Complete Communities
The Vision and Citywide Framework for Palmdale calls for creating “complete neighborhoods” where residents can reach daily amenities, local retail, services, parks, and public facilities within a short 20-minute walk, bike ride or transit ride. These goals and policies in the Land Use and Community Design, Circulation and Mobility, Equitable and Healthy Communities, and Parks, Recreation, and Open Space Elements foster the creation of complete neighborhoods throughout the city.
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Selected Goals and Policies
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Land Use and Community Design (LUD)
LUD-1.1 Balanced Land Uses. Maintain a balanced land use pattern to support a broad range of housing choices, retail businesses, employment opportunities, educational and cultural institutions, entertainment spaces, and other supportive uses within long-established Palmdale neighborhoods and new growth areas.
LUD-1.2 New Complete Neighborhoods. Facilitate the construction of new mixed-use neighborhoods that are well connected to services, transit, amenities, public buildings, and parks and recreational facilities.
LUD-1.3 Access to Amenities. Strive to create development patterns such that the majority of residents are within twenty minutes or less walking distance of a variety of neighborhood-serving uses in Village Centers, such as parks, grocery stores, restaurants, places of worship, cafes, dry cleaners, laundromats, banks, hair care, pharmacies, civic uses, and similar uses.
LUD-1.4 Specific Plan Facilities. Ensure Specific Plans are implemented with timely construction of supportive commercial uses and parks to support new residential uses.
LUD-1.5 Multimodal Connectivity. Promote walking to services, biking and transit use by requiring a high level of connectivity for pedestrians, bicycles, and vehicles in major developments (except where existing development or natural features prohibit connectivity). Seek to improve walk, bike, and transit travel within existing complete neighborhoods.
LUD-1.6 Walkable Blocks. Create communities that address the needs of multiple age groups and physical abilities through short, walkable block lengths. Use grid-like or a modified grid street networks in newly developed areas (except where topography necessitates another street network layout).
LUD-5.1 New Complete Neighborhoods. Require new development to provide multiple amenities, a beautiful public realm, and be consistent with the City’s vision for complete neighborhoods.
LUD-5.2 Walkability of New Neighborhoods. Require all new neighborhoods to be pedestrian friendly by including features, such as short blocks, wide sidewalks, shaded streets, buildings that define and are oriented to streets or public spaces, traffic-calming features, convenient pedestrian street crossings, and safe streets designed for pedestrians, cyclists, and vehicles.
LUD-5.3 Public Services in New Neighborhoods. Require new developments to be designed for and provided with adequate public services and infrastructure. Require that these public facilities and services be provided concurrently with development to ensure a high quality of life for residents.
LUD-5.4 Access to Retail/Services. Strive for a high level of connectivity of residents to neighborhood services through site design, open space linkages, and bicycle facilities. Plan for 90 percent of residents (except for in rural residential designations) to be within a twenty minute walking distance of retail and neighborhood services.
LUD-5.5 Trail Networks. Provide new trails systems that connect to the regional system.
LUD-5.6 Character of New Housing. Provide a diversity of architectural styles; avoid entire blocks or neighborhoods with identical housing styles.
LUD-5.7 Natural Topography. To the greatest extent feasible, preserve natural topographic features during the planning and development process. Utilize physical advantages of the site to minimize visual impacts.
LUD-5.8 Transfer of Development. Require clustered single family and multifamily development in less constrained areas, transferring density from areas constrained by seismic, drainage, rights-of-way, or other conditions based on technical studies.
LUD-6.1 Diversity of Housing Styles. Strongly encourage new subdivisions and master planned projects to include a diversity of housing types and architecture styles, where possible.
LUD-6.2 Primary Entries. Require new homes to provide a primary entryway and windows facing the street.
LUD-6.3 Integrated Pedestrian Circulation. For construction of new small-scale housing and minor subdivision projects, design site plans that provide amenities and integrated networks for walking and bicycling.
