Sir,

For the Association's information, we will be conducting the final walkthrough of the NAVFAC Pacific Beach TEB on 17 November, at which point it will be turned over to NAVSTA Everett for final disposition.

Thanks and V/r
Jason

CDR Jason Vogt
Commanding Officer
Naval Ocean Processing Facility Whidbey Island

Another piece of the Cold War will be gone. I'm delighted that our group was allowed a tour of the old place at the last PB reunion....eerie as it was.
Are there ANY T-buildings left?

I was stationed at Whidbey Island from 96 to 99 and went to PAC Beach several times as part of the Remote Maintenance Team. Going through the building it was weird seeing how the front part was remodeled and in decent shape, whereas the back part of basically left as it was when the NAVFAC closed down and went to a remote location only.

Wished I could have been actually stationed there in the good ole days.

Travis

The T-building at Argentia is still standing. The lights and heat are still on with a security guard. I used to do a weekly walk through up until Oct 2007. There are some discrete rumblings about possible military use again in the next few years.

Terry: When you sign up for the first watch when they open up Arg, put me down for section 2. HaHa --- Frog

The T-Building still stands in Shelburne. Several years ago the whole station was bought by an American couple (with the help of some huge loans) and made into a movie studio. I went down there about three years ago to have a look around. At the old guard house (which had become a convenience store and information center) I was told that most of the areas were closed to the public at that time because they were shooting a movie, but I was welcome to come in and take a drive around the station. I asked if I could go down to the T-Building and the clerk said that was no problem because it wasn't being used for anything other than the storage and building of their movie sets. I drove down thinking I wouldn't be able to do anything other than just stand there and look at the ocean rolling in - just like I did on every day shift while waiting for all of those bags of paper to burn. Before I headed back up the hill I tried the door of the T-Building. It was open - so I went inside. It was dark, but I found a light switch, turned it on, and went on a tour of the whole place. All of our equipment and furniture had been removed and replaced with what looked (to me) like a lot of old junk, but everything else was the same. They hadn't done any renovations to the building itself - even that little opening in the wall betweem the Ops Room and the Comm Center was still there.
Before I left the station I picked up one of their information brochures, and did they ever have great plans for the place! By then they had the barracks and mess hall up and running again, and when they weren't being used by the actors and crew who were there making a movie, they were available to anyone who wanted a place for a wedding, reunion, convention, or whatever....
But it didn't happen. They couldn't make their loan payments, and the whole operation was shut down. And now, just this morning, there was an article in the paper saying that somebody has just bought the station, but has not decided what to do with the property yet.

Penny - I was never stationed at Shelburne, but had some close friends who did one (or more) tours there. One was a CPO (STC Betz) whom I was stationed with in Bermuda, back in '66-'69. He married a gal from Newfoundland, but later they divorced after he retired and was living in northern part of VA. I visited him a few times after we were both retired (around the 82-85 timeframe). I just saw on the most recent issue of The Cable Newsletter - that he had passed away. I did not know of his passing before.

I found your post about Shelburne very interesting. I have been back to a few of the NavFacs (Lewes, CVB, Pacific Beach) and none of them will ever be the same as when they were in their "glory days". The one that has maintained its appearance, almost exactly as it was back in 1959 is Pac Beach. All the buildings and housing are almost like they were back then.

Going back and looking at others - very sad to see their dilapated condition.

Irv

Penny - I must have had a "brain cramp" (or maybe it's just being ove 70)during my previous post - because I said that STC Herb Betz was stationed at Shelburne, but I meant to say he was at Argentia and married a local gal from around there. Anyway, I at least had him in the Canadian Maritime Provinces !!
Irv

Hi OB,

The T-Buildings on Bermuda and San Salvador are still standing. Bermuda's building is vacant and in decline. San Salvador's is being used for undersea ecological studies by many US colleges. See some of the photos in the NAVFAC San Salvador photo album. I believe you'll recognize the standard flooring tiles used by the U. S. Navy in some of these photos.

As of last week the T-Building on Grand Turk is still there.

You can still see the Centerville Beach TB in Google Street View.

I vaguely remember reading somewhere the property was going to be transferred from the Navy to local government.

Pac Beach was my first duty station after completing "Special Course 572" - behind the Green Doors at Key West. Reported aboard as SOOSA in mid July of 1959 - transferred to San Nic in Feb of 1961.
Retired 23 years later from COSP/NOPF as OTCM, but was lucky to have made one more trip to PB while on staff.

Have returned to Pac Beach for reunions in 2001, 2004, 2007 and 2010. Last one in 2010 was attended by CDR Vogt and his lovely wife. He did a magnificent power point presentation at our dinner and lead a tour thru the TE bldg the following day. A bit "erie" going thru the various spaces, but brought back some great memories.

Hope to be there again for the 2013 reunion - should be end of Sep - beginning of Oct. Past reunions have been nothing short of "spectacular" and thoroughly enjoyed by all. Looking foward to the next one and sharing time and memories with those present.

Irv (Dee)

The Pacific Beach Resort turned the building into dry storage. It is unpowered, unheated, and has no running water...essentially mothballed. The resort will remain open for the foreseeable future.