Santa Clarita / Antelope Valley : Panel Rejects Appeal to Relocate Park-and-Ride : Palmdale: Group promises to appeal to City Council to keep commuter lot away from their upscale homes.

The Palmdale Planning Commission has rejected an appeal from homeowners seeking to relocate a park-and-ride lot that the city wants to build near their affluent neighborhood.

Attorney Dawn L. Reichman, a spokeswoman for the Ana Verde and Concord Estates homeowners, said Friday that the group will now appeal to the City Council--and may file a lawsuit if the appeal is rejected by that body.

At issue is a 400-space commuter lot that Palmdale officials plan to build near the Antelope Valley Freeway on the south side of Avenue S, at Geiger Avenue.

Reichman said nearby residents believe a park-and-ride at this location will bring pollution, increased traffic and crime to their relatively isolated upscale neighborhood.

“There are a lot of issues that were glossed over in the planning for this,” said Reichman, who lives in unincorporated Ana Verde where some hillside houses cost $400,000 or more. “It’s right in the heart of this residential area.”

She added: “We’re not against park-and-rides. We’re against this particular location. We’re very frustrated because it’s like it’s falling on deaf ears.”

But city officials say the location was not the issue that planning commissioners were required to decide Thursday night after a public hearing that lasted more than two hours.

Because the City Council had already approved this site for the commuter lot, the residents could appeal only the final design.

Planning Commission Chairman John Mayfield said his panel could have addressed complaints about the landscaping or lighting. But the lot’s location “was outside the scope of what the Planning Commission could handle. That was not what was on the agenda. I took all the testimony because I thought it was important that they get a chance to air their concerns.”

Palmdale officials say the new lot is needed because an existing commuter parking area, also on Avenue S, is overflowing with cars. The site near Geiger Avenue was picked because Caltrans, which owns the land, will not charge the city for its use.

City leaders are anxious to begin building the lot because a $700,000 grant that would pay for its construction must be used by September.

“If there’s anything like prudent use of citizens’ money, this park-and-ride would be it,” Mayfield said.