Palmdale planners recommend general-plan and zoning amendments, set new buffers for drive-thrus and fueling stations

The Palmdale Planning Commission recommended City Council approval of a package of general plan map amendments, a zoning ordinance amendment and a zone change intended to correct map inconsistencies and streamline review. Senior Planner Andrew Svidek presented the item and outlined two principal components: map amendments for three project sites and a text amendment to Title 17 of the Palmdale Municipal Code addressing commercial-use spacing.

Svidek said the map amendments cover three locations: a small Southern California Edison substation parcel at East Avenue R8 and 40th Street East (two parcels totaling about 2 acres), a 68-acre Palmdale School District-owned site at East Avenue Q and 40th Street East that will be redesignated for education uses, and a 41-acre site at East Palmdale Boulevard and 55th Street East proposed to change from Residential Neighborhood 22 to Residential Neighborhood 1 (5–10 units per acre) consistent with the housing element.

On the text amendment, staff proposed a 250-foot minimum separation between any new drive-thru restaurant menu board and the nearest menu board of any other drive-thru restaurant (measured from menu board to menu board), eliminating the prior waiver that allowed up to three drive-thrus within a 500-foot radius. The amendment also would require any new fueling station to be at least 300 feet from another fueling station (measured pump to pump) while allowing site-specific flexibility in review.

The commission opened the public hearing, heard no public comment and voted unanimously to recommend the package to City Council.