CITY POISED TO ACCEPT REFINERY; CHEVRON DONATING LAND, STRUCTURE THAT DATE BACK TO 1874.

Byline: Teresa Jimenez Daily News Staff Writer

The City Council has tentatively accepted Chevron Company Inc.'s donation of the Historic Pioneer Oil Refinery in the newly formed Newhall Redevelopment District.

The oil refinery, built in 1874 and closed in 1888, will officially transfer to the city once environmental and other inspections are made and the two parties come to an agreement on upgrading the site, said Wayne Weber, city parks manager.

``If all the due diligence efforts work out, we have a green light to accept the property,'' Weber said. ``We have to do an environmental site review, look into any liabilities that come with a state historical site. We have to see if the city can live with that. And before we got into that, we wanted to make sure the council was interested.''

The 4.7-acre site off Pine Street could eventually serve as a museum, which would be a welcome addition to the planned downtown Newhall, said Leon Worden, a Downtown Newhall Redevelopment Committee member.

The only problem Worden sees is the need for adjacent land where a parking lot and other services could be built. Though Chevron had also offered to sell the city an adjoining nine acres, it closed a deal on the property this week with local resident and businessman Hank Arklin, his attorney Hunt Braly said.

``It could be a usable, historical site if perhaps some of the nine acres could be acquired for parking and other compatible uses,'' Worden said. ``It's also important that the refinery remain visible from Pine Street.''

Braly said he would not discuss future uses for the property, though a golf driving range was mentioned during negotiations for the land. He added that the city has expressed interest in working with Arklin, but has yet to call him about the recent purchase.

``The city indicated interest in working with (Arklin), but the city hasn't finally accepted the gift,'' Braly said. ``The ball is in the city's court to contact Mr. Arklin.''

The oil refinery was California's first, and is one of only two remaining, local historians have said. The refinery suffered damage during the 1994 Northridge Quake, and would need repairs before it could be opened for public tours.

Chevron sold the nine acres and made the city the donation offer as part of an effort to rid itself of nonproducing properties, company officials have said.

When making the donation offer to Santa Clarita, the company stated it would make similar offers to the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy, Los Angeles County or other government agencies that could preserve the site if the city declined.

Other alternatives included selling the site, razing it or fencing it, which would essentially put it on ``long-term hold,'' a company memo to the city states.

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Photo: (Color) The Pioneer Oil Refinery, first built in 1874, could become a museum to complement Newhall's Old West-style redevelopment efforts.

Tom Mendoza/Daily News