With a legal victory behind him, developer Chris Meany is eager to talk about the housing planned for his massive Bay Meadows project in San Mateo.

Meany, a principal with San Francisco-based Wilson Meany Sullivan, said he's relieved that a judge ruled in July that a petition to put the project on the ballot was not valid.

The protracted legal battle surrounding the petition drive is "a case study in why housing is out of control in California," Meany said. The project has generated years of contentious City

Council meetings, lawsuits and protests, pitting pro-housing forces against anti-growth advocates.

The 83-acre Bay Meadows development, which will replace the still-operating 72-year-old horse racing track, will contain 1,250 apartments, 1.25 million square feet of office space and 150,000 square feet of retail. The first phase of the development, which is mostly complete, replaced Bay Meadows' practice track with 734 housing units and a 98,000-square-foot retail complex anchored by a Whole Foods.

The Sierra Club has endorsed the second phase of the development because of its proximity to public transit and its 15 acres of parks, trails and pathways.

"The Sierra Club supports community projects, which provide walkable communities near jobs and with transit options," said Rafael Reyes, former chairman of the Loma Prieta chapter of the Sierra Club. "The unfortunate alternative is for distant homes in places like Dublin or Gilroy with long commutes to businesses on the Peninsula, resulting in more oil consumption, global warming, as well as air and water pollution."

Wilson Meany declined to reveal development costs, but the project is expected to generate $12 million in fees and $46 million in revenue over the next 20 years for the city, according to supporters.

Housing will likely be one of the first parts of the development to break ground, Meany said.

"This community is starved for housing," he said. "When children (of current residents) come of age, they cannot afford housing in San Mateo," he said.

The specific plan amendment was approved in November 2005 after numerous public meetings, but development of the site is still at least three years away because Planning Commission and City Council approval for design guidelines and other details are still needed.

In the meantime, Friends of Bay Meadows, the group that spearheaded the petition drive to keep the racetrack, plans to appeal Superior Court Judge Mark Forcum's ruling and is contemplating further litigation.

Donna Bischoff, a founder of another group opposing the development, Save Bay Meadows, said the racetrack should be saved because of its history.

"When I talked to people about what they wanted at that site, they said, 'You can't tear down Bay Meadows. It's part of our history,'" Bischoff said.

Meany said he's not worried about the groups that continue to oppose the development, saying they represent a small number of residents.

The track's owner, Stockbridge Capital, plans to continue operations there until the developer has received all approvals.

Observers say the development will have a huge impact on San Mateo, which is characterized by post-War War II-era single-family homes. San Mateo's location at the crossroads of highways 92 and 101 and its proximity to San Francisco International Airport and Silicon Valley makes it ripe for development.

"There does remain a tension between those who want to keep the city more suburban versus the natural market forces moving to make it more urban," said Stephen Scott, principal planner for the city of San Mateo.