The lawsuit was filed in LA Superior Court by the Federation of Hillside and Canyon Associations and the Coalition Against the Pipeline. The suit claims the proposed projects will worsen traffic gridlock if the city doesn't get millions of dollars in state and federal transportation funds to improve local roads, and that millions more in grants will be needed to expand the sewer system and ensure a dependable source of water.

The lawsuit essentially attacks the so-called Citywide General Plan Framework, which the City Council approved Aug. 8 to guide future development. The homeowner groups are asking the court to stop all projects covered by the framework, including the giant mixed-use development that a team led by billionaires Philip Anschutz and Rupert Murdoch wants to build around Downtown's Staples Center.

If a Superior Court judge sides with the homeowners, the decision could also halt construction at the 1,087-acre Playa Vista mixed-use project on the Westside—the largest infill development in LA's history.