Fernandez v. City of San Antonio

In Fernandez v. City of San Antonio, 158 S.W.3d 532 (Tex. App.--San Antonio 2004, no pet.), a neighborhood association and several landowners brought suit against the City of San Antonio and several developers contending that a planned development violated the neighborhood plan that was an addendum to the neighborhood planning component of San Antonio's master plan. Id. at 533-34. The Court concluded that summary judgment was sustainable on the ground that the plans had expired. Id. at 534. But, the court also found further support for summary judgment on the ground that the neighborhood plan was "merely advisory and not binding on the City" relying on language employed in the plan; "the plan was self-described as providing 'guidelines' to the City." Id. The court noted that "even the City's master plan, of which the Neighborhood Plan was a component, was merely a guide for rezoning requests rather than a mandatory restriction on the City's authority to regulate landuse." Id. The court also raised issue with the propriety of delegating the City's legislative power by allowing individuals to impose their desires on a city's authority to regulate land use issues. Id. at 535.