In academic circles it's known as "town-gown" relations, the sometimes love-hate bond between a university and its host city.

In Davis, the "town-gown" bond between the University of California and many local residents has deteriorated into open hostility as the university pursues two controversial projects -- a new housing development and a high-security infectious diseases laboratory.

"I can't say I've ever seen anything that approaches this level of tension," said Mayor Susie Boyd.

The low point occurred July 10 when university officials walked out of a neighborhood planning meeting after they were shouted at by angry residents and one of their consultants was shoved by a participant.

Police were called, but no one was cited.

Now, university leaders say the raucous meeting has forced them to re-examine how they interact with Davis residents.

"We've lost those opportunities to debate reasonably in normal formats," said UC Davis Chancellor Larry Vanderhoef. "We may need to get outside help from highly regarded people in town."

Participants said the shouting reflected their growing frustration with the university.

"UC Davis has shown absolute disrespect for the citizens of Davis. ... People feel totally betrayed," said Mary-Alice Coleman, a lawyer and organizer of a neighborhood group that opposes the university linking its proposed housing development to Russell Boulevard because of traffic and noise concerns.

"And the irony is so huge," she said, "because most everybody in Davis is connected with the university in one way or another."

The housing development, proposed west of Highway 113 and south of Russell Boulevard, is intended for the wave of new students and employees expected during the next 10 years.

"The University of California has no choice," said Vanderhoef. "It is required in the Master Plan for Higher Education that we take the top one-eighth of students and as that one-eighth gets bigger, we have to expand our capacity."

At build-out, the university "mini-city" would house about 4,300 people -- a community the size of Winters.

Residents object to the university's linking it to Russell Boulevard, which is already a busy thoroughfare. The additional traffic would increase daily trips by the thousands on the street.

The university, however, says that simply having one exit for a neighborhood of that size isn't feasible, and would isolate it from the rest of the community.

The other controversial initiative involves building a high-security infectious diseases laboratory on campus. University officials say the campus is uniquely poised to operate the lab, because it's home to some of the nation's top virologists, veterinarians and medical researchers.

Opponents say the lab would jeopardize the community, because scientists would study such dangerous diseases as Ebola, anthrax and Marburg virus. They also fear classified research would be conducted at the lab and the public would be denied basic information.

"It would be a big federal secretly controlled facility that would be part of the federal government's bioterrorism arms race," said Davis City Councilman Mike Harrington.

University officials say the lab will fill a critical need on the West Coast and has been endorsed by elected officials in other area jurisdictions.

Both proposals have drawn hundreds of angry Davis residents to council and neighborhood community meetings. The City Council voted unanimously in February to oppose the biolab, citing community opposition.

Neither initiative requires approval by city officials. The projects would be built on campus, and their environmental analyses would be reviewed and approved by the UC Board of Regents.

Community activist Ruben Arevalo likens the university to a "sovereign nation that is expanding and trying to push that expansion on the community."

Last year, in response to residents' concerns, the university significantly scaled back its proposed housing development, which is scheduled to begin construction in 2004.

But near the end of the university's public comment period last month, residents' ire over the development resurfaced when they learned the university was considering linking the project to a city street, Russell Boulevard.

The Russell link does require council approval.

Neighbors contended they received assurances from campus planners that the project would be linked to the town only through an on-campus highway onramp at Hutchinson Boulevard. University officials said they had always maintained to residents that the Russell exit was a possibility.

At the July 10 meeting, which was sponsored by university and city leaders, campus planners wanted residents to break into small groups to map out possible street links to the development.

"It was like they said -- 'OK, kids, come get your Magic Markers and start coloring on the map,' " said Coleman.

Instead, residents, many waving signs against the project, shouted angry barbs at university officials. Others chanted slogans.

After one angry resident shoved a consultant, who fell to the ground, the university contingent walked out.

"It was the worst community meeting or meeting of any kind that I have participated in in my professional career," said Marj Dickinson, assistant vice chancellor for governmental affairs and community relations.

Most of the residents stayed for a peaceful two-hour discussion on the project.

"People needed the opportunity to vent," said Mayor Boyd, who attended the meeting, but left after the confrontation.

"I wasn't going to be part of a public brawl," she said.

Even with Davis' storied history of impassioned local politics, the meeting's rancor stunned officials. Vanderhoef issued a public statement the next day asking the community to debate with "respect and civility."

Participants said officials have blown out of proportion what happened. They suggest university officials should look inward at why so many residents are so angry with them.

"There's a lack of trust in the university, and the university is the one that needs to address that," said William Bernheim, of the West Davis neighbors group.

Dickinson said campus and city leaders are trying to craft a more workable meeting format for the community to discuss the road access issue.

Campus leaders say they also want to rebuild community relations.

"We have to figure out how the breakdown got to be this bad ... how can we restore trust across both the campus and the community?" said Dickinson. "I really believe this has been a long, steady degeneration, and it's not exclusive to the campus. We have to figure out what the road back will be."

Campus officials insist that their relations with city staff and elected officials remain strong. Boyd agrees with them.

Vanderhoef, who meets regularly with the city manager and the mayor, said he may need to elevate his public role in selling residents on university projects.

As the university's top leader, Vanderhoef is in the most credible position to smooth relations, say higher-education officials who have worked with campuses and cities in conflict.

"Of course, the senior leadership ought to be playing a major role," said Sheldon Steinbach, general counsel for the American Council on Education.

Steinbach added that Vanderhoef would be failing in his job if he weren't advocating for changes at UC Davis.

"For an institution that's in a 21st-century transformation, there is often difficulty with the local community that is used to it being a different entity," Steinbach said.

Founded as an agriculture school, UC Davis has evolved into a national research center that spends upward of $100 million on cutting-edge science, including biotechnology.

At the contentious meeting, some residents held signs that read, "Put the Ag Back in Aggie."

Vanderhoef says the university has tried to engage its detractors, but a small number of residents refuse to compromise.

"We have tried to accommodate concerns," Vanderhoef said. "But we continually find ourselves in situations with one group where it's all or nothing."

Others in the community say the anger goes well beyond a small group of residents.

Yolo County Supervisor Dave Rosenberg said the university is making an effort to communicate and listen to the public.

"Some people appreciate that, and others do not," he said. "Others believe it is a mere facade."

As the proposals move forward, some fear community-university relations could worsen.

"I don't think we've hit the low. I think it's going to get worse," said Samantha McCarthy of the grass-roots group Stop UCD Biolab Now.

"We have a City Council majority that's working in cahoots with the university ... and they are dismissive of community input," McCarthy said.

But Mayor Boyd said she hopes "town-gown" tensions have hit bottom and will now improve.

"It's my sincere hope that we went so far over the edge at that meeting ... that maybe we scared ourselves as a community," she said.