Appeals court hears AmCan Wal-Mart case

By KERANA TODOROV, Register Staff Writer

SAN FRANCISCO -- More than a year after a court clash over a Wal-Mart Supercenter in American Canyon, lawyers for the city, the retailer and two citizens' groups opposed to the big box store argued their case before an appellate court in San Francisco.

In the time between Napa County Superior Court Judge Ray Guadagni's ruling for the city and the arguments on appeal, the Supercenter building east of Highway 29 largely has been constructed.

But the battle in court Friday was over whether the city conducted the proper environmental review before approving the store. Separate cases were brought by two citizens groups -- American Canyon Community United for Responsible Growth and Citizens Against Poor Planning.

The two groups filed the appeal in August 2005, shortly after Guadagni ruled the city of American Canyon had not violated the California Environmental Quality Act when it gave the green light to build a Wal-Mart Supercenter in 2004.

Arguing before three First District Court of Appeals justices Friday were Brett Jolley of Stockton, an attorney for American Canyon Community United for Responsible Growth; Jacqueline McDonald of Sacramento, and attorney for Citizens Against Poor Planning and American Canyon resident Stacy Su; American Canyon City Attorney Bill Ross; and Arthur Friedman, a San Francisco-based attorney for Wal-Mart.

The attorneys took turns answering questions from Presiding Justice Barbara Jones and two associate justices, Mark Simons and Linda Gemello.

During the one-hour hearing the justices asked about the actual square footage of the Wal-Mart Supercenter; whether it was a substantially different project than what the city initially approved in 2003; whether or not Supercenters create "unique impacts" and "urban decay" that require further environmental studies.

"What relief do you want?" Jones asked Jolley midway through the one-hour hearing. Jolley asked for full environmental review of the Wal-Mart.

"Our concern is that no environmental review was done on this project," he said.

Similar to Bakersfield?

Gemello asked the most questions. She quizzed Jolley on a Wal-Mart case from Bakersfield that Jolley cited in his court papers.

The Bakersfield case, which Jolley's firm won against Wal-Mart, involved two proposed Wal-Mart Supercenters within a short distance of one other. The appellate court in that case determined that the two stores would have a negative impact on other retailers and might spur urban decay.

Jolley said the court in the Bakersfield case found Supercenters are "unique" retail stores and the proposal required further environmental studies.

Gemello said the scenario where two stores were being built in an established retail environment "seems a bit more dramatic than (what) we have here."

Jolley reiterated his belief that the Wal-Mart Supercenter was a new project and therefore should require "some form of environmental review."

Ross dismissed the argument that the American Canyon Supercenter would create "urban decay."

The Supercenter is in an undeveloped area in American Canyon, Ross told the justices. "In Bakersfield, it is not," he added, referring to the Wal-Mart Supercenters in the case Jolley referenced.

Ross also told the justices that the city did consider the economic impacts of the Wal-Mart Supercenter on businesses in Vallejo.

Wal-Mart's Friedman acknowledged that the overall square footage of the project has changed since 2003, but said the Wal-Mart Supercenter is not a different project than the one originally approved under CEQA and so does not require further studies.

"This is the same project," he told the justices.

Napa Junction

The Napa Junction development by Lake Street Ventures of Menlo Park is home to the 176,000-square-foot Wal-Mart Supercenter, 216 apartments, a three-acre city park and another 40,000 square feet of retail space.

Lake Street Ventures proposed the entire development in 2003, but has since sold the land to Wal-Mart to build the Supercenter.

Wal-Mart is building its store and it is slated to open, pending the outcome of this case, in January.

San Diego-based Fairfield Residential built and owns the new three-story apartment complex, the Lodge.

The city in 2003 approved a total of 196,000 square feet of retail space, which included an unnamed "big box store." Plans to open the 24-hour Wal-Mart Supercenter were not announced until summer 2004, prompting a series of marathon public hearings in American Canyon and legal challenges.

Friedman said he expects to the court to issue its ruling in the case within 90 days.

Napa Valley Register Copyright © 2009