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Flashlight Enthusiast
Would you buy a used battleship?
Italics are from www.recordnet.com and www.bobhopetheatre.com
"Today the World War II-era vessel, with 16-inch guns capable of hurtling compact-car-size shells up to 23 miles, is part of the U.S. Navy's reserve fleet in Suisun Bay, crammed with dehumidifying equipment and bobbing at anchor east of Benicia (CA.)
Legislation to take the Iowa out of reserve and move it into the Navy donation program is pending in Congress. Once approved, it will be up to the Navy to solicit and review applications from interested parties."
My city, Stockton, CA, has a good chance of making the famous battleship, the USS Iowa, as a floating museum to show the history of the US and the Armed Forces. Presently the Iowa is stored in a reserve fleet approximately 90 miles away. My city, with 1000 miles of waterways next to it and is a very unique and unusual inland seaport in the middle of CA, can easily bring the Iowa to a retirement home. My city has been in the planning stage to present the Navy the proposal to retire the ship in my city for the last year. My city wants to renovate the ship as a floating museum to remember the history of the US, the US Armed Forces and a memorial to the soldiers who fought and died in the wars.
"Specifically, while the port plans to turn over operation of the Iowa and museum to a yet-to-be-established nonprofit agency, that group would never have to worry about paying rent. The port will donate the Rough and Ready Island mooring space for the Iowa, an adjacent 90,000-square-foot cargo building and 15 acres of adjoining land.
When the port received the former Navy communications station five years ago, it got about 1,450 acres, a mile-long dock and 54 warehouse buildings.
"I think we're in a good position to give 15 acres back, to give one of those buildings back and to give just a few hundred feet of dock back," Aschieris said."
Although the Iowa is best remembered for Iowa entering Tokyo Bay with the occupation forces, 29 August 1945, serving as Admiral William F. Halsey's flagship for the surrender ceremony, the Iowa earned nine battle stars for World War II service and two for Korean service.
My city is undergoing a renovation which will never be completed. We are constantly rebuilding. For decades the core of the city was allowed to fall in disrepair until only the ugly existed. We moved away and set up malls and shopping centers near the suburbs and let the core rot. A few of us, decades ago, could see the problem with the downtown area and started a movement that is now 'snowballing' the city's core revival. An old movie theatre built in 1930, known as the Fox theatre, was the start of the movement to revive the city. In 1976 the theatre was to be torn down to make room for a jury parking lot adjacent our county court house. A few of us legally blocked and found donations for the rebuilding of the, now designated on the National Register of Historical Places, theater that has been renamed the Bob Hope Theatre. The theater is now complete and operating. And the theater started the renovation of rebuilding the core of the city. We want to bring the city back to life and we want the Iowa to be the centerpiece of a new city, a new awakening and a remembrance of what the sacrifices were made to enable to let everyone live in peace.
From the Bob Hope Theatre web site: "The city of Stockton is one of California's fastest growing communities. Stockton is currently the 12th largest city in California with a dynamic, multi-ethnic and multi-cultural population of over 260,000 (now 280,000.) The city is undergoing a tremendous economic expansion and is aggressively revitalizing its downtown. Projects underway in the downtown area along the waterfront include an indoor arena, baseball stadium, hotel, apartments, retail and housing. Stockton is also constructing retail and entertainment centers at the gateways of the city. The National Civic League has awarded the city of Stockton with the 2004 All America City award. Stockton is one of ten cities in the country to receive the award and was also a 1999 award winner. The city was also ranked 14th in job growth by Forbes magazine.
Recently my city has renovated, replaced and built a new core to the city to completely transform a decayed core into a new heart for itself though community funding and effort. The city has reclaimed an old navy base, rehabilitated the theatre, rebuilt an old, mammoth sized, hotel that has a view of the head of the main channel and the Iowa, added a downtown multiscreen theatre, designed a new head of the river channel events center, a new ball park, a soon to be opened arena that is all within walking distance. It was all designed to be next to the only two arterial highways connecting my city. The two highways run from Mexico to Oregon. We are proud of our city and we want the Iowa to be seen by America.
"Ruhstaller, too, noted the warship -- nearly the length of three football fields -- should serve as its own billboard of sorts to motorists on nearby Interstate 5. "Anyone traveling over I-5 … you're going to be able to see that puppy," he said. "I wish I had that kind of visibility from I-5."
Stockton, CA downtown web cams.
