchester for the redevelopment of the NBC in accord with the DA. With the selection of Manchester, work commenced on the design phase submissions to Centre City Development Corporation (“CCDC”) for a consistency review and determination of conformity with the DA.

Each design stage of the project had to be approved by CCDC for conformity to the standards and initial consistency determination. Beginning in April 2006, the CCDC held five public workshops to display the plan proposed by the developer. CCDC...