Santa Clarita / Antelope Valley : Suit Halts 1,800-Home Westridge Development in Oak Savanna

A precedent-setting lawsuit aimed at blocking construction in a environmentally sensitive oak savanna has successfully halted development of 1,880 homes planned for the land.

But Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Robert H. O’Brien declined to rule that development should be completely barred in such areas.

His ruling, handed down Wednesday, stated that documents for the proposed Westridge community did not adequately deal with air quality concerns and gave only “lip service” to a requirement that the new development provide money for additional school and library materials. Those involved received O’Brien’s ruling on Friday.

Representatives of the Sierra Club and Santa Clarita Organization for Planning the Environment who filed the lawsuit in October said they were happy that their air quality concerns were upheld. But they said that they were disappointed that the ruling did not shield ecologically sensitive areas from future construction.

They said they believe the ruling will require the developer, Newhall Land & Farming Co., to revise Westridge and bring it before the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors again.

“For years, the county supervisors were approving projects without adequate air quality, schools and libraries. Hopefully, it’s a turning point where they start listening to those reports,” said Karen Pearson, president of the Santa Clarita group of the Sierra Club.

“We’re pretty ecstatic about it. What we felt overall is they are telling them they have to pay attention to the Development Monitoring System,” said organization vice president Lynne Plambeck.

Westridge encompasses 798.5 acres west of the Golden State Freeway, north of McBean Parkway, with an 18-hole championship public golf course and an array of housing ranging from townhomes and condominiums to single-family homes.

A portion of the project overlaps a 310-acre oak habitat designated as a “Significant Ecological Area” by Los Angeles County.

Newhall Land officials are still trying to determine the effect of the ruling on Westridge, said spokeswoman Marlee Lauffer.

“It is disappointing that a project which has so much community support and will bring so much just continues to get bogged down in these kind of issues,” Lauffer said.

The builder has provided $15 million in road improvements, a reclaimed water system for the area, $2.50-per-square-foot school impact fees and $140,000 for an elementary school in the Stevenson Ranch community.

Lauffer said the company disagrees with the judge’s findings regarding air quality, and its attorneys will review public records to demonstrate the issue was addressed during the months of public hearings held by Los Angeles County’s Planning Commission and Board of Supervisors.

The ruling is the first to deal with the issue of building in an area with the county designation, said plaintiffs’ attorney Susan Durbin. The environmental groups are considering an appeal of that portion of the decision.

“Hopefully, SEAs in the future will find more environmentally friendly judges,” Pearson said.

Newhall Land pledged to dedicate two-thirds of the area as open space. Opponents argued the ecological areas should be completely protected from development.

A third plaintiff in the lawsuit, Stevenson Ranch Residents for Responsible Development, said the judge’s ruling specifically addresses their concerns about the Westridge project.

The citizens group is not concerned about the SEA issue and generally supports construction of Westridge. But it wants Newhall Land to provide more for schools and libraries, according to spokesman Keith Pritsker.

“We are in favor of the Westridge community being built. We think it will be a nice addition to the west side of the freeway,” Pritsker said.