Saving Hangar One Is Difficult but Hopefully Not Impossible

Demolition Hangar One at Moffett Field began in October with demolition and removal of most of the interior rooms, walls, equipment and facilities.  Removal of the walls that contain PCB and asbestos began in April and has progressed to the point that the walls and redwood sheeting covers have been removed from the south side, facing Highway 101, exposing the bare structural beams.

Only a few of the unique corrugated windows were saved, along with some of the interior cranes.  The unique redwood sheeting under the roof is not being saved.  It will be sold by the demolition contractor for his profit.  Total demolition of the walls is scheduled for April 2012, after which the remaining structural beams will be coated with epoxy that supposedly will protect against weather damage for 10 to 12 years.

Funding to recover the remaining structural beams is nowhere in sight.  Congress member Eshoo put $32 million into the proposed NASA  budget for 2011-2012, but it was removed at the committee level.  Members of the Restoration Advisory Board (RAB) and Save Hangar One Committee asked that no demolition of walls be done until and unless funding for restoration was assured, but the
Navy insisted on proceeding anyway, and NASA didn’t object since their main objective is to prevent PCB and asbestos in the hangar walls from contaminating soil and groundwater near the site.

More than 3 years ago I urged NASA and the Navy not to demolish the walls of Hangar One, but instead to seal and coat inner and outer
walls with the same type of epoxy coating used successfully on the sister hangar in Akron.  The contractor who coated the outside of the Akron hangar visited hangar One and was confident he could seal it with acrylic and epoxy coatings that last at least 10 years for under $25 million.

Recoating and repairs to the sealant would cost under $2 million after 10 years. Demolition costs over $20 million, plus at least $32 million to recoat the structure.  Demolition destroyed many of the historic artifacts and aspects of this unique building, so re-skinning won’t recover all the historic aspects of the hangar.

It may still be possible to get restoration money passed by Congress.  Senator Feinstein agreed to try getting $32 million for re-skinning Hangar One passed by the Senate, and they try to negotiate an agreement with the House when the budget is finally decided.

Working with community leaders, the Save Hangar One Committee has created an online petition to support the effort to get funds restored. The petition has been coordinated with Senator Feinstein’s office and her representatives said getting as many as 1500 signature would help with advocacy. We hope that people will add their names to the petition with an email address that will be held private.