Lancaster OKs Houses Near Air Force Base Despite Noise Warning : Development: Military officials are concerned about the residences that the city is permitting just north of the facility, under some of its flight paths.

Capping years of debate, the Lancaster City Council has voted to approve the controversial development of more than 1,000 houses just north of Air Force Plant 42, despite opposition from military officials who warned that many residents will suffer from jet noise.

The council’s 2-0 decision Monday night represented a major and apparently decisive victory for Kaufman and Broad, one of the state’s largest home builders. But the developer was forced to spend several years redesigning and trimming the size of its project before winning approval.

The council’s action was a setback for Air Force officials, who have become increasingly concerned about noise and safety issues because of the new residences that the city continues to permit just north of the 5,700-acre base, often under its flight paths.

The landmark project, one of the largest thus far near Plant 42, had been bouncing for months between the City Council and the Planning Commission as divided city officials, the developer and the Air Force sought a deal that all could accept. The developer and the Air Force made concessions, but the parties never reached complete agreement.

The final project will include about 1,050 houses in a 390-acre area that comes within a mile of the Air Force plant’s northern boundary along Avenue M. Houses will be built between avenues K and L and from 25th to 35th streets east. The developer has said that noise problems will be minimal.

In the end, Mayor Henry Hearns and Councilman George Theophanis voted to approve the project. Council members George Root and Arnie Rodio, who had sought changes, were absent from the meeting. And Councilman William Pursley, who originally sold the land to the developer, abstained from voting.

Pursley, who already is the subject of other conflict of interest investigations by the Los Angeles County district attorney and the state Fair Political Practices Commission, said he wanted to avoid any appearance of impropriety, even though he said he was legally entitled to vote.

Pursley had abstained from voting for the past year, as required by state law, after receiving his final payment from Kaufman and Broad. Pursley was part of two partnerships that sold the developer about 320 acres of land in mid-1989. He also received a $109,146 real estate commission for the land sales.