Arielle is a shareholder in Miller Starr Regalia’s Walnut Creek office and a member of the firm’s Land Use Department and Appellate Practice Group. She represents developers, landowners, and public agencies in connection with obtaining and defending land use entitlements, environmental review, as well as state and federal permitting for a wide range of projects including housing and mixed-use developments, subdivisions, commercial and industrial development, and public infrastructure projects.
Arielle assists clients in all aspects of land use, including initial due diligence, environmental review pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), obtaining approvals of general plan amendments, specific plans, subdivision maps, and conditional use permits, as well as negotiating and drafting development agreements and subdivision improvement agreements. Arielle has substantial experience in California planning and zoning laws, CEQA, the Permit Streamlining Act, the Housing Crisis Act, Housing Accountability Act, and State Density Bonus Law (including amendments under SB 330), as well as the common law public trust doctrine.
Arielle represents clients in both administrative hearings and in litigation. She has represented clients both at the trial and appellate levels in litigation involving land use entitlements, CEQA review, claims under the common law public trust doctrine, inverse condemnation, and easement disputes.
J.D., University of California, Hastings College of the Law (2008)
B.A., University of Michigan (2004)
"Arielle Harris Joins Miller Starr Regalia As Land Use Shareholder,” Miller Starr Regalia, March 12, 2020
Bar Association of San Francisco, Environmental Law Section - Executive Committee
Bay Area Council
Bay Planning Coalition – Board Member
California Building Industry Association (CBIA)
State Bar of California, Environmental Law Section
“Navigating Land Use Permitting During A Pandemic,” California Lawyers Association (CLA) Real Property Law E-Bulletin, July 15, 2020 (co-author)
The Expansion of the Public Trust Doctrine in an Era of Resource Scarcity: Have We Reached the Tipping Point?, American Bar Association, Natural Resources & Environment, Vol. 31, No. 1, August 2016
The Desert Renewable Energy Conservation Plan: An Impossible Task?, Environmental Law News, Vol.24, No. 2, November 2015
"BPC CEQA Update 2021,” Bay Planning Coalition's 9th Annual CEQA Update, December 3, 2021
“CEQA and Environmental Impact Reports: 2020 Cases, Standards, Mitigation Measures, Exemptions and Lead Agencies. Current Requirements for Project Approval, Environmental Protection and Commercial Development," Strafford, November 11, 2020 (Co-Presenter)
“Addressing California’s Housing Crisis Through Legislation: A Conversation with Senator Scott Wiener,” Bar Association of San Francisco Barristers Club Event, December 12, 2019 (Moderator)
“BPC Expert Briefing: CEQA Update 2019,” Bay Planning Coalition's 7th Annual CEQA Update, November 18, 2019
“Compliance with AB 52: A Consultation Success Story,” Bar Association of San Francisco Environmental Law Section, June 27, 2019 (Moderator)
“Affordable Housing, Costa-Hawkins Revisions and Reaching the Middle Class,” 2018 Bisnow Multifamily Annual Conference NorCal, November 1, 2018 (Moderator)
“Addressing Housing Issues in the Coastal Zone,” California State Bar Environmental Law Section MCLE Conference, November 3, 2017 (Moderator)
“Evolving Role of State Law in the Protection of Streams and Surrounding Resources,” California State Bar Environmental Law Section MCLE Conference, November 3, 2017 (Moderator)
“Northcoast: Your Voice, Your Future – Rivers, Tribes, Cannabis and Environmental Change,” State Bar of California Environmental Law Section MCLE Conference, November 3, 2017
“Development in the Coastal Zone in an Era of Rising Seas,” Bar Association of San Francisco Environmental Law Section, August 15, 2017 (Moderator)
“CEQA Litigation: Administrative Records & Remedies,” County Counsels’ Association of California Fall 2016 Land Use Conference, December 1, 2016 (Presenter)
“CEQA Litigation Update,” ACWA 2016 CLE Conference, September 15-16, 2016 (Co-presenter)
“AB 52, Tribal Cultural Resources, and CEQA,” Bar Association of San Francisco Environmental Law Section, May 25, 2016 (Moderator/Co-presenter)
“Environmental Law Career Forum,” University of California, Hastings School of Law, April 7, 2014 (Panelist)
“Careers in Water Law and Natural Resources Roundtable,” Golden Gate University School of Law, April 2, 2014 (Panelist)
“Fracking: Balancing Energy Demand and Environmental Protections,” The Association of Women in Water, Energy, and Environment, March 20, 2014 (Moderator)
“Navigating the Legal Parameters of an Electronic World: An Overview of ESI,” Contra Costa City Attorneys Association, December 2009 (Co-Presenter)
“Dealing with Greenhouse Gas Emissions & CEQA: Practical Advice on Analysis and Mitigation,” City of Paso Robles, June 2009 (Co-Presenter)
Miller Starr Regalia Shareholder Arielle Harris to speak on panel at the Bar Association of San Francisco’s “Legal Careers - Everything You Always Wanted to Know” virtual program on Wednesday, January 26, 2022.
Miller Starr Regalia Shareholder Arielle Harris to speak at the Bay Planning Coalition's 9th Annual CEQA Update on Friday, December 3, 2021.
Miller Starr Regalia Shareholder Arielle O. Harris to co-present at Strafford’s live 90-minute CLE webinar “CEQA and Environmental Impact Reports: 2020 Cases, Standards, Mitigation Measures, Exemptions and Lead Agencies” from 10:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. (PST) on Wednesday, November 11, 2020.
As of the date of this article, we are in week 18 of the shelter-in-place (SIP) order first issued by the State of California Public Health Officer on March 18. In the early days of the pandemic, land use development immediately saw construction halted, planning departments shut down, and permit processing paused. We saw wide disparities among jurisdictions throughout California as to the strictness of SIP orders, restrictions on active construction projects, and the availability of online permit processing tools. Below is a summary of some of the specific challenges attributable to the SIP orders in the areas of construction, due diligence, and land use permitting, as well as updates on how things have evolved over the past four months.