RIVERSIDE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The November 2014 settlement agreement between the developer and opponents of the approved 275-home Oak Creek Canyon residential housing project in Wildomar should be enforced so that construction can proceed without further threats of litigation, developers said in a court filing here.
Sunbelt Communities said it had no choice but to ask the California Superior Court to set aside requests by a group calling itself Citizens for Quality Development for inordinate additional soil testing in and around the development site. Sunbelt has already accommodated numerous requests from the opponents for project changes, including a payment of $60,000 to their lawyers. These changes include an agreement to replace oak trees, create equestrian path access, and provide 10- and 20-foot landscape buffers around the property.
Per the agreement, Sunbelt has also completed soil testing requested by opponents, specifically focused on detecting the presence of nitrates and MBAS, chemical by-products of the sewage treatment process for which there are no published standards for acceptable limits in soils. A property near the project is used as a treated wastewater spray field by Farm Mutual Water Company of Wildomar pursuant to applicable State permitting.
“The motives behind the call for more unnecessary testing are obvious: additional legal fees for the opponents’ attorney, with no additional benefit for prospective homeowners of an already approved project,” said Larry Markham, a spokesperson for Sunbelt Communities. “This has become a meaningless exercise spurred on by opponents’ repeated threats of litigation, and we have no choice but to ask the Court to put an end to it,” Markham said.
The case, Sunbelt Communities LLC vs. Citizens for Quality Development et al., was filed by attorneys Thomas A. Balestreri, Jr., and Anthony S. Chalifoux of Balestreri Potocki & Holmes of San Diego.