The Issues of COD Expansion - Part I

Material staging area at our doorstep!  There is no building construction in the area on the left. The college has acknowledged it's decision to use this as a "material staging area" for construction on the campus. In other words, soil, etc. related to other projects on the 273 acre campus are trucked to this location and dumped here. This is within 100 feet of a nearby community and in the opinion of the college is the best location. It certainly doesn't interfere with the image the college likes to project along Fawell/22nd Street. That is, I suspect, the real motivation by our PR conscious college. This "staging"  began in the late summer of 2011. At the time, we were told that "parking lot improvements" were underway! It soon became apparent that something was amiss.
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I prepared and mailed several letters as part of the College of DuPage petitioning process to the DuPage County Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA). These totaled 12 pages.  I will present in this and following posts some of the issues raised in the letters, as well as the information contained therein. This was sent to the College Board of Trustees and the ZBA. A legal representative of the college responded and this information has been forwarded to the board of BLMH. I am considering further independent action.

This post includes diagrams, photos, college promotional materials and so on related to the college expansion program. In 2011 that was a "Parking Improvement Program." Current plans call for demolishing  existing parking.

The issues neighbors have with the college are straight-forward and understandable. The 273 acre main campus of the college is in a residential area and entirely within the boundaries of Glen Ellyn and has a 60137 zip code. The college has taken the position that it is exempt from Village codes and has seen the normal processes of approval as "interference" in its internal affairs. The college is perfectly capable of monitoring itself! To the college management and the Board of Trustees, it seems that the impact of the college on the surrounding area is of no consequence.

The ZBA affirmed that the college is a residential area, which is to say "R-1". Such zoning is specifically "R-1 Single Family Residence District." The college is therefor under all codes applicable to a residential area. In other words, it's not industrial or commercial. Furthermore, I see this as a vindication of some of the issues raised by surrounding communities. There are ordinances for residential areas. These include public nuisances, wetlands and wetland buffers, and so on. There are additional county requirements for storm water management, runoff and so on.

Neighbors?
As the chairman of the Zoning Board of Appeals stated at the ZBA meeting on Thursday, June 7 "The college has been here for 45 years." What he failed to mention was the fact the college exists in an established residential neighborhood which has also been in existence for decades.

For example, BLMH was built in the period 1974-1978.

I would think the college would take the impact of its plans into account when building in an established, residential community and would follow the conventional norms for studies about flooding, traffic, environmental impact, and so on, before proceeding with its "internal" plans. But it apparently does not, and has not seen the need for such studies, or the approval of the governing bodies within the community in which is resides. That is in a nutshell the apparent reason the college decided to sue the Village of Glen Ellyn, in which it resides.

Parking and Traffic
The college has extensive single level parking on the main campus. It boasts a student enrollment of about 27,000. As a two year community college, that student population clogs the streets with automobiles, with North-South access via Park Blvd and Lambert. East-West streets are not through streets so traffic flow is congested and restricted. To give the reader some idea of the magnitude of the traffic problem, this is equal to the entire population of Glen Ellyn, the village in which the college resides. In other words, it is as if the entire population of the village drove into the campus each morning and then left each afternoon and evening. That actually understates the problem, because a substantial number of Glen Ellyn residents are not old enough to drive an automobile. So it might be realistic to state that the traffic to COD each day is the equivalent of all of the automobiles registered in Glen Ellyn and Wheaton!

Of course, the college attracts students from the entire surrounding area. So the streets of the Village, and of Wheaton immediately to the west, bear this traffic flow, and it is monitored by the police of the Village of Glen Ellyn and City of Wheaton. Issuing traffic citations may regulate the traffic, or at the very least, maintain some order. Other costs, including street maintenance, are also born by the residents of the neighboring communities.

There have been complaints of parking overflow into nearby neighborhoods. This has promoted communities in the neighborhood of the campus to change adjacent streets into "No Parking" zones. Of course, the tax paying residents suffer from this. As one stated during recent hearings, he can no longer park on the street in front of his house.

The college apparently acknowledged the problem in 2011 and advertised two parking improvements to be completed in 2011. Click on the image below to enlarge:

The parking improvements labelled "Stage 1" on the western edge of the campus in the yellow area in the above diagram, was completed in Fall of 2011.

This parking is denoted as "College 7" on the official college documents.

In the Spring of 2012, plans were released to demolish a portion of  the newly constructed parking. Here is a photo of the southern half of "college 7" parking as it existed at the time of this post. A report that this area had been demolished was inaccurate. There is construction underway immediately to the east, in an area which was defined as part of a parking improvement project "Stage 2" for completion November 15, 2011.  The parking area shown in the photo below is to be removed to create the space for the newly announced CMC building:
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That "CMC" building has been promoted throughout the hearings as one of several "existing" structures or "existing" projects on the campus.  As of today, no such building exists, nor has ground been broken.

