CSUN Stadium Belongs on Campus

Even before a site has been picked or a shovelful of dirt has been turned, some residents around Cal State Northridge have vowed to block construction of a new stadium on the campus. Their wrath was made clear during a meeting last week at which an advisory council studying locations for the new stadium decided to reconsider building it on the school’s North Campus. Plans for a stadium on North Campus were dropped earlier this year so they would not jeopardize development of a biotech research park on the land.

Neighbors have a right to be upset over the about-face. They believe CSUN and President Blenda J. Wilson disregarded their concerns. That may be true, and CSUN has much work to mend relations with its neighbors. But that does not change one simple fact: CSUN is where CSUN’s stadium belongs.

One could argue persuasively that the school erred when it joined the Big Sky Conference, which required construction of a bigger stadium. But if the school is to remain, the stadium should be built to replace the dilapidated stands now used for games. Neighbors should work with school administrators to reduce the side effects a stadium might cause, but their proposed solution of dropping the facility in someone else’s community is no more neighborly than CSUN’s reversals.