CEQA / NEPA

Since 1972, RECON has collaborated with clients to successfully navigate the ever-expanding and complex environmental process. Through our long-standing relationships with local agencies and jurisdictions, combined with an in-depth understanding of the needs of our clients, we are efficiently able to negotiate the environmental review process and see projects to successful completion.

Our expertise encompasses numerous disciplines, and our award-winning services are applied to a full range of land development projects including utilities, public infrastructure, solid waste, transportation, residential, commercial, industrial, mixed-use, recreation, redevelopment, and institutional, as well as general plans, specific plans, master plans, and renewable energy.

We are ready to assist you in all phases of CEQA and NEPA processing, from initial project review to environmental documentation, noticing, public involvement, responses to comments, and public hearings and findings.

Services

  • Environmental Impact Reports (EIR)

  • Environmental Impact Statements (EIS)

  • Mitigated Negative Declarations (MND)

  • Negative Declarations (ND)

  • Mitigation Monitoring and Reporting Programs (MMRP)

  • CEQA and NEPA Noticing

  • Environmental Assessments (EA)

  • Categorical Exemptions and Exclusions

  • Findings of No Significant Impact (FONSI)

  • Administrative Records

  • Third-Party Reviews

Field of orange poppies in front of modern white houses on a hillside with green grass and a cloudy sky.

New CEQA Reforms Could Expedite Your Project!

Assembly Bill 130 Exemption: 2025 CEQA Reform

Wooden house framing under construction against a bright blue sky with white clouds.

Recent amendments to California environmental regulations have created a powerful new CEQA exemption under Assembly Bill 130 and Senate Bill 131 for certain residential, mixed-use, and urban infill projects.

These changes can significantly reduce approval timelines and avoid costly environmental studies—but only if your project meets the exemption’s qualifying criteria.

  • Projects located in urbanized areas that

    • meet infill location and density standards,

    • comply with local zoning and general plan designations,

    • avoid sensitive environmental constraints, and

    • include qualifying housing or mixed-use components.

  • This new statutory exemption (currently referred to as the Assembly Bill 130 Exemption), along with Senate Bill 131’s “Near Miss” provision, were enacted to streamline housing projects and reduce processing timelines.

  • The RECON team offers expert support by

    • prescreening your project for Assembly Bill 130 eligibility,

    • preparing clear and defensible exemption justifications,

    • coordinating with agencies for a smooth approval path, and

    • addressing “Near Miss” situations under the new flexibility provisions.

Take the Next Step

Contact RECON’s CEQA Director, Lori Spar, to learn more about your project’s eligibility for streamlining under AB 130.

Contact

Lori Spar, CEQA Project Director based in San Diego California, shown smiling with shoulder-length blonde hair wearing a light purple shirt, standing outdoors with greenery in the background.

Lori Spar
CEQA Director

Contact Lori

Featured Projects

  • Nakano Project

    Nakano Project

    City of Chula Vista and City of San Diego, California

    ###Read More

    The Nakano Project includes a 221-unit residential project on a vacant parcel in the city of Chula Vista. The site is bounded on the east, south, and west by the city of San Diego and is separated from the city of Chula Vista jurisdictional land to the north by the Otay River.

    Due to the availability of access and public services from the city of San Diego, the project included an analysis to allow a reorganization of the property through an application to the San Diego Local Agency Formation Commission. This application proposed detachment from the city of Chula Vista and Otay Water District, and annexation into the city of San Diego. The EIR and associated technical reports prepared for the project analyzed an Annexation scenario and a No Annexation scenario. This effort required close coordination with both cities and all technical disciplines to facilitate environmental processing. 

    The Nakano EIR received the 2025 Association of Environmental Professionals Outstanding Environmental Document Award.

  • A collage of six photos: modern apartment buildings on a city street, people at an outdoor market, a university campus with modern buildings, two women riding bikes on a city bike lane, a neighborhood with houses and a city skyline in the background, and a hillside covered with wildflowers.

