A Superior Court judge cleared the way Tuesday for the last phase of Playa Vista, a large Westside residential and retail project.

The ruling dismisses objections to the project’s environmental reports filed by the City of Santa Monica and groups led by the Ballona Wetlands Land Trust, which argued Playa Vista’s reports were flawed and incomplete.

The plaintiffs, who filed the suits a year ago in Los Angeles Superior Court, didn’t immediately return calls seeking comment. The groups can appeal the ruling.

After nearly two years of public hearings, the L.A. City Council approved the last phase of Playa Vista, which consists of a large retail center and housing units, in the fall of 2004.

Situated in the center of the project’s massive first phase, the last part of the development contains 2,600 units of housing, ranging from single-family homes to townhomes and condominiums.

Even though Playa Capital LLC, the project’s developers, anticipate a challenge, the company will continue construction on the project’s final stage,

Grove developer Rick Caruso has signed on to build an outdoor center with a bookstore, a grocery store, an 8-screen cinema, a community theater and 175 apartments.

The final leg of the project also contains $125 million worth of road improvements and traffic light synchronization to handle the increased traffic generated by the project.

The developers have completed half of Playa Vista’s initial phase, which already has more than 4,000 residents.