PLANNERS APPROVE PRIVATE SCHOOL CHRISTIAN ACADEMY OK'D IN HAPPY VALLEY.

Byline: Heather MacDonald Staff Writer

SANTA CLARITA - Over the objections of dozens of Happy Valley residents, the city Planning Commission on Tuesday night approved plans for a private Christian academy in the semirural Newhall neighborhood.

Voting 4-1, the commission decided that NorthPark Christian Academy's plan to hold second-, third- and fourth-grade classes at the Seventh-Day Adventist Church on Valley Street would not disrupt the community with excessive traffic and noise.

``Any time there is change it is unsettling, but I think it is unlikely that the elementary school would add anything other than value to the neighborhood,'' said Commissioner Rick Winsman.

Commissioner Tim Burkhart cast the lone dissenting vote, saying he could not support a project opposed by all of the church's immediate neighbors.

``It's not going to be a good fit,'' Burkhart said. ``There is no trust between the church and the neighborhood.''

Homeowner Gayne Pinto told the commissioners that she feared for the safety of her children, who walk to and from school along Valley Street, which does not have sidewalks or streetlights. ``You are putting my children at a significantly higher risk of being injured or killed, and I don't see a good reason for it,'' Pinto said.

Others warned that the hubbub generated by the children would make their back yards uninhabitable.

``The constant noise will disrupt my life completely,'' said David Krieger, whose property abuts the church.

City planners assured the commission that cars traveling to and from the schools would not clog two-lane Valley Street or pose a safety hazard.

In addition, a block wall and a 25-foot buffer zone will reduce the amount of noise created by the children during lunch, recess and physical education classes.

In addition, the Planning Commission ordered the church and school to meet regularly with neighbors to discuss any problems arising from the operation of the school.

The commissioners also pledged to review the school's permit quarterly to make sure the school and church fulfilled the promises they made to nearby homeowners.

The fledgling Christian academy has outgrown its current home at Valencia Open Bible Church, with nearly 50 students expected to start school Sept. 5.

School officials expect to offer fifth grade for the first time next school year, and hope to have a permanent home for the academy built in Valencia within two years. The dispute is the latest flare-up in a neighborhood where residents have fought to preserve what they perceive as the area's bucolic charm. Just two years ago, Happy Valley homeowners defeated a plan to open Valley Street at Calgrove Boulevard to all motorists.

Heather MacDonald, [phone]

heather.macdonald(at)dailynews.com