Lawsuit Intensifies Nature Camp Battle Between Nonprofit and Castro Valley Residents: Report

CASTRO VALLEY, CA — Several Castro Valley residents have filed a lawsuit against a nonprofit seeking to build a children's camp near Cull Canyon, according to a report from the San Francisco Chronicle.

The Mosaic Project, a nonprofit, bought 37 acres of undeveloped land in a rural part of Castro Valley with the hope of transforming it into a campsite where children can be out in nature and off screens.

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Since then, nearby community members have fought back against the project, concerned with wildfire risks, traffic and a strain on local water supplies.

The lawsuit, filed in Alameda County Superior Court in May, lists the same concerns. It also accuses county supervisors of violating county land use designations by approving the project’s conditional use permit, according to the San Francisco Chronicle report.

Now, adding more fuel to the fire in the months-long battle, the lawsuit could cause delays of at least 18 months unless both sides agree on how to proceed, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.

The move was surprising to Amanda Monchamp, a lawyer representing the Mosaic Project, who said the lawsuit could prompt banks to refuse loans to the nonprofit.

"This is a camp on a very large parcel; this is not some big development project," Monchamp told the San Francisco Chronicle. "It is not something that has a huge impact. The county did a very thorough job and our strategy is simply to defend the entitlements alongside the county and go through the process."

Read more from the San Francisco Chronicle.