Safety. Everyone. Everywhere. Every hour.

With only two weeks to go before the vote tally is announced, I want to publish once again the primary reason I am opposed to Measure P, The Marymount Plan.

As you have had the opportunity to read so many times the title of this post at the end of so many previous posts, I want to re illustrate my points and assertions about why I feel there is no possible mitigation that could find having college students living on the campus of Marymount College safer than where students now live.

Safety.

Overall, the opportunities that would afford greater chances of loss of life, great bodily injury, 'accidents', road closures, personal physical aspects of crime associated with dorm life, and collateral problems associated with on-campus housing, would be so much greater if students lived 24 hours per day, seven days per week on the campus of Marymount College, Palos Verdes.

There has been no dispute or challenge to the above statements. Statistical facts concerning other colleges having on-campus housing bare this out.

There has been no reasonable discussion or debate on the overall topic of safety between supporters of Meausre P and folks like me who oppose Measure P for safety reasons.

Everyone.

Mr. James Little lost his life as the result of his underage over drinking then driving on Palos Verdes Drive East.

His passenger received injuries and has since recovered.

Mr. Kamil Szybinski perished as the result of a deliberate death or suicide after recording in great detail, his problems with dorm life as a student attending Marymount College.

His death is tragic and was avoidable had Mr. Szybinski taken or had been provided steps that could have saved him and his family and friends this horrible tragedy.

A resident living in the area of Ganado Drive was critically injured in a collision caused by a distracted Marymount student who was driving her own vehicle rather than seeking transportation using the shuttle service provided by Marymount College.

An unconfirmed but not denied report has surfaced that within the first months of this current school year, a Marymount Security Guards foot was run over by a Marymount Student operating a motor vehicle.

As evidenced by video on Youtube, some underage students attending Marymount College do as so many other College students do and drink alcoholic beverages in excess and can cause themselves and others injuries.

The impacts of additional crimes being committed by and against students and local residents by persons who live on-campus is a national statistic.

Reliable statistics gathered for over a decade by concerned citizens have shown that everyone living at or near on-campus student housing is negatively impacted by that type of housing in terms of safety and personal security.

Concerned Citizens Coalition/Marymount College has records indicating evidence of wrongdoings, infractions, and injuries caused or relating to Marymount College Students on other students, neighbors, or other persons.

Everywhere.


In the area of the Palos Verdes North off-campus housing site, miles from Marymount College, at least two Marymount Students were injured in a traffic collision some months back.


Some years ago two foreign Marymount Students lost their lives as the result of a horrendous crime in the Ralph's parking lot on Western Avenue.


The Palos Verdes North off-campus housing site would not be closed even if Measure P passes and although Marymount has claimed for some time they would close down and sell the Pacific Heights off-campus housing location, there is no reasonable statement that suggests the College would keep its word on that.

Marymount College sits on land along a long angled curve of Palos Verdes Drive East and not that far from a set of switchbacks that lead to Palos Verdes Drive South, both roadways being basically single lane routes in each direction.

The College also sits along the widest portion of Palos Verdes Drive East which is a narrow, curving, elevation changing, and mostly free of sidewalks as it extends between Palos Verdes Drive North and Palos Verdes Drive South.

To suggest that any portion of Palos Verdes Drive East is a fairly safe roadway for young adults to drive on, especially when the majority of Marymount's students do not live near roadways of this road's type would be inaccurate at best and dangerous at worst, I believe.

I began driving a motor vehicle on Palos Verdes Drive East in May, 1971 after spending years traveling along all four sections of Palos Verdes Drive as a passenger or as a bicycle rider or even as a hiker. I believe I have the experience and expertise to offer the opinion that driving around the peninsula requires better skills than average drivers have and much better skills and knowledge than young college students probably away from home for the first time, have.

I also have some written evidence suggesting that the number of Marymount students who completed the 'required' driver training course at the college is and was "zero" according to a Sheriff's Department report.

Everywhere also includes the very busy and congested Western Avenue on the east side of Rancho Palos Verdes.

Everywhere also includes the cliffs overlooking the Pacific Ocean where a Marymount student fell or was pushed to his death.

Every Hour.

In Marymount's history some students lived on campus in dorms when the college was located at its former site along Hawthorne Blvd.

I do not know much about the history concerning living on the Marymount Campus before it was split off between what is now Marymount College, Palos Verdes and Loyola Marymount College.

