Notre Dame de Namur University, a private Catholic institution nestled in the small Peninsula city of Belmont, has seen busier days.
Enrollment has been hovering around 200 to 300 students for the past several years, but a plan by educational and economic powerhouse Stanford University to purchase the 46-acre property could boost the student, faculty and staff population to a projected 2,500 — a level the campus hasn’t reached in at least a decade.
The purchase would also expand Stanford’s already massive real estate footprint farther into San Mateo County. In 2019, the university opened its 35-acre health care campus in nearby Redwood City.
The fact that Stanford is gearing up to buy Notre Dame de Namur is not new, but a recently released environmental impact report provides more details about the university’s plans for the campus and how they will affect the surrounding community.
Stanford spokesperson for the Belmont project, Joel Berman, said the takeover would provide many benefits, including restoring the historic and now-shuttered Ralston Mansion, a popular wedding venue, maintaining community use of Koret Field, and improving transportation along the busy Ralston Avenue corridor.
Stanford would also coordinate with Belmont on an “educational initiative” that would benefit the local community.
“Stanford and the city are continuing to coordinate on other community contributions, including support for the city’s plan for Barrett Community Center,” Berman said, referring to a recreation center up the street.
In a recent planning commission meeting, Belmont residents, although not opposed to the plan, expressed some concern over traffic on Ralston Avenue, the city’s main thoroughfare, and the environmental impact of Stanford’s plans. But overall, many residents were excited over the possibility of bringing life back to the now-sleepy campus.
Belmont Vice Mayor Gina Latimerlo, an alumnae who graduated from NDNU in 1998, said the city was largely supportive of Stanford’s plans to buy the historic campus.
“The sentiment on the council feels very positive and very collaborative. It feels like we’re walking into a pretty sweet deal here,” said Latimerlo. “Stanford is the pinnacle of education, so it’s a nice thing for us.”
Regarding traffic concerns, Berman said the increased daytime activity Stanford would bring would be a restoration of the population NDNU was handling in 2013. “So Stanford will not be increasing the intensity of activity on the campus from when it was last being fully utilized,” he said.
Talks to purchase the campus began in 2021 with Stanford having until 2025 to finalize the deal.
NDNU, which has been struggling with its enrollment numbers for several years, is in the process of transitioning to a university focused on offering graduate programs and undergraduate degree completion programs online.
“Should they purchase the land in 2025, we would be looking for a new campus facility,” said NDNU spokesperson Kurt Allen. “We continue to be a separate institution and a private Catholic graduate program school.”
NDNU is not the only small struggling college in the region. In 2022, Mills College in Oakland merged with Boston’s Northeastern University. The merger ended the storied Oakland institution’s 170-year history as one of the nation’s last women-only universities.
The NDNU purchase will only affect the college, while both Notre Dame High School and Notre Dame Elementary School will continue to operate nearby on the Belmont site. Allen said the new NDNU campus would likely remain within San Mateo County, though it is still premature to say exactly where.
Tessie Madrinan, a retired IT analyst and 40-year resident of Belmont, said she was excited about the opportunities the proposed Stanford takeover would provide for residents and surrounding communities.
“Higher education opportunities for local students is pretty exciting, and economic growth,” Madrinan said. “It will bring in new students, new faculty, new staff and boost local businesses.”
Specific programs the campus would offer will be identified once the City Council approves long-term plans for revitalizing the campus, Berman said.
Madrinan said she looks forward to the restoration plans and the public use of the campus but hopes the city and Stanford will manage traffic levels and ensure public safety with the expected increase in foot traffic.
“I think more concerning is that there will be more people coming in and out (of campus). So we have to manage the traffic and safety well,” Madrinan said.
Latimerlo, who got married at Ralston Hall, said that with the Stanford purchase, the economic and cultural benefits the school would bring outweigh any potential costs.
“I think it would make Belmont a more exciting and active environment, especially if you’re bringing in younger folks,” she said. “While Stanford is a nonprofit (and nontaxable) institution, it would definitely help the smaller business owners, who are a vital part of this community.”
Community members have 45 days to submit their public comments on the project before the final environmental impact report is published. The council is expected to consider Stanford’s proposal for approval sometime next spring.