Publication Date: Friday, September 17, 2004
Sea Scout building may stay afloat
Sea Scout building may stay afloat
(September 17, 2004) Environmental Volunteers group could refurbish historic building
by Bill D'Agostino
More than three decades ago, four stay-at-home moms founded a group in Palo Alto's Baylands to teach local schoolchildren about nature.
The group, Environmental Volunteers, now rents a home in an industrial part of the city, but if all goes well it could return to the Baylands after refurbishing the historic "Sea Scout" building.
The Palo Alto City Council's Policy and Services Committee unanimously recommended Tuesday night that the group be given first crack at the long-vacant and badly damaged building, located on Embarcadero Road. The committee also voted to reject an application for the building from a group of local Sea Scouts.
If the City Council passes those recommendations at a future meeting, Environmental Volunteers will be granted six months to look into whether it would be interested in -- and capable of -- repairing the building for its use. Among other numerous needs, the former Sea Scout base requires a new foundation.
"It's an exciting concept (but) it's a daunting concept," said Allan Berkowitz, the group's executive director. "We were happy to embrace the opportunity. ... This would give us a presence in a nature preserve in daily contact with the public."
Environmental Volunteers, which reaches out to 10,000 students annually, did not apply for the building during open bidding last year. It originally thought -- based on a city employee's misunderstanding -- that the building was too small for their needs, Berkowitz said. However, the group recently learned it was 2,209 square feet. Earlier this month, Berkowitz penned a letter asking the city for six months to research the costs and interest among its board.
If Environmental Volunteers is not able or interested in saving the historic building, demolition would be considered, said Councilman Jim Burch.
The Sea Scouts, now based at the Port of Redwood City, was the only group that applied for the building during the open bidding. Its leaders wanted to turn the building into a maritime museum, public meeting hall and organization headquarters.
But after being given five years, the leaders did not find a viable way to pay for the repairs, according to city officials. The cost estimates in its hand-written application greatly differed from city staff figures, and were not thought to be realistic.
"Their proposal just didn't have enough meat and weight to it," Burch said.
The city estimates the cost to repair the building to be between $750,000 to $1 million, but the Sea Scouts believed they only needed $250,000.
The building was donated to the city in 1941. Famed local architect Birge Clark designed it in the shape of a ship, and it was originally a place where youngsters learned about nautical life.
The Sea Scout base was forced to close in 1991, five years after the city shut down the former yacht harbor in the Baylands. Its fate has been up in the air since that time.
Staff Writer Bill D'Agostino can be e-mailed at bdagostino@paweekly.com
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