Temecula Office Secures Approval for Development of 972-Acre Community on Behalf of Pulte Homes

Temecula, Calif. (December 7, 2021) – Temecula Partners Kelly Black and Samuel Alhadeff, along with Associate Mark Mercer, recently represented Pulte Homes in securing unanimous approval from the Murrieta City Council and the Murrieta Planning Commission for a large-scale 972-acre development known as the Murrieta Hills development.

As described by local media including The Press-Enterprise, Menifee 24/7, and the Murrieta Patch, the Murrieta Hills development will be located just south of Menifee and east of Wildomar. It will include 750 homes – 522 single-family units and 228 multi-family dwellings. The project will also include an 18-acre commercial center with plans for shopping, dining, lodging, and office space.

In addition, 619 of the 972 acres will be dedicated as natural open space and will be overseen by the Western Riverside County Regional Conservation Authority. The project will be built in three phases, with the first phase scheduled to be completed by 2023 and the final phase to be completed in 2031.

Significantly, the Murrieta Hills development has been in the entitlement process for more than a decade and has involved numerous complex environmental permitting and planning issues. Ultimately, Lewis Brisbois' Temecula team represented Pulte Homes in two separate approval hearings – a six-hour Planning Commission hearing and a three-hour City Council hearing – both of which resulted in a 5-0 vote in favor of approval for the project.

Ms. Black serves as Vice Chair of Lewis Brisbois' Public Agency & Municipal Law Practice. She focuses her practice on land use, entitlement, environmental, and regulatory issues for residential and commercial development projects in Southern California.

Mr. Alhadeff serves as vice-chair of Lewis Brisbois' Real Estate & Land Use and Government Relations Practices. With more than four decades of experience, he regularly coordinates with attorneys across the firm in a team approach to issues involving representation for public agencies in California.

Mr. Mercer is a member of Lewis Brisbois' Real Estate & Land Use and Public Agency & Municipal Law Practices. He has extensive experience advising public agencies in contract procurement and bid disputes, as well as drafting construction contracts.