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Ruben Duran, a member of the firm's public law and redevelopment groups, brings significant legal experience as counsel to public entities. He has advised elected officials and city and redevelopment agency clients on all municipal law matters including redevelopment, land use, CEQA, affordable housing, environmental law, Brown Act, Public Records Act, elections, tort liability, gaming and conflicts of interest.Ruben is currently the city attorney for the City of Desert Hot Springs and assistant city attorney for the cities of La Puente and Pico Rivera. He previously served as the assistant city attorney for the cities of Bell Gardens, Monrovia, Barstow, La Habra Heights and Beverly Hills. Ruben has also provided special counsel to the City of Pasadena and the Los Angeles Unified School District. As assistant general counsel for the Big Bear City Community Services District, he advised staff on general transactional matters and endangered species issues involving the U.S. Forest Service, California Fish and Game and neighboring jurisdictions.Ruben's redevelopment experience includes serving as the lead counsel on project teams that negotiated with property owners, developers, tenants and businesses, on projects including large commercial and retail developments, affordable housing, and in areas including prevailing wage compliance, owner participation requirements and relocation requirements. Ruben also has extensive land use, planning and CEQA experience, which includes advising planning commissions and assisting staff and consultants with general plan amendments and zoning ordinances. In this capacity, he provides input on CEQA documents, from initial studies to complete EIR's. In addition, Ruben drafted statutory development agreements with developers and provided training to staff on land use law and CEQA implementation.A former Coro Fellow in Public Affairs, Ruben received his J.D. from the University of California, Hastings College of the Law, and a B.A. in Political Science at the University of California at San Diego. He is a member of the California Redevelopment Association, the Los Angeles County Bar Association, the City Attorneys' Association of Los Angeles County and the Mexican American Bar Association of Los Angeles County. He serves as a Chapter Chair for the California Municipal Law Handbook Committee and was a panelist at the League of California Cities Mayors and Councilmembers Academy. | 