Supervisors OK $6-Million Water Plan Near Lancaster

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday unanimously approved a $6-million water system that would tap into the California Aqueduct and could lead to widespread development west of the city of Lancaster.

However, the system--17,000 feet of water pipe and a 3.1-million-gallon steel reservoir--cannot begin operating unless the drought ends, said Gary Hartley, assistant deputy director of the county Waterworks Districts.

Developer Kaufman and Broad of Southern California Inc., which has begun to build in the Quartz Hill area west of Lancaster, has pledged to pay $5.5 million of the system’s cost, some of which would be reimbursed by other developers interested in the area. The other $550,000 would be paid by the county Waterworks Districts.

County officials said the water system could serve at least 2,741 dwellings, schools, and commercial and industrial projects that eventually may be built in Quartz Hill. A few developments already have received at least preliminary county approval.

Earlier this year, the board approved a similar water system for a Kaufman and Broad project outside Palmdale, known as City Ranch. That approval was more controversial because the system includes a well that would allow the developer to dip into the Antelope Valley’s ground water in dry years.