Residents sue county over Marin Catholic field lighting plan

A group of residents has filed a lawsuit against Marin County, challenging the installation of athletic field lights at Marin Catholic High School.

The group, Preserve Ross Valley, argues that the lights at the Kentfield campus would generate excessive noise and glare, making them ineligible for exemption from environmental review under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA).

The lawsuit claims that the Board of Supervisors, which approved the lighting project on Dec. 17, violated CEQA by granting exemptions that, according to the plaintiffs, do not apply to field lights.

“The project involves significant construction, including 80-foot-tall light towers, bringing nighttime sports activities to a low-light residential neighborhood for up to 135 evenings in the fall and winter,” the lawsuit states.