AGENDA ITEM: 4
DATE: 9/15/2025
S
TAFF REPORT
A
NNEXATION NO. 24-001
PRE-ZONE NO. 25-001
DATE: September 15, 2025
T
O: Lancaster Planning Commission
F
ROM: Kendall Brekke, Senior Planner
Community Development Department
APPLICANT: City of Lancaster
L
OCATION: ±638 acres generally bound by Avenue I, Avenue J, 50th Street East, and 60th Street East
REQUEST: 1. A
nnexation No. 24 -001 (ANX24-001) to annex 638 acres from unincorporated Los Angeles County into the City of Lancaster; and
2. P
re-Zone No. 2 5-001 (PZ25-001) to pre -zone the subject property to Rural Residential, minimum lot size 2.5 acres (RR-2.5).
RECOMMENDATION: Adopt Resolution No. 25-18 recommending to the City Council the approval of Annexation No. 24 -001 annexing 638 acres from unincorporated Los Angeles County into the City of Lancaster, approval of Pre-Zone No. 25-001 to pre-zone the subject site to Rural Residential (RR-2.5), and the adoption of the Initial Study/Mitigated Negative Declaration (SCH# 2025071152) and Mitigation Monitoring and Reporting Program , and authorizing staff to execute the Notice of Determination.
______________________________________________________________________________ BA
CKGROUND
The City of Lancaster is currently comprised of approximately 94 square miles, at its widest measuring 22 miles in the east-west direction and 9 miles north-south. While the central portion of the City is relatively developed, much of the outlying areas of the City are undeveloped and have irregular boundaries .
Additionally, many of the undeveloped parcels are small, sometimes with multiple owners or owners that live outside of the United States. These conditions present difficulties for developing the larger scale alternative energy projects necessary to support City goals and power needs . In addition, the state has many established goals related to encouraging a variety of residential developments throughout
PC Staff Report
Lancaster Eastside Annexation
ANX 24-001, PZ 25-001
September 15, 2025
California, and the proposed zoning of the subject area would support additional rural residential development under the City’s jurisdiction.
In order to accommodate the future economic and housing needs of the City and to better align some of the City’s irregular boundaries, staff proposed annexing (ANX24-001) approximately 638 acres generally bound by Avenue I, Avenue J, 50th Street East, and 60th Street East from unincorporated Los Angeles County into the City of Lancaster. The Lancaster City Council authorized the filing of this annexation application on July 9, 2024. The application was filed with the Local Area Formation Commission (LAFCO) of Los Angeles County on July 2, 2025. Upon approval of the annexation and pre-zoning applications, LAFCO will proceed with the annexation process.
Between 1981 and 1991, previous annexations expanded the City from its original 38 square miles to the current 94 square miles over a 10-year period. A separate annexation proposal, the Westside Annexation Project (Annexation No. 24-002, General Plan Amendment No. 24-002, Pre-Zone No. 24-001, Specific Plan No. 24-002, Development Agreement No. 24-001) was recommended by the Planning Commission for approval at City Council on August 18, 2025, will be heard by the City Council in October 2025 . This application is concurrently moving forward in the LAFCO process.
GENERAL INFORMATION
Table 1 summarizes the general information concerning this project.
Table 1: General Information
ITEM DESCRIPTION
APNS
3384-0 01 -001 through -004, 3384-001-800, 3384-002-001, 3384- 002-002, 3384-002-008, 3384-002-009 through -017, 3384-002-021 through -028, and 3384-002-032 through -047
LOCATION ±638 acres generally bound by Avenue I, Avenue J, 50th Street East, a
nd 60th Street East
ZONING AND LAND USE
The annexation area is predominantly vacant with disturbed desert h
abitat and agricultural fields . The existing County zoning is Heavy Agricultural, 5-acre minimum (A-2-5).
SURROUNDING LAND USES
AND ZONING
North Vacant A-2-5 (LA County)
South Vacant RR-2.5
East Vacant A-2-5 (LA County)
West Vacant A-2-5 (LA County), RR-2.5
CURRENT DEVELOPMENT
The annexation area is predominantly vacant with disturbed desert habitat and agricultural fields. Structures include one residence with outbuildings at the northwest corner of the subject property, as well as a telecommunications facility building for Fro ntier PC Staff Report
Lancaster Eastside Annexation
ANX 24-001, PZ 25-001
September 15, 2025
Communications in the northeast corner of the subject property.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
An Initial Study/Mitigated Negative Declaration (SCH# 2025071152) was prepared for the proposed project and circulated for a 30 -day public review period in accordance with the California
Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). The public review period started on July 30, 2025 and ended on August 29, 2025.