What I do know is that there are a great number of students living on the campus of Loyola Marymount University and that a good portion of the campus is active 24 hours a day, 7 days per week.

Currently and using the approval of The Marymount College Facilities Expansion Project, Marymount College does not and would not have activity on it around the clock and throughout the calendar.

College students whether they live on campus or not have jobs off campus and that is and no different than what happens and would happen with students attending Marymount College.

Even though a policy has been suggested that would support 'quiet hours' at Marymount College, that is already insured in Marymount's current state and would be guaranteed under the guidelines of The Marymount College Facilities Expansion Project, but NOT The Marymount Plan.

I have not seen or read any restriction within The Marymount Plan that would not allow a 21-year old Marymount student, residing in an on-campus dorm room from owning and possessing a Harley Davidson Motorcycle and be restricted from operating it at any time during the day or night.

I have also not seen or read any information that suggested the campus would be 'locked down' during any hour, day or night, such than motor vehicles, visitors, or students would be restricted from entering or leaving the campus at any time.

Every hour includes those hours when dense fog hampers driving near the college.

Every hour included all hours of every holiday when students or even others are in residence on the campus of Marymount College.

Every hour includes all the time Marymount Students would use local and neighborhood roads to go from place to place, including along Western Avenue where at least one restaurant is or soon will be conducting business by remaining open all the time.

The Marymount College Student Code of Conduct has been around for a long time. It was around when Mr. Little drank and drove his car to his death.

It was supposed to be enforced by "Drunk Jojo" and her friends viewed in the video on Youtube.

It is a Code of Conduct not unlike similar codes for other institutions and its enforcement is not guaranteed to provide the safest situations possible.

There have been students disciplined up to and including expulsion from Marymount College do to breaches in Marymount's Code of Conduct, but losing the income from students removed from Marymount during a time of construction and implementation, is highly unlikely at this point and in my opinion.

I would have much less safety concerns if the student population at Marymount College was even as little as 60% South Bay students, but that will never happen.

Actually and factually, based on recorded comments from Marymount's former President, Marymount College's goal is to seek out and bring to the Los Angeles area students from all over the world and other States to provide them the opportunities of establishing experiences in Los Angeles and being provided a distant educational experience far from their normal homes.

Dr. McFadden specifically named the daughter of Nebraska Senator Ben Nelson in 1996 as an example of who Marymount is attempting to attract.

I am quite sure Ms. Nelson was very inexperienced in driving standards and practices on The Hill compared to where she came from, in Nebraska.

Dr. McFadden even emphasized Ms. Nelson by name as a major reason Marymount was and still is seeking on-campus housing.

With shuttle buses driven by experienced and trained drivers instead of using personal vehicles to get between the off-campus housing sites and Marymount College, it has proven to be a safer way of commuting than having so many personal motor vehicles traveling to and from the Marymount campus every day.

Even though Marymount students living in the two off-campus housing sites are strongly encouraged to use the shuttle service, there are still far more vehicles at Marymount each day than the number of locally residing students which proves that there are still many off-campus housing residents who still bring their vehicles to and from Marymount and their off-campus dorms.

Many Marymount College Measure P ads state that "traffic will not increase" or even "traffic will decrease" those statements are not borne out by facts paid for by Marymount College to produce.

Daily vehicle trip generation rates would INCREASE each and every school day and the hours of those trips would go from what it is now to 24 hours per day, seven days per week, should Measure P prevail and on-campus housing is opened.

The bottom line for me is that there has been and probably cannot be any repudiation to my assertions and other claims that housing students on Marymount's main campus is unsafe compared to how things are today or with The Marymount College Facilities Expansion Project's completion.

I continue to offer for discussion and/or debate my points versus whatever points and or facts individuals who disagree with me wish to bring up. I am willing to discuss these matters at a time convenient to all parties.

So, in the absence of any real opposition or disclaim of my assertions and facts based solely on safety, I continue to assert that having students living on the campus of Marymount College would be unsafe and that no mitigation could be provided to create any situation that would alleviate that unsafe level to anything close to acceptable to me and many others, I believe.

I will not put a price on any death or injury that could result from having students living on the Marymount campus but I will assert that Marymount and its supporters could never offer enough money to anyone for any death or serious injury caused at least in part by having students residing on Marymount's campus.

Please vote "No" on Measure P, The Marymount Plan.

Safety. Everyone. Everywhere. Every hour.