We began 2013 by urging top officials "in Fresno County to work together, connect the dots and address big challenges such as the economy, homelessness and planning."

Those words fell on deaf ears as city of Fresno and county leaders continued their turf wars -- particularly over planning.

Now it appears that sanity might prevail and the administration of Fresno Mayor Ashley Swearengin could rethink suing Fresno and Madera counties for approving thousands of new homes and businesses near the San Joaquin River.

Rather than seeing these lawsuits actively continue, the city should try to work out agreements with the counties and the developers to mitigate impacts. Only when negotiations are thoroughly exhausted, should the city seek legal remedy.

The hypocrisy of the city's lawsuits was exposed when Madera County retaliated by suing the city over the El Paseo project on Herndon Avenue near Highway 99.

Fresno gave a green light to El Paseo in 2010 without mitigating impacts on Madera County or giving weight to testimony that the project would create more blight on West Shaw Avenue.

The city has many challenges: easing its financial crisis, improving public safety, rebuilding neighborhoods and leveraging its high-speed rail station to revitalize downtown. The lawsuits against Fresno and Madera counties are a needless distraction from these missions.

Moreover, city leaders must come to grips with the fact that plans to attract development and enhance the urban core must compete for investors, home buyers and renters against options offered by other communities.

Winning this fight will require Fresno to provide strategies and incentives that attract investment and people. If the city doesn't come up with the right formula, its ballyhooed, sprawl-corralling 2035 General Plan update is dead on arrival.

We regularly publish letters from readers bemoaning the partisan battles in our nation's capital blocking efforts to lift up the economy and reduce the deficit.

Frankly, it's just as disgusting to see nonpartisan local leaders fail to engage in constructive dialogue and actions to move our region forward.

The promise out of Tuesday's regional planning meeting was that these feuds are headed to the deep freeze. Bravo.