Rancho Palos Verdes Residents Fight Marymount College Expansion

Marymount College, the small Catholic liberal arts institution that has sat on the Palos Verdes bluffs since 1975 wants to expand. 'Not so fast,' say local residents. For years students have had to commute to the 26-acre campus from the dormitories in San Pedro. And the college has been fighting to accommodate them on-site for just as long. But locals stringently oppose the idea, claiming it will bring unwanted noise and traffic to the tony burg.

In the mean time, Marymount has received the green light on plans for a smaller, somewhat unrelated project - a $40 million gym, library and parking addition. But the band of angry locals, who call themselves the Concerned Citizens Coalition, have even threatened to bar that move with legal action. The city of Rancho Palos Verdes already imposes strict regulations on campus size, from the proportion of land that must be kept open space (two thirds), to the student body (800). Because of neighborhood opposition, the college contracted its initial plans from a 3-story 300 student complex to a 2-story 200 student dorm. But the neighbors wouldn't budge.

According to the city's traffic consultant, the construction of on-campus dorms would actually reduce the number of cars entering and leaving the hilltop campus because much fewer students would be commuting. But the real threat to community members is the idea of rowdy college kids partying til the wee hours on their quaint streets. It's tough to blame them but hey, who really wants to take a shuttle in and out of campus everytime you want to hit the cafeteria?