For nearly two years, Triple Five Group, owner of the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minn., has been eyeing the former Rocketdyne site in Canoga Park.

The parcel sits on a lot across the street from sprawling Westfield Topanga mall and The Village in Warner Center, the area envisioned for massive growth with offices, hotels and thousands of residential homes.

Triple Five is looking at becoming part of that growth, as it expressed interest in building “mostly residential” development on the 47-acre site, according to a company representative.

While the lot at 6633 Canoga Ave. is zoned for residential use, the parcel is tainted with chemicals, trichloroethylene (TCE) and tetrachloroethylene (PCE) left from decades of rocket manufacturing during the Cold War space race. Scientists say the chemicals are known carcinogens.

But the parcel still has the potential of being redeveloped into residential homes, according to officials.

Based on the current condition of the groundwater and vapor, no residential use is allowed at the site, according to state officials. Recently, the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board said the land is eligible for commercial and industrial use only.

Representatives for property owner United Technologies Corp. did not immediately return a request for comment.

Meanwhile, building a residential property on the site may be possible in the future, according to state officials. Yet it could take some time before a potential high-rise urban district would begin forming on the site.

The area’s soil has been recently cleaned up. Meanwhile, the groundwater remediation is “a lot more difficult and takes longer time than the soil cleanup,” according to Renee Purdy, executive officer for Los Angeles Regional Water Board, the agency that oversees the remediation efforts.

“The groundwater cleanup is going to be continuing for some number of years,” Purdy said. “Simultaneously, the property owner may choose to develop some mitigation measures that they can put in place while the groundwater cleanup is ongoing.”

To start building a residential development “there needs to be ongoing groundwater treatment to address the groundwater contamination and soil vapor contamination,” she said. “The site owner would need to develop a soil-vapor mitigation plan.”

As the cleanup proceeds, specifically the groundwater treatment and the development of mitigation measures such as soil vapor barriers, the agency can reevaluate the suitability of the site for residential use, according to Purdy.

The Canoga Park parcel has drawn renewed attention in recent months. Nearly 4,000 residents signed a petition, urging the Regional Water Board to order additional environmental testing of the soil and groundwater.

A group of the West Valley residents and activists gathered near the site last week, calling on elected officials to hold United Technologies Corp. accountable for thorough environmental cleanup.

Activists say the full cleanup to the “appropriate” residential standards is required because if based on contaminated groundwater, its toxins may concentrate inside homes.

The former Rocketdyne site was developed in the mid-1950s for the manufacture of rocket engines, metal molding and engine assembly. United Technologies Corp. acquired the property in 2005.

Purdy, of the Regional Water Board, said the agency can’t provide a specific timeframe on how long it’s going to take to clean up the site to the residential standards. However, one part of the process — the submittal of a soil vapor mitigation plan — could potentially happen “in a relatively shorter timeframe,” she said.

“It’s a process where we’re continually having the responsible party monitor, and we’re evaluating that monitoring data and as necessary having the responsible party adjust the system to make sure the cleanup can happen as expeditiously as possible, but it’s very difficult to put any sort of timeframe on that,” Purdy said.