LUD-6.4 Recreational Spaces. Improve existing parks and public spaces throughout the city to provide beautiful, comfortable, and inviting gathering spaces.
LUD-6.5 Amenities and Gathering Spaces. Encourage new development to incorporate public plazas, seating, drinking fountains, and gathering places, especially in prominent locations and areas of pedestrian activity.
LUD-6.6 Ongoing Maintenance. Require project developers to establish mechanisms, such as a Community Facilities District, to adequately maintain new parks, recreational facilities, and infrastructure.
LUD-8.1 Arts and Cultural Programming. Expand arts and cultural programming in public spaces, building off the existing Public Art Master Plan.
LUD-8.2 Arts and Gathering Spaces. Encourage new development, especially along Palmdale Boulevard and Avenue Q to incorporate public art in public plazas, seating, and gathering spaces along or near these corridors.
LUD-8.3 Art Priorities. Prioritize art funds from CIP projects to major public gathering spaces, such as parks, public plazas, and along major corridors such as East Avenue Q and Palmdale Boulevard.
LUD-8.4 Art Spaces. Actively encourage affordable arts spaces through use classifications in the zoning code and streamlined permitting in the Light Industrial and Employment Flex zones.
LUD-9.1 Activity Centers. Support a network of vibrant Village Centers that are mixed-use activity centers located throughout the City’s residential areas to create 20-minute neighborhoods, implemented through new mixed-use land use designations, which provide a mix of residential uses and daily goods/services.
LUD-9.2 Distinct Character. Encourage design strategies that enhance a unique identity for each of the Village Centers.
LUD-9.3 Gathering Places. Require the introduction of new public gathering places in Village Centers such as publicly accessible plazas or courtyards.
LUD-9.4 Contextual Transitions. Ensure that developments create appropriate transitions to existing residential neighborhoods by placing two-to-three story residential over ground floor retail/services toward arterial streets and lower scaled housing abutting existing residences.
LUD-9.5 Mobility Connections. Seek to improve walk, bike, and transit access to Village Centers by connecting to the larger/regional pedestrian and bicycle networks.
LUD-15.1 Destination Land Uses. Allow a diverse range of retail, dining, and entertainment establishments of any size that help create a destination for Antelope Valley residents and visitors.
LUD-15.2 Residential Land Uses. Allow a broad range of low to medium-density residential at the Antelope Valley Mall as a part of a comprehensive development plan prepared for the mall property. Proposed residential uses on this site are subject to the following standards:
- Any proposal to introduce housing in the Mall site must be accompanied by a comprehensive development plan that provides details on phasing, connectivity, mobility, wayfinding, and other key programmatic and urban design components.
- Avoid locating new residential uses within 500 feet of SR-14 right-of-way.
LUD-15.3 Coordinated Evolution. Work with the Mall operator and property owners to effectuate long-term redevelopment of existing retail into new, higher-density developments such as multistory retail or mixed-use retail with office or residential above. Actively solicit new employment uses, with a focus on office, medical, film, and related uses.
LUD-15.4 Regional Mall Design Guidelines. Guide the redevelopment of big-box retail into more urban, mixed-use formats by encouraging adherence to the following guidance:
- Arrange mixed-use buildings, liner-type buildings, and other active frontages to form an occasional street wall when surrounding an internal parking lot or structure.
- Ensure active frontages and pedestrian-oriented design for any redevelopment of commercial uses at the mall, to eliminate unsightly blank walls and facades.
- Setbacks to internal streets should be less than setbacks to external/arterial streets.
- Major internal drives should include sidewalks on both sides, detailed and landscaped as small streets.
- Building entrances should be accessed directly from the sidewalk, and sidewalks in front of major shops should be as wide as possible. Awnings should be utilized to provide shade for pedestrians.
LUD-20.1 Revised Specific Plans. When modifications to an adopted Specific Plan are proposed, require the plans to adhere to the following:
- Provide connections to regional trails and natural open spaces for all residential units.
- Create protections for western Joshua trees and other critical desert species.
- Review compliance with the City’s Hillside Ordinance for viewshed protection.
