NTC Redevelopment Lauded as National Model
While Other Communities Struggle to Transform Closed Bases, San Diego Creates Success

SAN DIEGO - In a recent article by Builder Magazine, the national publication of the National Association of Home Builders, Liberty Station, formerly the Naval Training Center, was touted as an example of a model military base reuse program.

In the June article by Rich Binsacca titled "Base Maneuvers", Liberty Station was cited as a successful redevelopment example of one of the first military bases affected by the Department of Defense's base realignment and closure process that began in 1988.

According to Binsacca, "Liberty Station transformed San Diego's Naval Training Center into a mixed-use development that marries its military history with market-driven attached and detached housing."

Since The Corky McMillin Companies was chosen to redevelop the Naval Training Center in 1999 by the City of San Diego, Liberty Station has matured into a 361-acre multifaceted community that is nearly 30 percent complete, with about 80 percent of the new homes constructed and selling at an extremely fast pace.

Binsacca also noted that implementing a base reuse plan is no small feat for the chosen redevelopment company and that it can be a huge and complicated undertaking. The historically significant property is being transformed into a vibrant waterfront community by a partnership of the City of San Diego Redevelopment Agency and The Corky McMillin Companies.

"There is no question that this $500 million dollar development will be used as a measure for other base reuse projects throughout the country," said Hank Cunningham, director of the City's Community and Economic Development Department and assistant executive director of the City's Redevelopment Agency. "We have worked with the community to fashion a plan that meets both the community's desire for amenities and historic preservation and the U.S. Navy's requirements to create jobs and revenue lost by the base closure. This is not an easy undertaking, but our collective efforts are paying off and soon San Diego residents and visitors will enjoy the results."

The overall community will include 125 acres of parks and open space including an existing boat channel, the 9-hole Sail Ho golf course, shopping villages and restaurants, a 28-acre civic, arts and cultural district -- to be developed by the NTC Foundation -- two hotels, a seven-building Office District and a 22-acre educational campus anchored by High Tech High, and a Residential District with 349 homes.

"Liberty Station is a community where one can live, work, educate, recreate, shop and just about whatever your heart desires," said Scott McMillin of The Corky McMillin Companies. "It is quickly becoming the place to be in San Diego County."

The Corky McMillin Companies announced plans last month to move its corporate headquarters to Liberty Station. As a result, phase one in the Office District, including two buildings totaling 101,000 square feet, is now 100 percent leased. Phase two construction, comprising an additional 94,000 square feet in two buildings, is expected to get underway this month.

Plans for the Liberty Station Resort Village were submitted to the city of San Diego for review this spring. The Corky McMillin Companies signed a contract with Huntington Hotel Group for development of the Liberty Station Resort. The project will include a 200-room visitor hotel, a 150-room extended-stay hotel, as well as four restaurant and retail sites. Liberty Station Resort Village will also include the much-revered U.S.S. Recruit - a land-based former U.S. Navy ship built and used from 1949 to 1967 as a center of training for military recruits -- as well as the former 33,000-square-foot Bayside Conference Center.

The hotels will be adjacent to the 46-acre waterfront NTC Park, which was approved by the San Diego City Council in May and by the California Coastal Commission last month. It is the largest waterfront park in San Diego since Mission Beach Park was approved in 1982.

Liberty Station Resort and NTC Park are integral parts of the overall NTC Urban Design Program adopted by the City of San Diego to help guide the redevelopment of the former naval base. Objectives of the program include emphasizing pedestrian use of the community, enhancing its orientation to San Diego Bay while respecting and reflecting the military heritage of the site.

Liberty Station's Gary and Jerri-Ann Jacobs High Tech High, a tuition-free public charter high school within the San Diego Unified School District, closed escrow last year on its fourth and final building at Liberty Station within the Educational District. The campus also includes High Tech Middle School.

Model homes are now open for all three neighborhoods within the Residential District at Liberty Station. A blend of architectural styles were designed to fit with the character of the Point Loma area and recall the styles and colors of the naval facility that saw thousands of sailors receive training over a period of 75 years. For more information visit libertystation.com.

For more information about the Naval Training Center Redevelopment Project or other redevelopment efforts in the City, contact the City of San Diego Redevelopment Agency at (619) 533-4233 or visit the City's web site at www.sandiego.gov/redevelopment-agency.

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