TEMECULA -- Temecula officials want to quell concern among some Meadowview residents who have begun to receive notices from the French Valley Airport regarding a proposed land use change.

The change, however, actually stems from the city revising its land-use map, which, at least on paper, will alter how some properties in Temecula are designated.

"We've been getting a lot of panicked calls asking if the airport was going to change its policies or flight patterns," said Emery Papp, the city's senior planner, who began receiving phone calls from some of the 902 homeowners in the north Temecula neighborhood last week. "That's not the case. The (Riverside County Airport Land Use Commission) just wants to make sure that our land use is consistent with theirs."

The notices sent out by the commission that oversees the French Valley Airport in late December indicated that land use changes around the airfield are expected to be considered at the Riverside County Airport Land Use Commission meeting next Thursday.

The notices do not state that the subject before the commission is a map change and has left some recipients with the impression that there could be future changes to the zoning near the airport.

The cause of the hubbub is that 170 parcels scattered around the city aren't accurately portrayed on its general plan land-use map, the city's blueprint for development. The map doesn't reflect what is actually on those lots or what is supposed to be there in the future, planning officials have said.

The errors have been in place since 2005 when the City Council adopted a comprehensive update of the city's general plan. But when the final map prepared by a consultant arrived, city administrators began to discover that many additional incorrect changes had been made.

"We don't know who did what," said Papp. "We're not looking to assign any kind of blame. We're just trying to fix it."

Four of the mislabeled areas fall within the French Valley Airport's 22.8-square-mile zone of influence, which takes in part of northern Temecula. The meadow in Meadowview is incorrectly labeled as low-density residential, but should be classified as open space, Papp said.

"The reason the (land use commission) wants to review our general plan map changes is so we don't build something like a skyscraper in their flight path," he added.

Other misidentified areas on the general plan map that fall under the airport's zone of influence are Chaparral High School, which is shown to be zoned for an industrial park; Riverton Park, which is labeled for residential homes; and the Santa Gertrudis Creek bed, which is zoned commercial, but should be designated as open space.

"All we're doing with the land use map is reflecting what is already on the ground," said Planning Director Debbie Ubnoske.

In August, the Temecula Planning Commission began the process of the map cleanup when it voted to recommend making the appropriate changes. The City Council must also vote on the issue, but cannot move forward without clearance from the Airport Land Use Commission.

"The City Council cannot take action without those findings of consistency," said Assistant City Manager Bob Johnson. "We want the map to be correct; people expect that it is correct. But staff can't just change the map without going through a process that is out there for everyone to see. We can't just change land use as we see fit."

Contact staff writer Nicole Sack at (951) 676-4315, Ext. 2616, or nsack@californian.com.