HAYWARD, California -- After weeks of waiting, students and faculty at Life Chiropractic College West in San Lorenzo, California, got final confirmation that the college's two campus sites and public clinic will move and consolidate under one roof at 25001 Industrial Blvd., Hayward, California.
The $23-million project was unanimously approved by the Hayward City Planning Commission.
The new complex, the former corporate headquarters for the Mervyn's department store chain has 189,000 square feet of space and is located on 11.4 acres of land. The square footage for the new campus is twice that of the existing two campus sites and clinic.
The relocation is a short move, less than six miles from the existing campus in San Lorenzo on the East Bay of the San Francisco peninsula.
The college plans to close escrow on March 4, with construction and renovation work soon to follow. The opening date of the new campus is scheduled for July 2000, the beginning of Life West's summer quarter. The campus is projected to open with approximately 200 staff and faculty members. The projection is for 1,000 students by 2002. The college's public clinic expects to continue to receive close to 200,000 patient visits a year.
Since going through a remarkable growth phase in the mid-1990s when its enrollment spurted to the present 800 students, the college had been conducting a search for a more suitable location since the mid-1980s.
College officials were surprised to learn that there was initial opposition among some of the Hayward city staff and political leadership. The city planners and administration were concerned about losing tax revenues by granting the site for nonprofit educational use.
On January 14, the City of Hayward Planning Commission met to vote on the proposed use permit, but first heard from the supporters of the college. Life West President Dr. Gerard Clum spoke, and nearly two hours of testimonies of 35 supporters were heard: clinic patients; residents; nonprofit spokespersons; commercial real estate agents and developers; educators; bankers; chamber of commerce representatives and neighbors. An estimated 200 additional people were on hand to lend their support to the college.
"Life Chiropractic offers an awful lot of amenities to the city, not to mention the $23 million we would receive today," observed Robert Williams, chairman of the planning commission before voting to approve the project.
The planning commission voted in favor of the college's project by a 4-1 vote. Two weeks later, the planning commission gave their final authorization of the plan with a 5-0 vote.
"We are very grateful for the support and cooperation of everyone involved in this effort," said Dr. Clum.
According to Bay Area Economics, a Berkeley based independent business research company, Life West's direct economic benefit to the city would exceed $9 million annually. The college's employees and students will generate approximately $76,000 annually in direct fiscal benefit to the city of Hayward through sales taxes, various city taxes, and operational and licensing fees.
The college clinic is a proven vital health care resource in the community, providing more than $3 million in health care services at no cost or reduced cost. The clinic provides health care to 1,500 to 1,700 patient visits a week, with more than 1,000 Hayward residents receiving care on a cost-subsidized basis.
Life West also has an commitment to local students through America Reads, a $100,000 a year program that provides tutors to assist the children of Hayward with reading and general academic support.
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