Prop 45 Curbs CEQA Abuses That Left Homeless Veterans Waiting Nine Years for Affordable Housing and Services
September 23, 2026
Liberty Lane was a 100% affordable housing project designed to provide stable homes for military veterans with few alternatives
A not-in-my-backyard objection delayed the project for years and drove up costs by more than $21 million– a 70% increase– before it was ultimately completed in 2026
Sacramento, CA — A CEQA lawsuit over “aesthetic and noise” impacts was allowed to block Liberty Lane Apartments in Redlands, a 98 percent affordable housing project primarily for veterans who are homeless or at risk of homelessness, as well as for individuals with special needs and other low-income households for nine years before it could open this spring.
The frivolous CEQA litigation delayed the project for 9 years and pushed its cost from $30 million to $51 million, driving up the price of desperately needed housing for some of our most vulnerable Californians. Under Prop 45, legal challenges like this one must be resolved within 270 days, so affordable housing projects don’t risk losing their financing while awaiting a court’s decision.
The 80-unit Liberty Lane Apartments complex was approved by the City of Redlands in. Shortly after, a not-in-my-backyard group sued to block the affordable housing complex, claiming its environmental review hadn’t adequately studied noise impacts on the neighborhood. In 2018, the San Bernardino County’s Superior Court rejected every one of their claims, but the damage from the delay had already begun. The uncertainty created by the litigation cost the developer critical financing, including Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing resources, forcing the project’s proponents to spend years piecing together the funding needed to move forward.
The frivolous CEQA litigation delayed the project for nine years and pushed its cost from $30 million to $51 million — a $21 million increase, or $262,500 for each of the project’s 80 homes — driving up the cost of desperately needed housing for some of California’s most vulnerable residents.
Prop 45 streamlines approvals for housing, water infrastructure, clean energy, transportation, hospitals and health care facilities, schools, broadband, and wildfire prevention. It sets clear, enforceable timelines and greater accountability so California can build faster and more affordably while maintaining strong environmental, labor, and tribal cultural resource protections and preserving local decision-making.
California’s affordability crisis is tied directly to how long and how much it costs to build essential projects. Years of unnecessary delays drive up the cost of housing, energy, water, transportation and other essentials — costs ultimately passed on to families, ratepayers and taxpayers. Experts estimate Prop 45 could cut costly delays by 2 to 10+ years — lowering costs, getting critical projects built sooner, and improving quality of life for Californians.
What happened in Redlands is not the exception under the current system. They’re the predictable result of a law that lets any objection, however disconnected from environmental harm, hold up essential projects indefinitely.
BACKGROUND: Prop 45, the Building an Affordable California Act, modernizes California’s project approval and permitting process for essential projects — including housing, water infrastructure, clean energy, transportation infrastructure, hospitals and health care facilities, schools, broadband, and wildfire prevention projects — by establishing clear timelines, improving accountability, and reducing unnecessary delays, while preserving strong environmental, labor, and tribal cultural resource protections. Prop 45 is supported by a broad and growing coalition of 160+ organizations, including affordable housing advocates, civil rights leaders, clean energy builders, water providers, agricultural groups, and business organizations statewide.
Learn More: YESonProp45.com