{"id":272003,"date":"2026-04-17T04:30:16","date_gmt":"2026-04-17T04:30:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/272003\/"},"modified":"2026-04-17T04:30:16","modified_gmt":"2026-04-17T04:30:16","slug":"park-opponents-appeal-court-decision-to-keep-great-highway-open","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/272003\/","title":{"rendered":"Park opponents appeal court decision to keep Great Highway open"},"content":{"rendered":"

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A group of lawyered-up Sunset residents are once again<\/a> challenging a ballot measure that closed a two-mile stretch of the Great Highway to private vehicles in order to create a new city park.\u00a0<\/p>\n

On Tuesday, the group\u2019s lawyer, Susan Brandt-Hawley, filed an appeal<\/a> which seeks to overturn the January smackdown from San Francisco Superior Court Judge Jeffrey S. Ross, which tossed out<\/a> all four arguments that the group put forward seeking to overturn the decision and reopen the Great Highway<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Brandt-Hawley specializes in CEQA<\/a>, the California Environmental Quality Act, a state law that, since its passage in 1970, has been widely used in local land-use disputes<\/a> in addition to more conventional environmental concerns.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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CEQA was cited repeatedly in the four arguments that were dismissed in January. At the time, Ross ruled that CEQA didn\u2019t apply to Proposition K, because it wasn\u2019t approved by \u201ca public agency.\u201d\u00a0The measure was put on the ballot by a minority of city supervisors, who do not constitute an agency, Ross said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

This appeal considers a new permutation, Brandt-Hawley wrote, which is that those five supervisors were still legally obligated to require an environmental review process before placing the 2024 Prop. K on the ballot, which passed citywide with nearly 55 percent<\/a> of the vote.<\/p>\n

The appeal will proceed in the California Court of Appeal\u2019s First Appellate District.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen a public agency chooses to pursue an initiative that may have significant environmental impacts,\u201d Brandt-Hawley wrote in a statement, \u201cvoters can fairly expect and rely on prior completion of California\u2019s state-mandated environmental review process.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

But in 2024, the appellants argue, voters had to decide whether to close \u201ca major public roadway\u201d without knowing the environmental effects, co-appellant Matthew Boschetto wrote. Boschetto, who ran for District 7 supervisor in 2024, spent $269,000<\/a> to oppose<\/a> the ballot measure.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cTraffic diversion into residential neighborhoods, increased congestion on already-burdened corridors, and resulting air quality impacts never received mandated public study or disclosure,\u201d he wrote.<\/p>\n

Jen Kwart, a spokesperson for the City Attorney\u2019s office, wrote in a statement that \u201cthe trial court conducted a thorough examination of these issues and determined the city complied with CEQA and other state laws.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Prop. K was submitted by five supervisors to be included in the November 2024 ballot on June 18, 2024. A week later, on June 24, 2024, it was referred to the Planning Department for an environmental determination. <\/p>\n

The department determined in July that \u201cCEQA does not apply to a measure submitted to the voters by the mayor or five supervisors,\u201d according to court documents<\/a>.<\/p>\n

After Prop. K passed, the SFMTA proposed to make modifications to the road to make way for a coastal park. Then, the Planning Department determined again that the project was exempt from \u201cenvironmental review\u201d as \u201cpedestrian and bicycle facilities that improve safety, access, or mobility \u2026 within the public right-of-way.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

The successful Prop. K created the coastal park, Sunset Dunes, which opened<\/a> a year ago on April 12. But the former District 4 supervisor Joel Engardio<\/a>\u2019s support for the measure that some two-thirds of his constituents opposed, triggered a recall. In September 2025, a similar percentage of District 4 voters ousted<\/a> him from office.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Apart from the lawsuit, opponents of the park are gathering signatures to place a measure on the November ballot<\/a>, asking voters of San Francisco to weigh in again on the road closure. They need some 10,000 valid signatures citywide to achieve this goal. The deadline to submit the petitions is July 6.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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