Our only opposition is a big one- the city of San Francisco. San Francisco, kind of, wants the ship and is fighting for the option of having and rejecting a home for the Iowa. They want the battleship to increase the tourist attraction and make money. The city wants the ship but has also rejected it. "A San Francisco group, Historic Ships Memorial at Pacific Square, has long lobbied to bring the USS Iowa to that city, although it received a severe setback in July when the city's Board of Supervisors voted against hosting the ship." San Francisco rejected the ship because they have declared themselves anti-war and against promoting war ships, even historic US war ships. Even though San Francisco has rejected the ship it continues to block any attempt at my city to host the ship. My city wants the Iowa. We are begging the US government to have the ship but San Francisco is blocking us so it can have the option of accepting or rejecting the battleship.
San Francisco doesn't have the room to store the ship. Virtually every piece of land and precious dock space is used for ships docking or for tourist use. San Francisco would still have to find the room, access ways and permission to dock the war vessel permanently. Access to the ship is limited because of the overcrowding the city has experienced for decades. The ship would be vulnerable to the corrosive sea salts while in dock.
My city housed many Navy ships until they were towed away to Benicia. The dock for the Iowa would be berthed where many of many US war ships were docked so the dock would easily fit a single battleship. Access to the Iowa is within a couple of blocks from one interstate highway and two miles away from a second highway. The ship would be permanently berth very near and the new convention/recreation area. The road access to the ship has been in place since the island was a naval base. The roads around that area were built to handle heavy war equipment and would easily handle the flow of traffic. The Iowa's berth has lots of room for parking. Importantly, we are ready to receive the Iowa while the citizens of San Francisco fight for and against berthing the Iowa.
The 1000 miles of water around the Iowa is fresh water so corrosion would be extremely slight. The ship would be docked in a moderate weather zone; no hurricanes, no tornadoes and no snow. Even the earthquakes that plague San Francisco 80 miles to the west of us do not so much as make a ripple in our water. Why wouldn't a battleship want to be retired here? Standing on the ship a person could see as far as the horizon and see fields of farmland and water.
We don't want the Iowa to make money. We want the ship for the ships proud retirement and a learning experience for everyone. It is a David and Goliath story. The big city is pulling favors for a naval ship they are not sure they want, to get the ship to make money, and my smaller city is fighting to get a ship using practical logic of giving a proper retirement for a proud ship and to turn it into a museum to remember and honor the US Armed Forces.
I suppose I'm the type of person that rallies for lost and forgotten causes. I wanted to save the core of my city and it worked. Now I want a bigger project to be saved…the battleship Iowa. I want to save the ship.
Is anyone wondering where the questions are? Buried under all those words are these simple questions. If you were given the chance would you like a battleship to be a museum and a memorial for you and your family to see? Is it cool or cold?
Italics are from www.recordnet.com and www.bobhopetheatre.com
"Today the World War II-era vessel, with 16-inch guns capable of hurtling compact-car-size shells up to 23 miles, is part of the U.S. Navy's reserve fleet in Suisun Bay, crammed with dehumidifying equipment and bobbing at anchor east of Benicia (CA.)
Legislation to take the Iowa out of reserve and move it into the Navy donation program is pending in Congress. Once approved, it will be up to the Navy to solicit and review applications from interested parties."
My city, Stockton, CA, has a good chance of making the famous battleship, the USS Iowa, as a floating museum to show the history of the US and the Armed Forces. Presently the Iowa is stored in a reserve fleet approximately 90 miles away. My city, with 1000 miles of waterways next to it and is a very unique and unusual inland seaport in the middle of CA, can easily bring the Iowa to a retirement home. My city has been in the planning stage to present the Navy the proposal to retire the ship in my city for the last year. My city wants to renovate the ship as a floating museum to remember the history of the US, the US Armed Forces and a memorial to the soldiers who fought and died in the wars.
"Specifically, while the port plans to turn over operation of the Iowa and museum to a yet-to-be-established nonprofit agency, that group would never have to worry about paying rent. The port will donate the Rough and Ready Island mooring space for the Iowa, an adjacent 90,000-square-foot cargo building and 15 acres of adjoining land.
When the port received the former Navy communications station five years ago, it got about 1,450 acres, a mile-long dock and 54 warehouse buildings.
"I think we're in a good position to give 15 acres back, to give one of those buildings back and to give just a few hundred feet of dock back," Aschieris said."
Although the Iowa is best remembered for Iowa entering Tokyo Bay with the occupation forces, 29 August 1945, serving as Admiral William F. Halsey's flagship for the surrender ceremony, the Iowa earned nine battle stars for World War II service and two for Korean service.
My city is undergoing a renovation which will never be completed. We are constantly rebuilding. For decades the core of the city was allowed to fall in disrepair until only the ugly existed. We moved away and set up malls and shopping centers near the suburbs and let the core rot. A few of us, decades ago, could see the problem with the downtown area and started a movement that is now 'snowballing' the city's core revival. An old movie theatre built in 1930, known as the Fox theatre, was the start of the movement to revive the city. In 1976 the theatre was to be torn down to make room for a jury parking lot adjacent our county court house. A few of us legally blocked and found donations for the rebuilding of the, now designated on the National Register of Historical Places, theater that has been renamed the Bob Hope Theatre. The theater is now complete and operating. And the theater started the renovation of rebuilding the core of the city. We want to bring the city back to life and we want the Iowa to be the centerpiece of a new city, a new awakening and a remembrance of what the sacrifices were made to enable to let everyone live in peace.
