Jason Retterer is JRG’s managing partner. Jason is widely recognized as one of the Central Coast’s foremost experts in the fields of real estate and land use practice. With over 25 years of legal expertise in real property and land use, Jason provides advice and expertise to Residential and commercial property owners, developers, builders, resorts and hotels, school districts, and municipal/public clients, including:

• Compliance with land use, general plan, and zoning
• Transaction negotiations and document drafting
• California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), water and air quality laws
• Subdivision Map Act, annexations, Brown Act, Political Reform Act, and Public Records Act
• Representing clients throughout the entitlement process and before State and local administrative decision-making bodies
• Defending administrative approvals in court and on appeal

Jason routinely leads his clients’ project teams, engineers, architects, brokers, and environmental consultants in development projects, including negotiating transactions and projects, drafting real estate contracts, development agreements, processing planning and CEQA documents, initial studies, negative declarations, and EIRs.

Prior to joining JRG Attorneys at Law, Jason worked at Woodruff, Spradlin & Smart (WSS), one of the premier municipal law firms in Orange County, acting as chief legal counsel for CEQA, land use, and environmental law for all public agency clients. Jason has served as special counsel representing various cities and counties. Jason previously served as the Assistant City Attorney for San Juan Capistrano and Deputy City Attorney for the other WSS clients. In that role, he has sat with and advised City Councils, Planning Commissions, and management and staff on development, land use, environmental, CEQA, and municipal law issues.

Jason works alongside his wife, Trinh Retterer, Land Use Specialist at JRG. He enjoys tennis, skiing, soccer, USC athletics, and family time with Trinh and their two daughters, Sydney and Morgan.

Education

• Juris Doctor, California Western School of Law, 1997
• Bachelor of Arts, Political Science, University of Southern California, 1993

Practice Areas

• Coastal development
• CEQA/environmental
• Governmental regulations
• Land use
• Litigation/appeals
• Municipal/public agency
• Planning and zoning
• Real estate
• Subdivision Map Act
• Water rights/well sharing

Bar & Court Admissions

• California, 1998
• Central District of California

Publications

• Editor, California Municipal Law Handbook (2003) California Environmental Quality Act
• Ramped Up Regulation of Agricultural Runoff
  Coastal Grower, Summer 2010
• Balancing Renewable Energy with Preserving Agricultural Land
  Coastal Grower, Spring 2011
• California’s Ongoing Need To Balance the Need for Renewable Energy Projects
  Coastal Grower, Winter 2011/2012
• Balancing Renewable Energy With Preserving Agricultural Land
  Coastal Grower, Winter 2011/2012
• California Fish & Game Code Violations for Routine Maintenance of Agricultural Ditches
  Coastal Grower, Spring, 2012
• New Legislation provides Greater Access to Water Board Members
  Coastal Grower, Spring 2013
• Cancellation of Williamson Act Contracts for Solar Farms
  Coastal Grower, Winter 2013/2014

Civil Involvement

• Friends of Laguna Seca - Board Member
• Monterey County Bar Association - Member
• Salinas City Center Improvement Association - Board Member – Chair, Land Use Committee
• Salinas Rotary – Member
• Monterey County Hospitality Association – Governmental Affairs Committee
• Growers Shippers Association of the Central Coast – Member