Staff received five comment letters during the public review period, and responses to these comments are provided in an attached memorandum dated September 9 , 2025. The memorandum also outlines resulting revisions which have been made to the Initial Study/Mitigated Negative Declaration, consisting of minor changes to existing mitigation measures.
Effective January 1, 1991, applicants whose projects have the potential to result in the loss of fish, wildlife or habitat through urbanization and/or land use conversion are required to pay filing fees as set forth under Section 711.4 of the Fish and Game Code.
Pursuant to Section 21089(b) o f the Public Resources Code, the approval of a project is not valid, and no development right is vested, until such fees are paid.
PROJECT DESCRIPTION:
The Lancaster Eastside Annexation Project consists of the annexation of 638 acres of unincorporated Los Angeles County into the City of Lancaster. The annexation area is generally bound by Avenue I, Avenue J, 50th Street East, and 60th Street East as shown in blue on Figure 1.
Figure 1 – Project Boundary Map
PC Staff Report
Lancaster Eastside Annexation
ANX 24-001, PZ 25-001
September 15, 2025
In order to facilitate the annexation, a pre-zone of the annexation area is proposed to align the existing County zoning designation with the City’s zoning designations. The existing County zoning is Heavy Agricultural, 5 -acre minimum (A -2-5). The City of Lancaster 2030 General Plan established a land use designation of Non-Urban (NU). The proposed land use designation was chosen to remain consistent with similar County land use designations; therefore the proposed zoning designation is RR-2.5.
The environmental document contemplates future development of an approximately 288 -acre solar facility on the northern half of the annexation area (APNs 3384 -001-001 through - 004). Under the proposed RR-2.5 zone, commercial solar electrical generation facilities are conditionally permitted. Thus, the future development of a solar facility would require approval of a separate Conditional Use Permit.
There is no development associated with the proposed annexation and pre-zone.
ANALYSIS:
Housing Element Consistency/No Net Loss
The Lancaster Eastside Annexation Project supports the goals and objectives of the City of Lancaster’s 2022 Housing Element (revised and certified 2023). Specifically, the Housing Element identifies objectives and policies to provide a variety of housing types and affordability levels to the residents of Lancaster, and by extension the residents of the Antelope Valley.
Goal H-1: To promote a variety of housing types to meet the existing and future needs of Lancaster residents.
Goal H-1.1: Provide for adequate sites that will enable the production of 9,023 housing units through October 2029 to meet the demands of present and future residents, including an adequate number and range of new dwelling types affordable to extremely low- , very low -, low -, moderate -, and above moderate -income households.
Goal H-1.2: Encourage a mix of housing types are provided, including single- and multi-family housing within a variety of price ranges to provide a range of housing options for Lancaster residents.
The Lancaster Eastside Annexation Project does not propose any specific development projects. However, the project has accounted for and analyzed full buildout of the annexation area, which includes potential residential development permitted within the RR-2.5 zoning designation.
For the current Housing Element Cycle, the City of Lancaster was assigned overall Regional Housing Needs Assessment (RHNA) allocation of 9,023 units. Within the annexation area, all 638 acres are currently designated as Non -Urban (NU) under the City’s General Plan. Assuming that this designation would be implemented with the proposed RR-2.5 zoning, this could result in approximately 255 single-family lots.
The existing County land use designations would allow for residential development with a minimum lot size of two acres, resulting in a potential 319 single -family lots. However, the Lancaster Municipal Code (LMC) allows for up to two primary residences on lots with single-family zoning, while Los Angeles County allows for only one. While the total number of residential lots that would be allowed under annexation PC Staff Report
Lancaster Eastside Annexation
ANX 24-001, PZ 25-001
September 15, 2025
buildout conditions is less than would be allowed under the current County designations, the number of allowable primary units is higher, as shown in Table 3. Therefore, there would be no net loss of residential units.
Table 3 – Housing Unit Expectations
City Buildout
Conditions
Existing County
Designation
255 lots 319 lots
510 units 319 units
Compliance with the Lancaster Municipal Code (LMC)
The Lancaster Eastside Annexation Project would establish the zoning for the entire area with the approval of the Pre -Zone. Any development application submitted and approved within the boundaries of the annexation area would be in compliance with the requirements of the LMC.
