Chula Vista

A state appeal court on Tuesday reinstated part of the Sierra Club’s lawsuit challenging Chula Vista’s plans for a $500-million development on its bayfront.

Overturning a lower-court decision, the three-judge appellate panel ruled that the Sierra Club may proceed with its argument that city officials engaged in improper communications with members of the commission that later approved the bayfront project.

The Sierra Club is challenging the California Coastal Commission’s 1984 approval of the development plan. The club contends that the commission exceeded its authority and that members engaged in inappropriate private talks with city officials.

Earlier this year, Superior Court Judge Mack P. Lovett granted the city’s request to drop the second charge from the case. The city said the Sierra Club should have complained to the commission, and that club officials, too, spoke privately with commission members.

But on Tuesday, the 4th District Court of Appeal overturned Lovett’s ruling, saying the charge deserved scrutiny during a full trial.