    Blueprint San Diego Initiative

    San Diego, California

    ###Read More

    ‍RECON prepared a Program EIR (PEIR) for the Blueprint SD Initiative (Blueprint SD), Hillcrest Focused Plan Amendment, and the University Community Plan Update to analyze all three documents concurrently. The primary document, Blueprint SD, included a comprehensive amendment to align the City of San Diego’s General Plan with the City of Villages Strategy, to reflect the latest goals, policies, and plans for housing, environmental protection, and climate change adaptation and sustainable growth. Blueprint SD also updated the citywide land use framework based on the 2050 San Diego Association of Governments Regional Plan transportation network, the City’s Climate Action Plan, and Climate Resilient SD Plan in order to promote reductions in per capita greenhouse gas emissions and vehicle miles traveled.

    RECON worked closely with the City to prepare the PEIR to ensure it was written to support future tiering of applicable projects through CEQA.

  • Complete Communities Housing Solutions

    Complete Communities: Housing Solutions and Mobility Choices

    San Diego, California

    ###Read More

    RECON prepared a Program EIR (PEIR) for the City of San Diego's Complete Communities: Housing Solutions and Mobility Choices program. The PEIR evaluated amendments to the San Diego Municipal Code to incentivize multi-family housing construction and affordability by allowing qualifying development to occur without further discretionary review. The PEIR also addressed implementation of a fee program to fund multi-modal infrastructure improvements and evaluated adoption of a new threshold for evaluating vehicle miles traveled consistent with Senate Bill 743. The PEIR included analysis and assumptions for mobility improvements within road rights-of-way throughout the city.

  • Tall ship docked in harbor with modern cityscape in the background

    Portside Pier Redevelopment Project

    San Diego, California

    ###Read More

    The Port of San Diego’s Portside Pier Redevelopment Project is located along San Diego’s North Embarcadero. The proposed $13 million, multi-level waterfront project includes several flagship restaurants as well as a public viewing deck and perimeter walkway offering first-rate views of the bay and berths for dock-and-dine experience. The project included the demolition of the existing building, replacement of piles, and construction of new buildings and dock. RECON prepared the MND, which addressed aesthetics (particularly lighting and signage), traffic and parking, greenhouse gas emissions, biological resources, noise, land use and coastal access, and sea level rise.

    RECON worked closely with the Port of San Diego's attorney to prepare responses to public and agency comments on the Draft MND. Areas of concern included public/coastal access and lighting from proposed signage, as well as the Port of San Diego's ongoing Port Master Plan Update efforts. Several project description changes occurred following the Draft MND that required a re-analysis of air quality, greenhouse gas emissions, and traffic and parking impacts. RECON was able to swiftly update the document in time to file the Final MND by the end of 2016 and within budget.

  • Rady Shell at Jacobs Park in San Diego with boats docked nearby and walkway with banners

    Bayside Performance Park Enhancement Project

    San Diego, California

    ###Read More

    The Rady Shell at Jacobs Park venue is located on Marina Park Way along downtown’s South Embarcadero, south of Seaport Village, and replaced the San Diego Symphony’s former temporary venue for the Bayside Summer Nights concert series. The complex includes a permanent performance stage and acoustic shell, as well as public access to the bay via the surrounding promenade.

    RECON prepared the MND for the project along with a MMRP to mitigate potential impacts to aesthetics, biological resources, geology and soils, greenhouse gas emissions, land use and planning, noise and vibration, recreation, and transportation, circulation, and parking.

    The Final EIR was completed on time and under budget and was certified by the Board of Port Commissioners.

  • A large green tank with barbed wire fence in front, alongside a dirt hillside with yellow and orange flowers, and two trees with sparse leaves. Power lines stretch across the blue sky.

    Vallecitos Water District Water, Wastewater, and Recycled Water Master Plan

    San Diego County, California

    ###Read More

    RECON prepared a Supplemental Program EIR (PEIR) addressing an update to the Vallecitos Water District's Water, Wastewater and Recycled Water Master Plan, including the project-level review of one Capital Improvement Project, the Diamond Siphon project. The updated Master Plan includes a comprehensive list of Capital Improvement Projects and provides the Water District with the strategy and capability for meeting projected water supply, wastewater, and recycled water customer service demands in a timely and reliable manner up to the year 2036.

    Key issues in the Supplemental PEIR included land use and growth projections, water demand, and biological and cultural resources. For the cultural resources study, RECON requested a records search with the South Coastal Information Center and performed an on-site foot survey of one of the capital improvement program projects.