Aldermen caught in middle as university deals with growing pains

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By Tory Brecht | Saturday, August 16, 2008 11:30 PM CDT | () comments

Three Davenport aldermen whose wards include neighborhoods around St. Ambrose University are fielding an increasing number of constituent complaints as the school expands outward.

The growing pains put the elected officials in an awkward situation. On one hand, they value the university as an economic engine and provider of stability to the central city. On the other, they are the first to hear complaints when long-established businesses and residential areas are torn down or face other problems as the number of students increases.

“It can be difficult,” said 5th Ward Alderman Bill Lynn, who is also an instructor at St. Ambrose. “I’ve been teaching at the university for about 14 years. It’s only been in the last three to four that we’ve seen much strain between the university and the surrounding neighborhoods.”

Lynn and aldermen Barney Barnhill, 7th Ward, and Ray Ambrose, 4th Ward, agree that the two biggest complaints from residents center on parking and partying.

On-campus housing has failed to keep up with student population growth, and more and more students are living in nearby rental units. Neighbors have complained that some landlords are stacking too many students in the former single-family homes, even though city ordinance limits the number of nonrelated roommates to five. They also say that noise, drinking and general disregard for property maintenance is on the upswing.

“The message I get from neighbors is all they want is for the students to be good neighbors,” Ambrose said. “There are some challenges.”

In the past, Barnhill said, university officials were slow to address concerns or meet with neighbors. That has improved dramatically since Dean of Students Tim Phillips and new President Sister Joan Lescinski have come on board, the aldermen said.

“They’re starting to do a better job keeping neighbors informed of their plans,” Barnhill said. “That had been a problem, but on the positive side, they now are starting to be very cooperative and are listening.”

Two meetings with neighbors have been held in the last year, hosted at Rogalski Center on campus, which were attended by 50 or so residents and university officials. Another meeting is scheduled for Monday, where neighbors will get a chance to ask Lescinski questions and express their concerns.

The university also has hired off-duty police officers to patrol streets near campus on Friday and Saturday nights.

Barnhill said some responsibility also lies with the city. More attention will be paid to ensuring landlords are complying with the five-tenant rule and they will be warned that licenses will be revoked if there are numerous noise or other nuisance complaints.

In the long-term, growth at St. Ambrose can be a catalyst to improving conditions in central Davenport, the aldermen said.

Lynn and Ambrose have urged university officials to aim their expansion efforts south of Locust, rather than always west and north. Lynn thinks the Hilltop Neighborhood could make an ideal “campus town” environment as St. Ambrose grows southward and Palmer College grows northward.

“They are willing to look at it, but they want some assurance from the city that something will be done to address crime issues in the neighborhood,” Lynn said. “And I share those concerns.”

Being put in the position of mediating between the university and unhappy neighbors can be vexing, but it comes with the territory, Lynn said.

But it’s better to have growing pains than to see a school fade away, as his former place of employment, Marycrest College, did.

“It’s a mixed blessing, and it’s a problem that almost every university in an older city has,” Lynn said. “People around (the campus) do a good job accepting (those issues), but they don’t like being surprised. We’re telling the university they really have to open up lines of communication with the neighborhood.”

Tory Brecht can be contacted at (563) 383-2329 or tbrecht@qctimes.com.