College 7 Parking Lot Surprise - 2011
In the fall of 2011 and unknown to the neighbors was the addition of a "detention" or "retention" pond, as part of the "Parking Lot Improvements, Phase I" at the college. Residents of BLMH became concerned when an unusual excavation began within 100 feet of homes in our complex.

Our management approached the college and was initially directed to the "Parking Improvement Project" promotional piece shown above. However, management persisted and we were ultimately provided with two drawings. Surprise, the college was building a retention pond on our property line!

However, unknown to us, the college changed direction and decided to use this area for another purpose. It has become a "material staging area" in the mumbo-jumbo, legalize parlance that the college prefers to use to confuse the unwary. We had figured this out last year. The movable conveyor belt, designed to take material conveyed from the discharge of dump-trucks via small, front-end loaders such as "bobcats" was a give-away. Only after a 7-page letter to the "Board of Trustees" of the college, did we get an acknowledgement of this reality. The final photo in this post shows the situation in March, 2012. In that photo and others on this post, the "conveyor belt" is clearly visible.

Here is a reproduction of a portion of the information we were provided. Of particular interest is the location of Building "M" and the parking area "College 7" which is what was built in the fall of 2011, and the "Pond 9" which has been only partially completed:

Failure of the College to Meet Published Plans
The pond, which is called "Pond 9" was a complete surprise. However, the college representatives assured the management and the board of BLMH that work would be completed in 2011 as scheduled, and a representative even attended the September 8, 2011 association board meeting. We were assured that a green and tree lined "retention" area, immediately on our property line,  would be completed in 2011. That did not occur.

Here is an example of what the college is capable of, if it chooses to be. This is the pond east of Building M. We have been re-assured that a bermed pond will be completed in the area designated "Pond 9."

The "Pond 9"  "retention" is shown in the above drawing and it is unclear if there were any permits or studies involved in the decision making process of the College. Construction of the "pond" began in the fall of 2011 on the far western edge of the yellow "Stage 1" area in the above diagram. This "pond" will eventually be constructed within 100 feet of existing homes in an open space that was a practice field for the college.

I say "eventually" because at this juncture and with the recent performance and attitude of the college, I have limited confidence in the college, its management or its trustees. That is why I sent a 7-page detailed letter with diagrams, photos from the ground and above, detailing specific concerns.

This is about commitment, acting for the good of the community, and taking actions that are a correlate to one's declarations and word. The college appears to be out of integrity in a number of matters.

Reduced "College 7" Parking and the Construction of the CMC Building
The college never completed the "Pond 9" construction. In May 2012 in an apparent change in direction, the college announced that Building M will be removed, a portion of the College 7 parking will be demolished, and the construction of a new building will occur in place of the parking. We were subsequently advised that the area along our property line is a "material staging area" for the deposit of construction materials discarded from other parts of the college construction. Please note that we were well aware of this in 2011, when a conveyor belt was installed just over the fence, and trucks began discharging dirt, etc. to be built into the mound in the photos. The construction of "pond 9" was suspended in 2011.

Here is the diagram of the area, as submitted to the ZBA as part of the petition of the college. The legal representative for the college repeatedly referred to "existing" projects and blurred the distinction between "existing" structures and "existing" plans when testifying to the ZBA board. The fact is, during the first ZBA meeting it was only "existing" on this concept diagram and perhaps on architectural and other drawings. Of course, that's what lawyers do. "Obfuscate" and "Divert" attention from the facts, or bend the fact to suit the needs of the client, which is, in this case, the College of DuPage.

As you can clearly see, Building M has vanished, the "CMC" building concept now replaces a substantial part of the "College 7" parking. It has a solid border and is defined as a "current project" by the college. The fact that it existed only on paper is apparently a mere inconvenience or detail. The "Pond 9" shown below is treated as existing. It's only partially constructed, but that is a detail, I suppose and is defined as a "new pond" on the college's "Planned Development Site Plan." The water tower to the right of the non-existent treatment building "21" doesn't exist either.  What follows is a recent photo of the "pond 9" area. Since that photo was taken, additional dirt and construction tailings and debris from other parts of the college campus have been dumped in the "pond."

