Auditorium plans raise traffic, parking concerns

Angelique Flores

HUNTINGTON BEACH -- Residents around Mesa View Middle School are

concerned about a proposed auditorium, which they say may cause traffic

congestion and car-packed streets.

Ocean View School District is planning to build an

auditorium/gymnasium at each of its four middle school -- Marine View,

Mesa View, Spring View and Vista View. The facilities will include two

basketball courts, three to six volleyball courts, TaraFlex Olympic Games

sports flooring, locker rooms, bleachers, a 40-foot stage and seating to

fit 1,700. Construction on the gyms will begin in July.

The district plans to use the buildings for school programs during the

week, from September through June. The gyms will also be available for

community use.

Some residents near Mesa View are concerned the large auditorium will

draw too many outside organizations, causing increased traffic and

parking to spill over onto nearby residential streets.

“Why are they cramming this into our neighborhood?” Rory DeAngelis

asked. DeAngelis lives on Jardines Drive, a street that borders the Mesa

View.

The district said the auditoriums will have more than one use, hosting

basketball, soccer and baseball games and the eighth-grade promotion

ceremonies. The auditoriums will also be used to better accommodate

back-to-school night, open house and drama presentations.

During school hours, the gym will free up the cafeteria for the

students to use at lunch time.

Any of the new events at Mesa View will have less of an effect than

the youth soccer groups that already use the school’s fields, Supt. Jim

Tarwater said.

The district has received support from more than 100 Mesa View

community members. Parents who have children at the middle school realize

the need for the facility, Tarwater said.

The maximum capacity seating of 1,700 would most likely be filled only

during the promotion ceremonies, which have been held in the past at

Golden West College or Ocean View High School.

“It’s difficult to care for our own parent and student needs because

we have to work around [Golden West’s or Ocean View’s schedules],”

Tarwater said.

DeAngelis said she doesn’t want the facility in her neighborhood. The

traffic caused by visitors would be a disruption to the community, she

said.

“There’s no need for them... just for a middle school promotion?” she

said. “I don’t think a graduation from a middle school is a big deal.”

Yolanda Bateson, a resident who lives on Vista Del Sol, is concerned

about parking.

“We’re not a shopping center, and that’s exactly what this tract has

turned [out] to be,” she said. “Our tract is a parking lot for whenever

anyone’s out there for games on Saturdays and Sundays.”

Any time there’s change, there’s concern, Tarwater said.

“The community members’ concern is a legitimate concern, not just for

auditorium use but for day-to-day school use,” said Tarwater, who added

that he wants to work with the community. “On the other hand, we have to

let our youth use our schools. By law, they have the right to use it.

“There will be more activity, but that’s the appropriate place to have

the activity.”

Tarwater expects that the parking areas the campus already has will be

able to accommodate the added visitors. The district plans to add about

50 to 70 new parking spaces on the school grounds.

During events that draw a larger crowd, visitors will be allowed to

park on the lawn. The school doesn’t expect more than a few hundred

people to attend school events.

“It is busy around schools because you have games on Saturdays,

regular practice during the week. Most of the community is supportive and

understands that,” Tarwater said.

Though some don’t want the facility in their neighborhood at all,

Paula Baird said she is only worried about how the community will use the

gym.

“This is not a community center. We didn’t buy into a community

center, we bought into a neighborhood school,” said Baird, an 11-year

resident on Avilla Lane.

But not everyone is as concerned about what the auditorium might mean

for the neighborhood.

“It’s a school, and the benefits of having a school in the

neighborhood far outweigh having traffic,” said Mike Monroe, a resident

on Jardines Drive.

Tarwater said he encourages residents to call and share their concerns

with him.

“I hope to reduce anxiety,” Tarwater said.