Presidio of San Francisco

From SFBARE

Template:Infobox nrhp The Presidio of San Francisco (originally, El Presidio Real de San Francisco or Royal Presidio of San Francisco) is a park on the northern tip of the San Francisco Peninsula in the City and County of San Francisco. It is operated by the National Park Service of the United States as a part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area. The largest area "Main Post" is managed by the Presidio Trust, a Congressionally chartered nonprofit organization. The park is characterized by many wooded areas, hills, and scenic vistas overlooking the San Francisco Bay.

The Presidio was recognized by Congress as a National Historic Landmark, the highest historic designation that can be given in the U.S. This designation is given to a collection of structures and their related landscape which have nationally important historical integrity. The Presidio Trust Act calls for "preservation of the cultural and historic integrity of the Presidio for public use." The Act also requires that the Presidio Trust be financially self-sufficient by 2013. The result of these two imperatives are conflicts between maximizing income by leasing historic buildings, permitting public use despite most structures being rented privately, and preservation of the integrity of the National Historic Landmark District by maintaining the historic "sense of place" despite new construction, competing pressures for natural habitat restoration, and requirements for commercial purposes that impede public access. To date (2007) there is only a rudimentary visitors' center to orient visitors to the Presidio's history.

1 History
2 Preservation
3 Letterman Digital Arts Center and Lucasfilm
4 Popular culture
5 See also
6 External links
- 6.1 Photos

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History

The Presidio was originally a Spanish fort sited by Juan Bautista de Anza on March 28, 1776 built by a party led by José Joaquín Moraga later that year. It was seized by the U.S. Military in 1846, officially opened in 1848, and became home to several Army headquarters and units, the last being the United States 6th Army. Several famous U.S. generals from William Sherman to John Pershing made their homes here. During its long history, the Presidio was involved in most of America's military engagements in the Pacific. Importantly, it was the assembly point for Army forces that invaded the Philippines in the Spanish American War, America's first major military entanglement in the Asia/ Pacific region. It was the center for defense of the Western U.S. during WW II. The infamous order to inter Japanese-Americans, including citizens, during WW II was signed at the Presidio. Until its closure in 1995, the Presidio was the longest continuously operated military base in the United States.

There is a military cemetery here. Among the military people interred here is General Irvin McDowell who commanded the Union Army in the early days of the American Civil War and was defeated by the Confederates in the first major battle of the war, Bull Run (or Manassas). After he retired, he moved to California and died here in 1885 of a heart attack.

From the 1890s, the Presidio was home to the Letterman Army Medical Center which was named, in 1911, for Jonathan Letterman, the medical director of the Army of the Potomac (Civil War). LAMC featured in every US foreign conflict during the 20th century by treating thousands of war wounded with high quality medical care.

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Preservation

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After a hard-fought battle, the Presidio averted being sold at auction and came under the management of the Presidio Trust, a US Government Corporation established by an act of Congress in 1996. The Presidio Trust now manages most of the park in partnership with the National Park Service. The Trust has jurisdiction over the interior 80 percent of the Presidio, including nearly all of its historic structures. The National Park Service manages coastal areas.

One of main objectives of Presidio Trust’s program was achieving financial self-sufficiency by fiscal year 2013. Thanks to rents from residential and commercial tenants, this happened well ahead of schedule, in 2006. Immediately after its inception, the Trust began preparing rehabilation plans for the park. Many areas had to be decontaminated before they could be prepared for public use.

Crissy Field, a former airfield, has undergone extensive restoration and now serves as very popular recreational area. It borders on the San Francisco Marina in the East and on the Golden Gate Bridge in the West.

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The park has a large network of buildings (~ 800), many of them historical. By 2004 about 50% of the buildings on park grounds have been restored and (partially) remodeled. The Trust has contracted commercial real estate management companies to help attract and retain residential and commercial tenants. The total capacity is estimated at 5,000 residents when all buildings have been rehabilitated. Among the Presidio's residents is The Bay School of San Francisco, a private coeducational college preparatory school located in the central Main Post area. Others include The Gordon Moore Foundation, Tides Foundation, Internet Archive, and a soon to be established museum in the memory of Walt Disney. Many various commercial enterprises also lease buildings on the Presidio.

The Presidio of San Francisco is the only U.S. national park with an extensive residential leasing program.

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Letterman Digital Arts Center and Lucasfilm

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A major financial win for the Trust was the deal it signed with Lucasfilm. The company has built a new facility called the Letterman Digital Arts Center (LDAC) which is now the headquarters of Industrial Light and Magic and LucasArts. The site was formerly home to the Letterman Hospital. George Lucas won the development rights for 15 acres (61,000 m²) of the Presidio, in June 1999, after beating out a number of rival plans [1] including a leading proposal by the Shorenstein Company. A massive $300 million development with nearly 900,000 square feet (84,000 m²) of office space and a 150,000 square foot (14,000 m²) underground parking garage with planned capacity of 2,500 employees has replaced the former ILM and LucasArts headquarters in San Rafael. Lucas Learning Ltd., Lucas Online, and the George Lucas Educational Foundation also reside at the site. Lucas' proposal included plans for a high-tech Presidio museum and a seven acre (28,000 m²) "Great Lawn" that is now open to the public.

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The Trust plans to create a promenade that will link the Lombard gate, the new Lucasfilm campus to the Main Post and ultimately to the Golden Gate Bridge. The promenade is part of a trails expansion plan that will add 24 miles (39 km) of new pathways and eight scenic overlooks throughout the park.

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Popular culture

In the fictional universe of Star Trek, the Presidio is the location of Starfleet Academy.
In the final episode of "Star Trek: Voyager", Admiral Janeway points out to her present-day self that the U.S.S. Voyager is preserved and located on the grounds of the Presidio.
The Presidio, a 1988 American action movie starring Sean Connery, is set in and around the military base.
The 2005 television movie Murder at the Presidio is loosely based on actual events.
In the 2004 Metallica movie, "Some Kind Of Monster" the guys in Metallica start recording their new album at the Presidio. James Hetfield then leaves the band to attend rehab. The sessions were never used on the final album.