ORANGE : Residents: Chapman Violated City Law

Already embroiled in protests over proposed cuts and program revisions, Chapman College is now facing more objections from residents who say the school has violated city law--and the hard-won trust of neighbors--by making changes to the campus construction plan without notifying them.

After years of protests from residents who said Chapman was slowly encroaching on their neighborhood, the new administration of President Allen E. Koenig included them in developing a plan for the school’s expansion. But now, neighbors charge that the school has deviated from the plan, approved by the City Council in March, 1989, by changing the location of two driveways to the campus.

Instead of keeping the entrances within Chapman property, the driveways are now set to flow onto a public road, which residents said will cause more traffic congestion in the neighborhood.

By modifying the plan without giving the neighbors a chance to appeal the change, the school violated the plan and city ordinance, residents said.

M.J. Martini, a community spokesman and a Chapman alumnus, said the integrity of the plan and the college’s relations with residents are at stake.

“This is a question of whether the specific plan is a viable, workable plan for Chapman to follow or whether it’s just something to keep the neighbors quiet while Chapman does what it pleases,” Martini said.

In August, the college received permission from the city to construct two driveways on Grand Street, but as late as November, residents were shown plans that indicated the entrances would be on campus from Center Street, Martini said. It wasn’t until concrete for one driveway was poured in January that residents learned of the change.