As Adelphi University President Dr. Robert Scott tried to persuade the Garden City village board to grant a special use permit to build a new three-story residence hall on the northwest portion of campus, he reiterated "We want to be a good neighbor."

Brompton Road residents, however, said his actions speak louder than his words. In fact, many said Scott is not taking their property values into consideration and said they want Scott and "his entourage" to go back to the drawing board.

"I find it hard to believe that a more acceptable spot to erect another residence hall could not be found on that large campus," said a Brompton Road resident. He presented a petition, signed by 77 residents who live in close proximity to the university and are not in favor of the proposal, to the village board during Thursday's hearing. Although he has "no hostility toward Adelphi," the resident is "extremely disturbed" by the serious threat to his tranquility and livability. "This proposal is inconsistent to their vow of being a 'good neighbor.'"

Another resident said everybody knows what goes on around college dorms. "A new residence hall is going to present more noise no matter what the experts say," he said, "and this proposal shows a total lack of respect on Adelphi's part to its neighbors."

Michael Lynch, a real estate expert who works out of Huntington, testified to the effect the new residence hall would have on the surrounding community. "Property values along Brompton Road have already been well established," Lynch said. "The addition of one new dorm will not have a negative effect on property values because of the extensive screening already provided in that area."

A 17-year village resident, who read her husband's letter of dismay, said the new dormitory does not benefit the amount of people it will have an effect on. "If they want to expand, let them expand on a satellite campus," she said.

An Adelphi University alumna who received a master's degree in social work believes a win-win situation could result if other areas of the campus are considered.

However, James Kosloski, executive director of Facilities at Adelphi, said officials seriously considered other areas and felt the location in question would enable the college to function properly. "The east side of the campus was considered. We opted not to use that area due to many reasons, including safety issues," he said.

In order to fulfill the university's mission, first convened back in 1929, Adelphi needs to erect another dormitory, Scott added. "In order to achieve academic integrity with fiscal stability, our plan is to get out of debt. This requires us opening the dorm by July 2003," Scott said. "If we miss that date and lose students as we did this fall, it will be very devastating for the university."

Although Scott said he understands the residents' noise concern, his neighbors feel he isn't aware of what goes on around his campus because he doesn't live in the president's home, located at 55 Brompton Road.

"My wife and I have a pre-existing home," he said. "Adelphi is bringing 55 Brompton Road up to par and I apologize that my neighbors don't see our light on more often."

Adelphi University was founded in Garden City in 1929. The last new building on the campus opened in 1985. According to reports, 2,716 full-time undergraduate students attend Adelphi from 34 states and 40 foreign countries as of this past fall. Of those 2,716 students, 864 of them live on campus.

"Adelphi is the most selective private institution on Long Island. To continue to attract and retain high caliber students who have their choice of quality schools, Adelphi must provide additional residences," Petra Ludwig, Adelphi's new director of public affairs, said.

"The proposed residence hall is located on the western side of the campus, which is well screened by mature trees, approximately 35 feet in height. The building itself will be professionally landscaped to Adelphi's and Garden City's current high standards."

Committed to the beautification and upgrading of its campus, Adelphi has invested over $25 million toward this goal since 1996. The proposed new residence hall will be an additional $14 million investment Adelphi will make in its campus.

The dormitory's "footprint" will be 16,000-square feet or approximately one-third of an acre, Ludwig said. The total area of the building will be 45,000 square feet on three floors. The current residence halls are all four-story buildings.

Adelphi's Garden City campus is known for its architecturally superior buildings by such renowned firms as McKim Meade & (Stanford) White and internationally celebrated architect Richard Neutra.

"The new construction will continue the same tradition of quality architecture. The prominent architectural firm of Fletcher-Thompson, whose credits include the Merchant Marine Academy in Kings Point and Fairfield University, has designed the proposed residence hall," she said.

Construction is planned to begin in late spring 2002 (preferably in April) with completion in July/August 2003. This is the first new construction in over 17 years on the campus, according to Ludwig. "This residence hall is urgently needed or Adelphi will begin to lose students and become a less viable institution," she said.

In order for the project to go forward, Adelphi needs to get a special use permit from the village board of trustees in addition to the Planning Commission's and Architectural Design Review Board's approval. The last step in the process would be the trustees' final site plan approval.

Prior to 1989, the university had a much broader expansion plan that involved erecting six new buildings. This proposal generated controversy, especially among the university's immediate neighbors.

Although the university eventually received a building permit for its project, the buildings were never built. That permit, good for a year, was renewed several times until it finally expired back in 1995.

Jeff Forchelli, Adelphi's lawyer, said the college's original master plan, which included building three dormitories and a student activity center in the college's center quad, was approved by the board in 1993.

"The current proposal before you is substantially smaller than what was envisioned back in 1988 and approved in 1993," he said.

Trustee John Mauk explained to residents that even if the board were to grant the special use permit, the application still needs to go before the village's Planning Commission (PC) and Architectural Design Review Board (ADRB) before it returned to the board for final site plan approval.

"Adelphi University does benefit this community greatly and I commend Dr. Scott and his staff for bringing the university back to what it once was," he said. "But by the same token, I am concerned with residents' complaints regarding safety and noise."

This latest application is unrelated to the university's previous master plan. The board of trustees voted 7 to 1 Thursday night in favor of referring the application back to the PC for advice. Mayor Robert Lewis voted against the application, saying he believes Adelphi has alternative sites that could be looked at. "Adelphi has not demonstrated the hardships that have been duly noted here tonight and I am not voting in favor of this project," Mayor Lewis said.

The board, in referring the application back to the PC, deferred their decision until next month's Feb. 7 meeting.

Mike Filippon, building superintendent, said the board's approval is an "enabling step" for Adelphi's application to move forward to the PC and ADRB before going back to the board for the final go ahead. After the PC and ADRB reviews the application, it could go back to the board in March. Adelphi could get a building permit in the beginning of April.

Forchelli said, "Adelphi would be happy if the board of trustees impressed on the Planning Commission to hold a special meeting and expeditiously bring recommendations back to the board by the Feb. 7 meeting in order for them to make a final decision."