LA PALMA : Easing of Preschool Zoning Rules Expected

Preschools and nursery schools would be officially allowed in residential neighborhoods under proposed changes to the city’s zoning ordinance that officials said are long overdue.

The changes, introduced at a City Council meeting Tuesday, recognize nursery and preschools as formal “schools,” which are allowed to operate in residential zones.

“For the past several years it has been apparent that our zoning code was antiquated,” Public Works Director Ismile H. Noorbaksh said at the meeting.

The changes also would bring the zoning ordinance into conformity with 1993 revisions of the city’s General Plan, City Manager Daniel E. Keen said.

City planners said the need for the changes became apparent last summer when Cerritos Valley Baptist Church asked to start a preschool.

Neighbors living near the Moody Street church objected, prompting a review of the zoning code by the city attorney.

“When issues of this nature came up in the past, nobody objected to the definition of schools in the code,” Noorbaksh said.

“It was always the intent that preschools and nursery schools were schools.”

A hearing involving the church’s preschool, originally scheduled for Tuesday, was postponed until Oct. 17.

Officials said that changes in the plan have been made to meet concerns of the neighbors and that they expect the proposal to pass.

The City Council is expected to give final approval to the zoning revisions after a public hearing on the issue at its meeting on Oct. 17.