From the Bob Hope Theatre web site: "The city of Stockton is one of California's fastest growing communities. Stockton is currently the 12th largest city in California with a dynamic, multi-ethnic and multi-cultural population of over 260,000 (now 280,000.) The city is undergoing a tremendous economic expansion and is aggressively revitalizing its downtown. Projects underway in the downtown area along the waterfront include an indoor arena, baseball stadium, hotel, apartments, retail and housing. Stockton is also constructing retail and entertainment centers at the gateways of the city. The National Civic League has awarded the city of Stockton with the 2004 All America City award. Stockton is one of ten cities in the country to receive the award and was also a 1999 award winner. The city was also ranked 14th in job growth by Forbes magazine.
Recently my city has renovated, replaced and built a new core to the city to completely transform a decayed core into a new heart for itself though community funding and effort. The city has reclaimed an old navy base, rehabilitated the theatre, rebuilt an old, mammoth sized, hotel that has a view of the head of the main channel and the Iowa, added a downtown multiscreen theatre, designed a new head of the river channel events center, a new ball park, a soon to be opened arena that is all within walking distance. It was all designed to be next to the only two arterial highways connecting my city. The two highways run from Mexico to Oregon. We are proud of our city and we want the Iowa to be seen by America.
"Ruhstaller, too, noted the warship -- nearly the length of three football fields -- should serve as its own billboard of sorts to motorists on nearby Interstate 5. "Anyone traveling over I-5 … you're going to be able to see that puppy," he said. "I wish I had that kind of visibility from I-5."
Stockton, CA downtown web cams.
Our only opposition is a big one- the city of San Francisco. San Francisco, kind of, wants the ship and is fighting for the option of having and rejecting a home for the Iowa. They want the battleship to increase the tourist attraction and make money. The city wants the ship but has also rejected it. "A San Francisco group, Historic Ships Memorial at Pacific Square, has long lobbied to bring the USS Iowa to that city, although it received a severe setback in July when the city's Board of Supervisors voted against hosting the ship." San Francisco rejected the ship because they have declared themselves anti-war and against promoting war ships, even historic US war ships. Even though San Francisco has rejected the ship it continues to block any attempt at my city to host the ship. My city wants the Iowa. We are begging the US government to have the ship but San Francisco is blocking us so it can have the option of accepting or rejecting the battleship.
San Francisco doesn't have the room to store the ship. Virtually every piece of land and precious dock space is used for ships docking or for tourist use. San Francisco would still have to find the room, access ways and permission to dock the war vessel permanently. Access to the ship is limited because of the overcrowding the city has experienced for decades. The ship would be vulnerable to the corrosive sea salts while in dock.
My city housed many Navy ships until they were towed away to Benicia. The dock for the Iowa would be berthed where many of many US war ships were docked so the dock would easily fit a single battleship. Access to the Iowa is within a couple of blocks from one interstate highway and two miles away from a second highway. The ship would be permanently berth very near and the new convention/recreation area. The road access to the ship has been in place since the island was a naval base. The roads around that area were built to handle heavy war equipment and would easily handle the flow of traffic. The Iowa's berth has lots of room for parking. Importantly, we are ready to receive the Iowa while the citizens of San Francisco fight for and against berthing the Iowa.
The 1000 miles of water around the Iowa is fresh water so corrosion would be extremely slight. The ship would be docked in a moderate weather zone; no hurricanes, no tornadoes and no snow. Even the earthquakes that plague San Francisco 80 miles to the west of us do not so much as make a ripple in our water. Why wouldn't a battleship want to be retired here? Standing on the ship a person could see as far as the horizon and see fields of farmland and water.
We don't want the Iowa to make money. We want the ship for the ships proud retirement and a learning experience for everyone. It is a David and Goliath story. The big city is pulling favors for a naval ship they are not sure they want, to get the ship to make money, and my smaller city is fighting to get a ship using practical logic of giving a proper retirement for a proud ship and to turn it into a museum to remember and honor the US Armed Forces.
I suppose I'm the type of person that rallies for lost and forgotten causes. I wanted to save the core of my city and it worked. Now I want a bigger project to be saved…the battleship Iowa. I want to save the ship.
Is anyone wondering where the questions are? Buried under all those words are these simple questions. If you were given the chance would you like a battleship to be a museum and a memorial for you and your family to see? Is it cool or cold?