LUD-20.2 New Village Centers. Ensure the creation of new Village Centers organized around a central focal point such as a park, school, civic building, or neighborhood retail as development occurs in Specific Plan areas, including:
- Anaverde Nuevo Specific Plan
- Ritter Ranch Specific Plan
- Rancho Vista Specific Plan
LUD-20.3 Planned Developments. Encourage the creation of new Village Centers in Planned Development (PD) areas, including Quail Valley PD, Joshua Ranch PD, Aero PD, and The Strata PD.
LUD-21.1 Timing of Community/Retail Uses. Require development of commercial uses and amenities during key phases of buildout of residential portions of a Specific Plan.
LUD-21.2 Clustered Development. Require rural neighborhoods and clustered development in steeper and topographically constrained areas and use these development types to preserve significant natural amenities.
LUD-21.3 Respecting Natural Ridges. Avoid grading or siting of dwelling units on the north facing side of Ritter Ridge or other major ridgelines.
LUD-21.4 Greenbelt Concept. Strive to create an undeveloped or natural greenbelt around the city comprised of natural areas, parks, open space, and agricultural/utility lands.
LUD-22.1 Mixed-Density Residential. Promote residential infill development, where appropriate, as indicated by the mixed-density Residential Neighborhood land use designations (RN1, RN2, RN3, RN4).
LUD-22.2 Infill Priority. Maximize opportunities for residential development through infill and redevelopment of vacant parcels by facilitating parcel aggregation and streamlining permit processing for infill applications.
LUD-22.3 Distributed Higher Density. Permit a range of residential densities and housing types throughout the city rather than concentrating higher densities in limited areas.
LUD-22.4 Transit-Oriented Density. Direct the location of senior and multifamily housing to areas accessible to public transportation, supportive commercial uses, and community facilities.
LUD-22.5 Varying Housing Types. Encourage and allow a variety of housing types developed at a range of densities to serve varying household types, including, but not limited to, single-family attached and detached, accessory dwelling units, multifamily apartments, townhomes, duplexes, triplexes, quadplexes, and condominiums.
LUD-22.6 Special Needs Housing. Facilitate housing for special needs groups, including the developmentally disabled, and non-traditional family groups by allowing a diverse range of housing configurations that are Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliant and flexible.
LUD-22.7 Senior Housing. Promote development of housing types that support multi-generational households, senior housing, and opportunities for seniors to age in place.
Circulation and Mobility (CM)
CM-4.1 Access to essential services. Prioritize investments that improve access to healthcare and social services.
CM-4.2 Access to healthy foods. Improve mobility in neighborhoods with limited access to healthy food sources.
CM-4.3 Access to parks and open space. Prioritize investments that expand access to Palmdale’s parks and trails and support physical activity.
CM-4.4 Neighborhood streets. Create neighborhood streets that unify neighborhoods, reduce vehicle speeds, reduce barriers for people walking, biking, and riding transit, and provide connectivity to connector and regional routes.
CM-4.5 Active friendly design. Design multimodal facilities to a standard that will increase physical activity.
CM-4.6 Lighting. Provide human scale lighting along pedestrian thoroughfares, in commercial districts, on trails, and at transit stops.
Equitable and Healthy Communities (EHC)
EHC-6.1 Transit-oriented housing. Direct the location of senior and multi-family housing to high resource areas accessible to public transportation, supportive commercial uses, and community facilities.
EHC-6.2 Housing diversity. Encourage a variety of housing types developed at a range of densities to serve varying household types, including, but not limited to, single-family attached and detached, accessory dwelling units, multi-family apartments, townhomes, duplexes, triplexes, quadplexes, and condominiums.
EHC-6.3 ADA compliant housing. Facilitate housing for older adults, special needs groups, including the developmentally disabled, and non-traditional family groups by allowing a diverse range of housing configurations that are Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliant and flexible.
EHC-6.4 Aging in place. Promote development of housing types that support multi-generational households and opportunities to age in place.
