Opponent Files New Lawsuit in Effort to Halt Tollway Work

SANTA ANA — A longtime opponent of the San Joaquin Hills toll road took aim at the project once again this week, filing a lawsuit demanding an immediate stop to the construction.

Elizabeth Leeds of Laguna Beach alleges that the San Joaquin Hills Transportation Corridor Agency is violating state and federal mandates, including failure to stop mud and water from flowing into Laguna Beach and the ocean during the last two rainy seasons.

“The city of Laguna Beach is paying for the negligence of the TCA,” she alleges in the suit.

Agency authorities have denied being responsible for any storm damage in the past. They could not be reached for comment late Wednesday.

Leeds also alleges that the agency is violating laws protecting oak trees and artifacts.

Leeds, who is acting as her own attorney in the lawsuit filed Tuesday in Orange County Superior Court, has been involved in other legal efforts to stop the toll road.

This spring, a Superior Court judge denied an effort by the Canyon Coalition, of which Leeds is a member, to stop work on the toll road, citing a procedural oversight by the coalition.

In the latest lawsuit, Leeds is asking that the court block grading along the roadway and make the tollway agency restore the graded land to its original condition. She is also seeking unspecified damages.