BOOK CHRONICLES CITYHOOD PATH OF PALMDALE.

Byline: BETTIE RENCORET SENIOR COLUMNIST

Forty-four years ago, the town of Palmdale was populated by about 7,100 within a 2.1-mile radius. Now, more than 140,000 people are sprawled out over 100 square miles.

Larry Chimbole, Palmdale's first mayor, has written about how this came about with a great deal of pride in his book ``Palmdale, First City of Antelope Valley.''

``Fifty Grand Men'' (actually 56) with a vision of ``getting shed'' of rule by Los Angeles County and becoming autonomous dedicated their time and their money toward that end.

They were tired of all the bureaucratic red tape that sullied every project the Palmdale citizenry wanted to accomplish, and Lancaster was inevitably given preference on county perks and contracts.

As a Palmdale businessman, the owner and operator of his own hardware store, and a community activist, Chimbole had first-hand knowledge of how things worked to the benefit of their neighbor to the north. Political slights constantly fed the rivalry between the two communities. The courts and Sheriff's Department were both in Lancaster, for instance.

In his book, Chimbole recounts all the frustration, disappointment and stumbling blocks experienced in Palmdale's first effort to incorporate.

Air Force Plant 42 was well-established in Palmdale -- and the aircraft industry was pretty much the only industry in Palmdale in the late 1950s and early 1960s -- and it openly opposed incorporation of the town, Chimbole said.

The only way Palmdale could possibly come into its own and lure other major businesses to this desert town was to become a city and, psychologically, to become Antelope Valley's first city on Aug. 24, 1962.

As a fledgling, the city had to feel its way blindly for awhile, but the city fathers were a gutsy bunch, who proved they were willing to take on tough objectives to succeed.

All they needed was money, and with very little to work with they reached out with confidence and annexed almost every contiguous area around just because they could.

Lancaster was watching carefully and biding its time. It finally became apparent that the only way to protect its boundaries and compete was to make its own incorporation bid. The first attempt failed, and so it tried again. That also failed.

Chimbole says the failure of Lancaster's second try was mainly because of Palmdale.

``In the late 1960s, Lancaster again decided to incorporate. The effort probably would have failed in any event, but we worked to ensure its failure ... Am I sorry? No! It was payback time, and we finally had the power to do it.''

Despite that admission, Chimbole has maintained good relations with the populace of Lancaster because he has been forthright in the fact that Palmdale has been, and will always be, first place in his love for all of the Antelope Valley.

Lancaster finally became a city on Nov. 22, 1977.

Chimbole, for whom the Chimbole Cultural Center in Palmdale is named, has served on the Antelope Valley Hospital board of directors and as a member of the Antelope Valley Fair board, among other projects.

After the successful campaign to make Palmdale a city, Chimbole went on to serve the entire Antelope Valley in the state Assembly.

In this book, he pulls no punches about who and what helped or hindered the making of the city of Palmdale, but he does it without rancor.

There is complete candor in all his descriptions of what actually took place and a sincere appreciation for all those who put their time and money on the line to make it happen.

Of its founding fathers and a few mothers, only a handful are still alive.

This book is a good read, fast-paced and informative. It can be purchased at the Palmdale Library or the Palmdale Chamber of Commerce offices for $19.98. Chimbole and his wife, Vicky, have already paid the publication costs, and all proceeds are earmarked to benefit the Palmdale Library.