Referendum Legal Fight
In December 2007, the developer of Oak Grove filed a lawsuit naming the City of Pleasanton and the petition gathers seeking to invalidate the petitions. The lawsuit alleged the petition did not contain the full text of the ordinance, the petition gathers made false statements and the City's "poison pill" was invalid.
The case was heard on February 22, 2008 in Alameda Superior Court. On March 20, 2008 the judge issued his ruling. He ruled that false statements and the poison pill were not reasons to invalidate the petitions, but he ruled that the full text of the ordinance was not attached and therefore the petitions signed the residents were invalid.
The facts:
California Election Code 9238. (a) Across the top of each page of the referendum petition there shall be printed the following: "Referendum Against an Ordinance Passed by the City Council" (b) Each section of the referendum petition shall contain (1) the identifying number or title, and (2) the text of the ordinance or the portion of the ordinance that is the subject of the referendum
The text that was attached to the petitions was the exact text as prepared by the City Attorney, signed by the mayor and filed by the clerk in the binder of City ordinances.
The developer claimed the petition should have also contained the thousands of pages and drawings noted by the ordinance as being "on file with the Planning Department".
The Appeal
The California Appeals Court completely agreed that the petition was correctly generated and ordered the City Council to either appeal the ordinance or set an election. The developer appealed to Supreme Court, but the court refused to hear the case.
The City Council on February 16th voted 3-2 to put the referendum on the June 8, 2010 ballot.
9000 sq ft home in the Oakland Hills. Is this what we want on our ridges?
NO, this is not what we want!
We look forward to working with developer and the community to find a solution that is consistent with the general plan, PP and is acceptable to the Pleasanton residents.
8 Reasons to Vote NO!
The developer touts the 8 reasons to vote yes, but these are actual 8 of the many reasons to vote NO. Click here
Bulldozers are lined up
They will have to go elsewhere!
Sierra Club says NO Oak Grove
The local, regional, state and national branches of the Sierra Club urge you to Vote NO on Oak Grove because of the negative impact on the ridges and environment of Pleasanton's hills. Read their newsletter.
Learn the facts about the flyer
The glossy flyer sent Pleasanton residents shows the current hills, but what will happen to those hills and trees if Oak Grove is built? Click here
What can you do?
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If you are interested in helping save Pleasanton's ridgelines, please email us.
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We need funds to educate the voters about saving Pleasanton's Hills. If you would like to donate, please send a check to:
Save Pleasanton Hills
1246 Hearst Dr.
Pleasanton, CA 94566
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