Chapman Won’t Link Land Purchase to Law School Site

The Orange Unified School District is finalizing a $2.4-million deal to sell its former headquarters to Chapman University, which has not announced what it will do with the property.

Chapman officials sought to squelch speculation that the school district site will be the new home for its law school, established in September and housed in temporary quarters in Anaheim.

Although he would not rule out the possibility of the law school landing on the new property, Chapman Vice President Gary Brahm said Friday that the site is now an “unlikely” spot for the campus because the federally protected historical building needs extensive reconstruction. And time is running out.

The law school, the first in the county that’s up for accreditation from the American Bar Assn., must have a permanent home before gaining the coveted sanction. Chapman officials have set a date of September 1997 to open the law school’s permanent site.

Brahm would not divulge what Chapman is considering for the site, but he did deny it would be for the business school, as some suggested. He would only say the property would be acquired to address rapidly increasing enrollment.

“Currently, we are thinking of many things for that site,” Brahm said.

The long-running mystery of where the law school will be located continues.

Three cities--Anaheim, Garden Grove and Orange--have been in a tug-of-war for the school. All three cities have been hopeful that the school will bring prestige and economic stimulus to their downtown areas.

Anaheim, Garden Grove and Orange have all floated what the school calls “attractive” offers in hopes of luring the law school to town permanently. And all three have been patiently awaiting a decision.

They apparently will have to wait a little longer.

Brahm said Chapman is still mulling offers.

Orange officials said Friday that they have backed off actively pursuing the school in the past few months because of other financial commitments.

“Orange would very much like to see the law school placed here, but probably could not financially compete to the degree Garden Grove and Anaheim could,” City Manager David L. Rudat said.

Both Anaheim and Garden Grove were optimistic about their chances.

“They still love us,” said George Tindall, the city manager of Garden Grove.

Anaheim officials were equally enthusiastic on Friday. “We’ve had a couple of very positive discussions and we look forward to their decision,” said Richard Bruckner, the city’s redevelopment manager.

“We’re going to take the time it takes to make the best decision for the university,” Brahm said. “It’s a very major decision for the university. Hopefully, we’ll make a decision in the not-too-distant future.”