Citations
- 210 Cal. App. 4th 1136
Full opinion text
Opinion
BIGELOW, P. J.
This case concerns an advertising display California’s Department of Transportation (Caltrans) found was in violation of the Outdoor Advertising Act, Business and Professions Code section 5200 et seq. (the Act). The owner of the display, West Washington Properties, LLC (West Washington), argued equitable estoppel and laches barred the agency from enforcing the Act, or formed the basis of an inverse condemnation claim. The trial court rejected these arguments. We affirm the trial court judgment.
FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND
We adopt some of the background from our previous unpublished opinion.
In 1999, West Washington bought a building at 155 West Washington Boulevard in Los Angeles. On the side of the building was an advertising space, referred to as a “wallscape,” measuring approximately 8,000 square feet. West Washington believed the wallscape had been in place since 1984, and was first installed in connection with the 1984 Olympics. When West Washington purchased the building, it located permits from the City of Los Angeles for the wallscape. West Washington did not contact Caltrans to determine whether there were state-issued permits. The wallscape displayed advertising visible from the I-10 Interstate Highway.
In March 2006, a Caltrans field inspector took note of the wallscape and determined it violated the Act because it did not have a permit (§ 5350), and exceeded 1,200 square feet (§ 5408). Although the wallscape had been in use since 1984 without a permit, Caltrans had never before issued a notice of violation. In November 2006, Caltrans issued an “amended” notice of violation to West Washington.
Administrative Proceedings
West Washington contested the notice of violation. In advance of a January 2007 administrative hearing, the parties stipulated to several facts. The parties stipulated that “[t]he wallscape exceeds 1,200 square feet and is located within 660 feet of Interstate 10. The wallscape is approximately 8,000 square feet.” The parties also stipulated: “The wallscape does not have a permit from [Caltrans]. No one has ever applied to [Caltrans] for a permit for the wallscape before [Caltrans] issued the November 17, 2006 notice of violation. Before issuing [West Washington] the notice of violation, [Caltrans] has never cited anyone connected to the wallscape for violating any provision of the Act or its regulations.” Caltrans’s evidence at the hearing included a photograph dating from 1980 which shows the West Washington building without the wallscape.
West Washington argued Caltrans should be estopped from enforcing the Act as to the wallscape because so much time had passed without the agency taking any action. West Washington contended that the opportunity to profit from the wallscape was the significant motivation for its purchase of the building. It also represented that it had rejected offers in the millions of dollars for the sale of the display, based on the assumption that it would be able to continue legally operating the wallscape. West Washington asserted its agreement to temporarily reduce the size of the wallscape would cost it $50,000 per month in revenue. It further contended that if forced to permanently reduce the size of the wallscape, it would lose “the entire capitalized future value of the gross revenue (net of agency commissions) generated by the wallscape which calculated at conventional industry cap rates exceeds $12,000,000.”
In support of its equitable arguments, West Washington argued Caltrans knew or should have known of the wallscape years before it issued a citation. West Washington claimed Caltrans investigators must have driven past the extremely conspicuous wallscape and could not have missed it because it was so large. West Washington further pointed to photographs in Caltrans files that reflected both portions of the highway and the wallscape. The earliest photograph to include the wallscape was from 1985. West Washington contended there were no similarly situated sign owners, thus applying estoppel would not create a precedent. Caltrans responded with evidence demonstrating that in 2005 and 2006, it cited the owners of seven unrelated advertising signs for violations of the Act’s size requirements. The Caltrans employees who testified at the hearing could offer only suppositions to explain why Caltrans had not issued a notice of violation or taken other enforcement actions before 2006. However, these witnesses testified about Caltrans’s recordkeeping system for advertising display permits, and indicated there was no record of a permit for the wallscape.
The administrative law judge issued a proposed decision finding the wallscape violated the Act, but equitable estoppel and laches barred Caltrans from enforcing the Act’s provisions. The Caltrans director only partially adopted the administrative law judge’s findings. The director determined that under People ex rel. Dept, of Transportation v. Outdoor Media Group (1993) 13 Cal.App.4th 1067 [17 Cal.Rptr.2d 19], and People ex rel. Dept. Pub. Wks. v. Ryan Outdoor Advertising, Inc. (1974) 39 Cal.App.3d 804 [114 Cal.Rptr. 499] {Ryan), the equitable defenses of estoppel and laches would not apply to prevent removal of a condition deemed a nuisance per se by statute.
Superior Court Proceedings
West Washington filed a petition for writ of administrative mandamus and complaint for damages in the superior court. In addition to challenging the administrative decision, the joint petition and complaint asserted a claim under 42 United States Code section 1983 alleging Caltrans violated West Washington’s civil rights. The trial court concluded equitable defenses would not bar Caltrans from enforcing the Act and denied the petition. The court sent the case to a different division for further proceedings on the section 1983 claim. The parties subsequently stipulated to the dismissal of the section 1983 claim without prejudice. West Washington appealed the order denying the petition for writ of administrative mandamus. In an unpublished opinion, we dismissed West Washington’s appeal for lack of jurisdiction. (West Washington Properties, LLC v. California Department of Transportation (Oct. 1, 2009, B209932) (app. dism.) [nonpub. opn.].)
West Washington filed an amended petition for writ of administrative mandamus and complaint for inverse condemnation and damages (petition). The petition’s arguments were again based on estoppel and laches theories. The petition also alleged the wallscape was presumed legal under section 5216.1 and Caltrans was estopped from rebutting the presumption of legality. Caltrans demurred to the amended petition. The trial court sustained the demurrer with leave to amend as to the inverse condemnation claim only. West Washington filed a second amended petition, to which Caltrans also demurred. In the second amended petition, West Washington alleged Caltrans has moved offices several times since 1984 and lost many of its records. West Washington further contended: “Because of that loss of evidence and the passage of time, the basis for the decision [in] 1984 and the continuing failure to enforce for many years thereafter cannot be determined .... Now that the witnesses are dead or long gone, the documents are lost and 22 years have transpired; Caltrans are [ízc] estopped to overcome the presumed legality of this Wallscape without paying compensation.” The trial court concluded equitable principles would not apply and sustained the second demurrer without leave to amend. This appeal followed.
DISCUSSION
I. The Trial Court Properly Denied the Petition for Writ of Administrative Mandamus
A. Standard of Review
“The claim essentially attacks the [agency’s] order as an abuse of discretion. Code of Civil Procedure section 1094.5 permits trial court review of quasi-judicial administrative decisions, that is, decisions that result when the agency has exercised its discretion and applied the governing regulations and law to a particular factual situation. For this purpose, an abuse of discretion is established if the respondent has not proceeded in the manner required by law, the decision is not supported by the findings, or the findings are not supported by the evidence. [Citation.] To the extent the question turns on factual disputes, we review the trial court’s ruling in the light most favorable to the judgment, considering only whether it is supported by substantial evidence. [Citation.] Where ... the facts are undisputed, and there is only one inference to be drawn, whether estoppel applies is a question of law. Finally where ... the issues require a weighing of policy concerns, they present a question of law. [Citations.]” (Golden Gate Water Ski Club v. County of Contra Costa (2008) 165 Cal.App.4th 249, 256-257 [80 Cal.Rptr.3d 876] (