LANCASTER — An approximately 20-acre vacant lot at the northeast corner of 30th Street West and Lancaster Boulevard will be transformed into two proposed residential projects — a 96-unit townhouse community and a 324-unit apartment complex — under a tentative parcel map approved by the Lancaster Planning Commission.

Inland Empire officials are touting the Brightline West bullet train project linking Southern Nevada and Southern California as a “catalyst” for the region’s economy. Officials from the City of Rancho Cucamonga, Metrolink, Omnitrans and others gathered Monday at Cucamonga Station – the southernmost terminus for the train – to give further details about the project, which is expected to break ground in 2024. “This will support an estimated 11,000 jobs for construction of the high-speed rail line,” Rancho Cucamonga Assistant City Manager Elisa Cox said. “This is just a piece of the much larger collaborative effort to make the Inland Empire a global connection point.” Connecting Las Vegas and Southern California by high-speed rail will create tens of thousands of good-paying union jobs, boost our Southern Nevada tourism economy, and finally help us cut down on I-15 traffic,” said Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto after Biden’s announcement. Cortez Masto says the project could eliminate about 3 million cars from Interstate 15 every year, while creating about 35,000 “good-paying union jobs.” White House officials say should be finished in time for the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — The Biden administration on Tuesday said it will give more than $6 billion to a pair of high-speed electric rail routes in the U.S. West, injecting new life into long-stalled projects hailed by supporters as the future of public transportation but bemoaned by critics for their high price tags and lengthy construction times. U.S. senators from California and Nevada said the federal government will give $3 billion for a planned privately-owned route between Las Vegas and the Los Angeles area plus another $3.1 billion for an initial segment of California’s publicly-funded effort to eventually connect Los Angeles and San Francisco.

PALMDALE — Antelope Valley Metrolink riders will have more options for trips starting next month after the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro) Board of Directors on Thursday approved $1.6 million for increased weekday and weekend service and armed security services for late night trains.

LANCASTER — The Lancaster Planning Commission recommended the City Council approve the East Side Overlay zone text amendment and certification of the environmental impact report for an approximately 5,841-acre area.

California High-Speed Rail Authority Bakersfield to Palmdale Project Section.

Final Environmental Impact Report/Environmental Impact Statement.

Appendix 3.13-B: Station Planning, Land Use, and Development Figures

State Sen. Scott Wilk, R-Santa Clarita, voted in support of several bills to reform the California Environmental Quality Act to make building key infrastructure projects in the state easier, Wilk’s office announced Wednesday.

PALMDALE – A new commercial center will be constructed on the corner of Avenue S and 40th St East, and it will include a Chick-fil-A, a Mister Car Wash and other popular retailers, Palmdale city officials announced.

PALMDALE — A Trader Joe’s food assembly and distribution facility is set for development in Palmdale, city officials announced.

PALMDALE — Permits for a trio of drive-thru businesses, including Palmdale’s second Chick-fil-A restaurant, on the northeast corner of 40th Street East and Avenue S were approved by the Planning Commission on Thursday.

Virgin Galactic successfully returned to suborbital space on Thursday morning with its first flight in nearly two years, setting the stage for its first commercial mission, planned for next month. The Mojave-built spacecraft Unity, carrying four Virgin Galactic employees as crew members in addition to two pilots, rocketed to 54.2 miles in altitude during the brief flight.

PALMDALE — The Palmdale Planning Commission will hold a public hearing Thursday on a proposed major modification to a previously approved tentative tract map to subdivide a 4.5-acre parcel into two lots for the purpose of constructing 18 condominium units within two industrial buildings south of Grand Cypress Avenue at the intersection of Delta Lane.

PALMDALE — The California State Transportation Agency has awarded an $8 million grant toward a regional push for a high-speed rail route between Palmdale and the Victor Valley. The grant to the High Desert Corridor Joint Powers Agency, announced last week, matches $8.5 million in Measure M sales tax funds through Los Angeles County for preliminary engineering and other project development activities for the

LANCASTER — The Lancaster Planning Commission approved a tentative tract map for a development of 103 single-family eastside homes during Monday’s meeting. The map by applicant Rodeo Credit Enterprises LLC would subdivide approximately 26 acres at the southeast corner of 30th Street East and Nugent Street.

EDWARDS AFB — NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center at Edwards Air Force Base is one of three agency centers in California, contributing to the $15.2 billion in economic output in the state from the space agency, according to NASA figures.

PALMDALE — The Palmdale Water District’s proposed advanced water treatment plant that would turn recycled water into groundwater will be notable not only as the first of its kind in the Antelope Valley, but also for partnering with a firm to use brine discarded in the treatment process for its carbon-capture technology.

PALMDALE — NASA’s latest X-plane is now a complete structure, as the full tail assembly has been attached to the X-59 at Lockheed Martin’s Skunk Works facility in Palmdale, where the aircraft has been under development.