With the Congress approving/not rejecting the latest base closure list Ft Monroe's closure is assured. Has anyone heard of any plans for the status of Old Point Comfort?

I read the closure would be in 2 to 4 years.

That's about all I've heard too...2-4 years.

The USCG owns the light and the tower so I don't think the light would be affected by the army closure of the base. We'll have to wait and see how our private access to the light might be affected.

Judy

But the keeper's house is owned by the army! See the article in the current Lighthouse Digest. According to it, it could take up to six years for Ft. Monroe to officially close. It's a positive article, however.

I wonder if the Army will sell the keepers house or will it go to another government agency.

I've wondered about that too, Eric. Obviously it's going to be a few years. This is a beautiful and also very historic property that contains Fort Monroe, and I hope that will be it's salvation.

I'm concerned for the public access for the lighthouse, and the historic keeper's dwelling. I'm also concerned for the wonderful community of Phoebus when the army has to pull out.

Judy

One would think that something will be done with the Caasemate Museum, possibly turning it over to the NPS. If that happened, since the lighthouse and keepers quarters are pretty much next to the museum, perhaps they would also move to the NPS.

You know that is some valuable property along the water, and it will be very interesting to see what happens. If the government would retail the property for what it is worth, there would be a nice chunk of income to apply towards national debt (yeh, right . . .)

Years ago my father turned down orders to Fort Monroe to serve at TRADOC - same year he turned down a friends request to come to the Presidio of SF . . . .

Dave, before questioning your father's choice of assignments, where did he decide to go, Hawaii?

Let's hope the NPS does something like adding Ft Monroe to its other collection of Civil War sites in VA. I wouldn't mind if they combined them all into one "Civil War Trail." Might cut down on some management costs and improve funding. Including Pt Comfort as example of 19th century technology seems reasonable. The keepers house or new site accross the street could exhibit info on naval actions in the harbor, including the Monitor/Virginia battle.

Bob, my dad was a career tank driver, but happened to have a Masters in Education. He really wanted to be a Professor of Military Science at a midwestern university for his twighlight tour, but there were no openings. He decided to go back to Disneyland East where they owned a home and planned to retire.

Having grown up in Hampton, not 15-20 minutes from Ft Monroe I read the Daily Press online from time to time. My understanding from the articles I've read is the City of Hampton is hoping to take over Ft Monroe when the Army vacates.

This could be scary as the city has not made some wise decisions in the past regarding development IMHO.

Mel,

If the NPS decides they want the fort and light to preserve for historical purposes, I imagine they would "trump" the city in gaining possession. At least the NPS is charged with maintaining and presenting the history, so the fort and light would be in better hands that way.

Interestingly enough, the entire area of Fort Monroe is a National Historic Landmark and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. This link is the Cultural Resource Management document for the Fort's Driectorate of Public Works. It is a very interesting read. Based on this information, I would very much hope that the NPS will have first choice of taking control. The potential nightmare of commercial development along the waterfront would be a travesty, so I really hope the Fort stays in federal hands.

Dave, this link you posted is very informative. I was familiar with Ft. Monroe as a Historic Site, etc., but really knew little about its archaeological significance and certainly was not aware that the old areas are as extensive as they are; it's not just the contemporary military installations that contribute to its size. This is one time, it appears, when control by the federal government is better - that's if the NPS gets the site.

That is exactly my fear. The City has already allowed almost all the development on the waterfront that they control. Just a small stretch of Buckroe Beach is undeveloped and allows public access to the beach. But, earlier in the year the city was pushing to develop land it holds directly across from the beach, (was the land that the Buckroe Beach Amusement Park was built on,,,many years gone now (BIG SIGH..spent many a summer's night at the park as a teen)), but backed off. Don't know if it was due to the Buckroe Beach community outcry or not.

I can just see the city allowing the building of High-priced Condos from what the post called "Dog Beach" all the way down to in front of the lighthouse and then limit access to tourists except to the Casemate Museum area, because the Condo residences would complain about noise and traffic

On another personal memory of Ft Monroe, I met the man who was to become my husband at the Ft Monroe NCO Club, Memorial Day weekend 1972

Sounds horrible, Melody. Since you and Dave are so much more knowledgeable about the status of the closing than some of the rest of us, I hope that you will keep us updated. Please alert us if we need to start petitioning the powers that be with letters, phone calls, or whatever else needs to be done to voice our protest or encouragement. If there isn't one, we need to have some type of lighthouse alert system. I get alerts from a number of organizations about sending letters and making phone calls when intervention on a critical issue is needed. Why not lighthouse issues?