EHC-6.5 Resource families. Promote development of housing types that support resource families and meet the needs of foster youth and transition age youth.
EHC-6.6 Development review process. Periodically lead a comprehensive review of all steps in the development approval process to identify the factors that impede a variety of new residential construction, including affordable housing.
EHC-6.7 Streamlining housing development. Create a one-stop permitting shop that streamlines review of potential housing projects and makes it accessible and easy for applicants to get the answers they need.
EHC 6.8 Pre-application housing meetings. Encourage pre-application meetings with department staff to review potential projects and ensure consistency with the General Plan vision.
EHC-14.1 Near-universal walk access to healthy food retailers. Work toward a goal of having 90 percent of residents living within a 20-minute walking distance of a grocery store, farmers market, community garden, or other healthy food retailer.
EHC-14.2 Farmers markets. Partner with organizations to bring one (or more) weekly Certified Farmers Markets to Palmdale. Encourage future farmers markets to accept CalFresh Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) cards; Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) benefits; and Senior Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program (SFMNP) benefits.
EHC-14.3 Grocery stores. Partner with developers and other stakeholders to bring full-service and affordable grocery stores to disadvantaged communities in Palmdale.
EHC-14.4 Corner store conversion. Utilize economic development incentives to encourage existing convenience stores, especially in disadvantaged communities, to expand inventory and to sell fresh, healthy foods such as produce. Assist convenience stores in modifying retail space with basic refrigeration and shelving to transform into economically viable healthy food retailers.
EHC-14.5 Other healthy food retail. Incentivize the location and expansion of new and existing small businesses that sell and/or serve healthy food options.
EHC-14.6 Fast food and liquor stores. Limit drive-through restaurants and off-sale alcohol beverage establishments—as defined in the municipal code—in neighborhoods with a significant concentration of stores (e.g., multiple stores on the same block or intersection) and child-sensitive areas, such as schools, parks, and childcare facilities.
EHC-14.7 Local food production. Strengthen the local economy by encouraging local food production, community gardens, and farmers markets on vacant or underutilized parcels.
EHC-14.8 Transit access to healthy food retailers. Improve ready access to healthy food retailers along key transit corridors and within transit-oriented developments. Work with local transit agencies to ensure that bus routes provide service from disadvantaged communities to healthy food retailers.
EHC-14.9. Food waste diversion. Partner with local grocery stores, restaurants, and other food retailers to divert food waste and donate extra food to local food banks, soup kitchens, and shelters.
Parks, Recreation, and Open Space (PR)
PR-1.1 Parks and Recreation Master Plan. Prepare a Parks and Recreation Master Plan to address park conditions and needs, recreation programming, facilities, and funding opportunities. As a part of a Parks Master Plan, evaluate adopted park standards, including designations for type of parks and guidelines for the facilities to be developed in future parks.
PR-1.2 Park location. Ensure that park sites are located equitably, throughout the city, to maximize access to parks for residents within a 20-minute walking distance.
PR-1.3 Parks accessibility. Provide a variety of parks and recreational facilities accessible to all residents throughout the city, including community and neighborhood parks, to meet the needs of youth, adults, and senior citizens.
PR-1.4 Future parks priority areas. As feasible, work with the private development community to facilitate creation of parks in the future parks priority areas as indicated in Figure 10.3.
PR-1.5 Prioritize underserved areas. Prioritize development of new parks and recreation facilities in underserved areas of the city, encouraging access to free or low-cost recreation for all Palmdale residents.
PR-1.6 Expand park amenities. Encourage expansion of amenities at existing public parks.
PR-1.7 ADA Design. Incorporate all design features, required by the Americans with Disabilities Act, which improve access to parks and park facilities for citizens with different abilities and needs.
PR-1.8 School and park synergy. Co-locate schools and parks and partner with non-profit organizations to provide recreational opportunities that benefit both students and the public.
PR-1.9 Parkland incentives. Work with the private development community to incentivize creation of publicly accessible parkland either on-or-off-site.