Aerial View of Existing "Building M", "College 7" Parking and "Staging Area - Pond 9"
The following is an aerial photo from Spring of 2012, of an area of the college as it existed in Spring 2012. It includes the existing Building M which has been removed from the "Planned Development Site Plan" shown above. There is no "CMC" building, and the "College 7" parking is considerably larger than in the "Planned Development Site Plan." The south end of the practice fields has been replaced with site debris from other construction at the college. BLMH and a portion of the two lakes are to the left of the construction and the "Soccer Field". The COD controlled wetlands are immediately south of the "construction" related area.

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Ref: Google


"Pond 9" and additional construction debris - May 28, 2012
The college continues to bring construction debris and dump it in the alleged location of "pond 9." These are two recent photos. A representative for the college stated on May 21 that the Pond 9 area is being "used, as was planned in the construction contract, as a material staging area." That was not the plan in September 2011 as stated by the college representative, nor was it the plan as per the "Parking Improvement Project" promotional piece circulated by the college earlier in 2011 (see the first diagram in the post). I think concerns of various neighbors in the vicinity of the college are reasonable. Is the current plan "real" or is it simply an "expedient," or a part of the most recent promotional effort of the college?  The college now says that the work on the parking lot is now set for June 16, 2012. The college representative stated in writing that "We anticipate that there will only be topsoil and other construction materials on this site through June 15, 2012."

I hope that is accurate, but I am skeptical. June 15 less than a week away. Will the "Pond 9" area be completed, or will the college continue to treat it as a convenient "dumping ground?" I will continue to monitor the situation in the vicinity of "Pond 9" and the parking areas and the area of the "CMC" building and I will publish photos here.

Click on the photos below to enlarge.

Conclusion of Part I of This Post

The college, which is a "community" college, seems to have forgotten that it serves a community and is a part of that community. My real estate taxes include a 3.5% "fee" which goes directly to this college.

It may be that the Trustees and the Management of the college have decided that they have "outgrown" our quaint community. That is of no matter or consequence. The fact remains, this college resides within our community and benefits directly from taxes collected from the residents.

This may be inconvenient. I assure the college that it has moved from being an "asset" to the neighbors to be at best "an inconvenience." So the feelings are mutual.

Some of our residents are quite upset. They have good reason to be. They pay fees for extensive maintenance of our property, and that includes 15 acres of turf and 800 trees, all of which are cared for, sprayed and treated for disease, and so on. The insult is, the college collects additional fees which it may be argued is not spent wisely, and then trashes our property values, as per the following photo of the "mud pit" they call "Pond 9." Yes, the college has been here for 45 years. That's no reason to be a bad neighbor!

Notes:
1. Some nearby residents are concerned about home values. Having a college adjacent to one's home is not necessarily a problem. Having the college treat the areas of its campus which are not in general view of the public as a dumping ground is a problem. Of course, the college has the right to do whatever it wishes on its property with certain restrictions. Some of those restrictions include noise, nuisance, traffic issues, flooding, environmental issues and of course, strictly legal activities.

2. Beyond the fundamentals of "legal" norms, there are also the conventions of a residential neighborhood. The College is apparently zoned R-1, and that is residential property! There are city and village ordinances. However, in the above photos we see a "loophole" which the college has exploited. The property on the left is within the boundaries of the City of Wheaton. The property on the right is the College of DuPage, which is within the boundaries of the Village of Glen Ellyn. The college took the position that it is not subject to the encumbrances placed upon it by the Village. It sought to extricate itself and is now the problem of the County of DuPage. This puts BLMH in an interesting position. The college to the east, and in the above photos, is no longer under the jurisdiction of the Village of Glen Ellyn. The City of Wheaton has, for its part, avoided involvement in the situation. So BLMH is now in the difficult position of dealing directly and independently with the college, which is not in the same city the association resides in! To further create a problem, the college has been pretty aloof about the problems for the association. Will this change? It is too early and there is insufficient information at present. The response by the attorney representing the college, to my letter to the Board of Trustees is a first step in the right direction. There will need to be additional steps and actions on the part of the college which are correlated to solving the construction related problems on the western boundary of the college.

3.  The impact issues are separate and distinct from the financial issues. Some DuPage County residents are concerned by the borrowing spree of the college and I think that's an appropriate concern. With hundreds of $millions of debt, residents are funding the debt of the college via their real estate taxes. Check your most recent tax bill. Some are concerned that the college is "mortgaging our future" because as the college layers more debt, or "refinances" its overall debt burden increases. The college is proud of its AAA debt rating, but I suspect that is in large measure the result of funding available via our real estate taxes.

4. On June 10, 2012 I added several new photos to substantiate some of the contents of the post. I also edited some of the text to reflect the current reality.