Palmdale airport land may become a solar farm

Nahai said he hoped the Palmdale proposal could be approved within three years. Because the talks are so preliminary, he declined to say whether the DWP would seek to buy the airport property or rent it. "Various transactions are possible, but in any of the scenarios, the airport would be deriving monetary benefits," he added.

FAA officials said they would have to assess the planned use of the property, whether the land is needed for aviation, where the project would be situated in relation to airport operations and the availability of other land for future airport operations.

If the land is going to be leased, other criteria apply. FAA officials say non-aviation uses should not last more than five years, though exceptions can be made.

Another key provision requires that any revenue generated by a non-aviation use belongs to the airport or airport system.

Ian Gregor, an FAA spokesman in Los Angeles, declined to comment on the solar farm proposal because nothing has been formally submitted to the agency for review.

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dan.weikel@latimes.com

david.zahniser@latimes.com