|
< Browse to Previous Essay | Browse to Next Essay >
Navy bids Sand Point naval base farewell on September 28, 1995.
HistoryLink.org Essay 2280
: Printer-Friendly Format
On September 28, 1995, in a 6 p.m. ceremony, the U.S. Navy bids farewell to its Sand Point base. The base is to become surplus federal property and transferred to the City of Seattle, which plans to add much or all of it to the existing Warren G. Magnuson Park.
The Sand Point Naval Station Puget Sound, formerly the Sand Point Naval Air Station, had been slowly making the transition to public open space since 1970, when the federal government announced it would vacate the air strip at the site. The air strip had seen the landings of the likes of Charles Lindbergh and Wiley Post. The Army's first round-the-world air flight had begun and ended there. It was also an important reconditioning site for World War II aircraft.
Part of the land declared surplus in 1970 (100 acres) became the Western Headquarters for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, while the remaining 195.6 acres was converted into Warren G. Magnuson Park, named after the former U.S. senator. After disputes over whether to continue aviation at the site, the park opened May 29, 1977, sans airstrip.
Even after the naval ceremony, details about the transfer remained to be worked out. The Navy needed to release an environmental impact statement and the City needed to work out final details of an agreement with the Muckleshoot Indian Tribe, which had filed a claim on the land, before taking control of the property.
Many squabbles over everything from run-free areas for dogs to ball fields to housing for the homeless lay ahead before the 151-acre property could be converted to public use.
Sources:
Tyrone Beason, "Sand Point Ends Its Navy Duty; Seattle Prepares to Convert Base to Other Uses," The Seattle Times, July 12, 1995, p. B-3.
By Patrick McRoberts, January 01, 1999
Travel through time (chronological order):
< Browse to Previous Essay
|
Browse to Next Essay >
Related Topics:
Recreation |
Seattle Neighborhoods |
Government & Politics |
War & Peace |
|
Licensing: This essay is licensed under a Creative Commons license that
encourages reproduction with attribution. Credit should be given to both
HistoryLink.org and to the author, and sources must be included with any
reproduction. Click the icon for more info. Please note that this
Creative Commons license applies to text only, and not to images. For
more information regarding individual photos or images, please contact
the source noted in the image credit. |
 |
Major Support for HistoryLink.org Provided
By: The State of Washington | Patsy Bullitt Collins
| Paul G. Allen Family Foundation | Museum Of History & Industry
| 4Culture (King County Lodging Tax Revenue) | City of Seattle
| City of Bellevue | City of Tacoma | King County | The Peach
Foundation | Microsoft Corporation, Other Public and Private
Sponsors and Visitors Like You
|
