More work is needed to further evaluate how a planned warehouse in Menifee would affect traffic, a judge recently ruled in a legal dispute between Menifee and Perris.
The Oct. 14 ruling stems from a lawsuit Perris filed in 2023 in Riverside Superior Court seeking to halt construction of the proposed 51,000-square-foot project at Ethanac and Barnett roads on land bordering Menifee’s legal boundary with Perris.
Perris spokesperson Stephen Hale did not respond to a request for comment. But in an October post on the city’s website, Perris officials announced that the city “prevailed” in its lawsuit.
Menifee “will now be required to set aside the project approvals and comply with the California Environmental Quality Act … before reapproving the project and ensure adequate traffic safety improvements are included in the project,” the post states.
Menifee spokesperson Phil Southard said via email that, while the city “is disappointed in the court’s decision to overturn the approval of the project, it does not prevent the project from ultimately moving forward.”
Southard noted that the court rejected Perris’ challenges to the project over concerns about noise and greenhouse gas emissions responsible for climate change.
“The City and the project developer have multiple options available to continue the project and will be evaluating next steps,” Southard said.
He added: “Perris’ environmental concerns regarding this 250,000 square-foot project outside their jurisdiction are curious, especially considering they have been reported to have the fifth most warehouses of any community in the Inland Empire, including many buildings that are well over one million square feet.”
Perris sued its neighbor in July 2023, about a month after the Menifee City Council approved the project sought for a 13-acre site bordering Perris.
Proposed by Phelan Development Company of Newport Beach, the project called for a 206,000-square-foot, two-story warehouse, about 25,000 square feet of manufacturing space and 11,000 square feet of office space.
In its lawsuit, lawyers for Perris argued Menifee failed to comply with the California Environmental Quality Act by approving the project over Perris’ objections.
Perris “will bear the brunt of the majority of the (project’s) environmental impacts,” including “a significant number of semi-trucks and construction equipment associated with the construction and operation of the Project,” the lawsuit alleged.
Just north of the project site, Perris’ long-range plans allow for 782 acres of residential development, and the city expects 1,241 housing units to be built there over the next year, the lawsuit added.
Menifee’s flawed traffic analysis of the project would cause a backlog of tractor trailers at Barnett and Ethanac Roads that could encroach into other lanes and block vehicles trying to turn from Barnett to Ethanac, the lawsuit alleged.
“(The) existing left turn pocket on Ethanac Road at Case Road is approximately 100 feet, barely enough space for (one) semi-truck with (a) trailer,” the lawsuit stated.
“The Project’s introduction of a significant increase in semitrucks with trailers at these intersections will exacerbate the current conditions and create significant traffic safety hazards.”
Menifee’s review also failed to address noise and air pollution concerns, the lawsuit argued. Perris wanted a judge to set aside Menifee’s project approvals and require an environmental impact report — a more extensive environmental review under state law.
In his ruling, Riverside Superior Court Judge Harold W. Hopp found the project will lead to more semi-truck traffic.
“While Menifee claims the increase is essentially negligible, this response does not overcome Perris’ fair argument that the intersections may result in significant traffic safety impacts, which is supported by substantial evidence and must be analyzed under” the state environmental quality act, Hopp wrote.
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