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BACKGROUND <br /> In November 2006, Urban Habitat filed litigation against the City claiming that various <br /> City policies and ordinances prevent or hinder the development of affordable housing in <br /> Pleasanton during what is known under the State Housing Element Law (Government <br /> Code section 65583 et seq.) as the "Third Planning Period" ending in 2009. The lawsuit <br /> alleged (among other claims): <br /> that the City's Housing Cap violates state law in a number of respects, including <br /> that the Cap prevented the City from accommodating its regional "fair share" <br /> housing numbers "RHNA and sought to have the Cap declared invalid. <br /> that the City failed to carry out mandatory duties under Program 19.1 of the 2003 <br /> Housing Element, and under the so- called Least Cost Zoning Law (Government <br /> Code section 65913.1 et seq.), namely, that the City failed to zone sufficient <br /> property to accommodate its regional affordable housing obligations. <br /> that the City failed to carry out mandatory duties under another General Plan <br /> program by failing to amend its Growth Management Ordinance to override the <br /> annual housing allocation in order to meet regional housing needs. <br /> In 2007, the City succeeded in having the lawsuit dismissed at the trial court level on <br /> procedural grounds. Urban Habitat appealed that decision, however, and the Court of <br /> Appeal reinstated most of the litigation, including that portion that challenges the validity <br /> of the Housing Cap. The City thereafter sought review of the Court of Appeal decision <br /> by the California Supreme Court; that Court, however, denied the City's petition. <br /> While the case was on appeal, the City was assigned its RHNA numbers for the next <br /> (Fourth) Planning Period by ABAG, covering 2007 -2014. Thus, following remand to the <br /> trial court, Urban Habitat amended its lawsuit to assert claims that the City's Cap <br /> prevented the City from accommodating its new RHNA numbers. <br /> At that time as well, the California Attorney General contacted the City to indicate the <br /> State's interest in joining Urban Habitat's case against the City. The Superior Court <br /> granted the Attorney General's application to intervene in the case in early 2009. <br /> The City's efforts to dismiss the case prior to trial, based on a variety of substantive and <br /> procedural arguments, were unsuccessful. Accordingly, the case was briefed and <br /> argued before Judge Roesch of the Alameda County Superior Court on December 18, <br /> 2009. <br /> In 2009 as well, the Attorney General also filed a separate lawsuit challenging the City's decision <br /> approving its General Plan update, and certifying the attendant environmental impact report (EIR), based <br /> (among other claims) on the continued existence and enforcement of the Cap. <br /> Page 2 of 6 <br />