National Museum of the Surface Navy Update
By Jonathan Williams, President & CEO
Thank you to the Surface Navy Museum Ambassadors who represented us at another extraordinary SNA Symposium in January and recruited several new museum Plank Owners and Advocates. Signing up as a Plank Owner at surfacenavymusuem.org is free and is the easiest way to stay up to date with your museum happenings.
Over the past quarter, we have had several significant developments as we forge forward in educating the public on the Surface Navy’s role in safeguarding freedom of the seas. Expanding on our success as the #4 attraction in Los Angeles, your new museum focuses not only on the past, but also on its relevance in the future. Capturing the hearts and minds of visitors requires an innovative experience from arrival to departure, which drives the museum and property development plans.
In January, we made the difficult decision to no longer pursue relocating to the new West Harbor development. The costs were rapidly multiplying due to necessary dredging and pier improvements, making the project no longer feasible. Despite this disappointing news, we shifted our attention to establishing our current location as the gateway anchor to the LA Waterfront.
The property in which we are moored has the World Cruise Center to the north and the Downtown Harbor to the south. The property had traditionally been utilized for industrial activities until we arrived in 2012 and therefore has received limited visitor-centric improvements. An investment in this property by the City and Port of Los Angeles will place the Surface Navy Museum and IOWA as the anchor to the entire waterfront. It would link the waterfront together as a pedestrian-friendly experience for millions of visitors annually.
The upgrades we propose are focused on beautification from freeway exit to center core, including memorials, monuments, public art, decorative elements, wayfinding, mobility hubs, fencing, and transit connections. We have gained traction in building community support for this initiative and believe that many of these groups will prioritize this project in their submissions for Port Access Investment Program (PAIP) funding.
Within this overall project is the Freedom of the Seas Park and Pavilion. We have received $6.7 million from the state of California towards this project component and are in the final stages of interviewing architects. The project will be built in several phases and include sponsorable elements such as bricks, benches, memorials, artifact installations, a restaurant, a building, and more. The park and pavilion provide gathering plazas which will contribute to the long-term growth of the museum complex. We are projecting that we will break ground in early 2025 on the park and pavilion.
The museum is being built aboard an actual Surface Navy veteran, the USS Iowa (why build a fake ship when you have the real thing?). Our designers are targeting May 2024 to complete the design of Phase 1A, which will include galleries such as Great Ships, Life of Sailor, Media Blitz, and Heroes of the Surface Navy. In September, we will begin construction in the existing museum spaces for the experience to open on October 13, 2025. Additionally, we are considering a complete reformat of our existing shipboard program to create a seamless storytelling experience.
Building the museum on the ship provides us significant flexibility in creating an immersive experience. Much like a building, instead of abandoning unused space to allow the elements to take over, we use the space to ensure continued maintenance. Our innovation in hull maintenance is being adopted by other museum ships, and we are now focused on innovating new ways of maintaining the interior.
Over the recent couple of months, we have had numerous discussions with Iowa legislators to consider a multi-year appropriation in support of replacing the decks to push this innovation forward. We have made significant progress, and I am hoping to have positive news by the next issue of SITREP.
We appreciate your support, and to stay up to date with the most recent news, sign up to be a Plank Owner at surfacenavymuseum.org and share the no-cost opportunity with your shipmates, friends, and family.
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