Many of you might have been waiting for an update on the September hearing for our legal challenge to the State of California regarding The Irvine Company’s incidental take permit for Crotch’s bumblebee in Orange Hills.   The issuance of this permit violated both the California Endangered Species Act and California Environmental Quality Act.  

We have some good news to share:  the hearing was cancelled, because our lawsuit has been settled!  The Irvine Company withdrew the permit in June and decided not to move forward with the project in 2025.  Unfortunately, they have already submitted slightly revised plans for the project to the City of Orange and their promotional materials signal intent to build in Spring 2027.  

The fight to save open space is a marathon, not a sprint.   We ask all of our supporters to be on alert for opportunities to make public comment on these new plans and to support our legal challenges to discretionary approvals.  Thank you for being part of our work to preserve wilderness in Orange County!