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Environmental and Land Use Law

Whether you're building multi-family housing, expanding an industrial facility, or developing a shopping center, acquiring land for a project is only one part of the development and land use process. Experienced developers understand the importance of assessing regulatory issues relating to their proposed land use before committing to a project. Regulatory, zoning, and permit approvals must be secured from governmental authorities, and the best pathways to acquire those approvals are not always clear.

Retaining experienced legal counsel early in the development process can save both time and money, and avoid a worst case scenario in which property is acquired but ultimately cannot be used for the developer’s intended purposes.

Allman Spry attorneys Marsh Prause and Scott Horn review land use law documents

Building lasting relationships with our clients has been and remains one of the hallmarks of Allman Spry.

Allman Spry attorneys routinely appear at both legislative and quasi-judicial public hearings to advocate on behalf of clients and their land use plans in connection with rezoning petitions, special use permits, variances, and challenged development ordinance interpretations. If a governing body does not render a satisfactory decision to our clients, our attorneys draw on their extensive land use litigation experience to evaluate and pursue an appeal of the outcome into the court system.

Our attorneys’ knowledge extends to homeowner and condominium association governance issues (which arise in connection with some land use matters), and works effectively with neighborhood and non-profit advocacy groups. We are experienced with local, state, and federal historic preservation regulations and incentives. Our attorneys frequently represent developers and other parties in both state and federal court litigation arising from disputes involving real estate transactions and real estate development, including disputes concerning construction, valuation, title, and contractual issues.

Environmental and Land Use Law Attorneys

Environmental and land use issues often intersect, and our attorneys handle regulatory compliance and permitting matters, including advising clients as to redevelopment of contaminated sites through the use of brownfields agreements, indemnification agreements, and/or environmental insurance. When necessary, our attorneys represent clients in litigation matters involving liabilities associated with contaminated real property. We are familiar with procedures for obtaining environmental and other developmental permits from local, state, and federal government agencies, as well as administrative appeal procedures and litigation options for challenging agency decision-making when necessary.

Our attorneys combine a deep understanding of substantive environmental and land use issues with broad knowledge of the development process and extensive litigation experience to offer enhanced insight, value, and outcomes to our clients.