Fresno CostcoEIR Invalidated

Authored the July 17, 2025 ruling invalidating the Fresno Costco EIR on two independent CEQA grounds: use of a superseded 2014 Climate Action Plan and unauthorized warehouse land use in a C-G zone. Skiles' ruling quoted directly from the 2021 CAP adoption resolution and compared the city's approach to 'evaluating a 2024 project against 1999 air quality standards.' The decision is now the leading California case on the duty to use updated climate action plans in CEQA review.

Northwest Fresno resident who co-founded the Herndon-Riverside Coalition after learning that the Costco project included a last-mile delivery warehouse. Medina organized 47-page public comment letter, coordinated 200+ resident signatures, and retained attorney Maria Castillo. Her central argument throughout was that truck traffic from the warehouse — not the Costco retail store — posed the real threat to air quality near local schools.

Fresno-based land use attorney who identified the 2014/2021 Climate Action Plan discrepancy and the C-G zoning gap as the two strongest CEQA vulnerabilities. Her public comment letter during the scoping period preserved both issues for litigation. Post-ruling, Castillo filed a motion for attorney's fees under Code of Civil Procedure §1021.5, arguing the case vindicated a significant public interest in accurate climate review.

Cast the lone dissenting vote (1-6) against the Costco project approval in February 2024. Arias, who represents the district containing the project site, argued the city must use the 2021 Climate Action Plan and that the warehouse component requires separate zoning authorization. His dissent proved prescient — both of his objections became the grounds for judicial invalidation 17 months later.

Six of seven councilmembers voted to approve the project in February 2024, accepting staff's position that the 2014 CAP remained operative for pipeline projects. The majority emphasized economic development, noting the Costco would generate approximately $2 million annually in sales tax revenue and create 300 permanent jobs. The council's approval certifying a CEQA-deficient EIR will now require a second vote following completion of the supplemental environmental review.

Filed the conditional use permit application and served as real party in interest in the CEQA litigation. Costco accelerated site preparation work during the litigation — a significant gamble that resulted in approximately $12 million in stranded capital. The company is now evaluating whether to redesign the project to eliminate the warehouse component (simplifying the zoning question) or to push for a C-G text amendment that would authorize limited e-commerce distribution uses.