A conflict between a Nevada-based developer and environmental activists has escalated to legal action over a proposed luxury housing project in Los Angeles' Verdugo Mountains.
Developer Whitebird Inc. filed a lawsuit on December 10 against activist group No Canyon Hills, alleging trespassing and unauthorized surveillance of its 300-acre Canyon Hills development site above the Sunland-Tujunga neighborhood.
The project, approved by the LA City Council in 2005, aims to build 221 luxury homes in the rugged hillside area. While Whitebird previously scaled back the development from 900 acres to 300 acres and donated the remaining land for open space preservation, activists maintain that any development threatens local wildlife.
No Canyon Hills, formed in spring 2023, has focused their opposition on protecting native species, particularly mountain lions and Crotch's bumblebees. The group's documentation of these protected species on the property led the California Department of Fish and Wildlife to flag Whitebird's permit application as incomplete in September.
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