Compliance with the City of Lancaster Design Guidelines Any development project submitted within the boundaries of the annexation area would be required to comply with the City’s Design Guidelines for the particular use. Additionally, all residential or mixed -use projects with residential components would be re quired to comply with the City’s Objective Design Standards contained in Chapter 17.41, Article IV.
ZONE CHANGE FINDINGS
In order to grant a Zone Change (ZC), Section 17.24.120 of the Lancaster Municipal Code states that the Planning Commission must make all of the below findings. In accordance with LMC Section 17.24.040, “zone changes and amendments may be initiated to alter the boundaries of districts, to impose
regulations not previously imposed, and to remove or modify any regulation already impose d…” The Lancaster Eastside Annexation Project falls within this definition and is therefore subject to ZC findings. a. That modified conditions warrant a revision in the zoning plan as it pertains to the area or district under consideration.
The City of Lancaster has proposed to annex 638 acres from unincorporated Los Angeles County into the city limits. As part of that process, the City is required to pre -zone the property to align with the proposed zoning designations.
b. That a need for the proposed zone classification exists within such area or district.
A need for the proposed zone classifications exists within the annexation area in order to establish consistency with the current General Plan designations, replacing the existing County zoning. c. That the particular property under consideration is a proper location for said zone classification within such area or district.
PC Staff Report
Lancaster Eastside Annexation
ANX 24-001, PZ 25-001
September 15, 2025
The particular property under consideration is a proper location for said proposed zone classifications as they are based on similarity to existing County zoning. d. That placement of the proposed zone at such location will be in the interest of public health, safety, and general welfare and in conformity with good zoning practice.
The placement of the proposed RR-2.5 zone will be in the interest of public health, safety, and general welfare and in conformity with good zoning practice. The location of the proposed zones takes into consideration the County zoning and existing uses within the annexation area.
ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS
Pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and the State CEQA Guidelines, the City prepared an Initial Study/Mitigated Negative Declaration (IS/MND) (SCH# 2025071152) to evaluate the potential environmental impacts of the proposed Project. The analysis concluded that the Project could result in potentially significant environmental impacts; however, all such impacts can be reduced to less- than-significant levels through the implementation of mitigation measures. As a result, the City also prepared a Mitigation Monitoring and Reporting Program (MMRP) in compliance with CEQA.
The IS/MND was circulated for public review from July 30, 2025 to August 29, 2025, and a Notice of Intent to adopt the IS/MND was filed with the State Clearinghouse and the County Clerk and posted in accordance with CEQA requirements. Staff received five comment letters during the public review period, and responses to these comments are provided in an attached memorandum dated September 9, 2025.
The memorandum also outlines resulting revisions which have been made to the Initial Study/ Mitigated Negative Declaration, consisting of minor changes to mitigation measures. The MMRP reflects these minor changes. Therefore, pursuant to Section 15073.5 of the State CEQA Guidelines, recirculation of the environmental document is not required.
A Notice of Determination will be filed with the County Clerk and the State Clearinghouse within five days of Project approval.
LEGAL NOTICE
A Notice of Public Hearing was mailed to all property owners within a 1,500-foot radius of the project site, posted in three places (Lancaster City Hall, the Lancaster Library, and post office), and noticed in Antelope Valley Press on August 26, 2025.
To date, the Community Development Department has received zero letters or comments on the project.
RECOMMENDATION
Adopt Resolution No. 25 -18 recommending to the City Council the approval of Annexation No. 24 -001 annexing 638 acres from unincorporated Los Angeles County into the City of Lancaster, approval of Pre - Zone No. 25-001 to pre-zone the subject site to Rural Residential (RR-2.5), and the adoption of the Initial Study/Mitigated Negative Declaration (SCH# 2025071152) and Mitigation Monitoring and Reporting Program, and authorizing staff to execute the Notice of Determination.
PC Staff Report
Lancaster Eastside Annexation
ANX 24-001, PZ 25-001
September 15, 2025
Attachments:
A. Eastside Annexation Aerial Map
B. Resolution No. 25-18
C. Draft Pre-Zoning Ordinance
D. Initial Study/Mitigated Negative Declaration
E. Mitigation Monitoring and Reporting Program