Press Release - November 23, 2009

Press Contact: Bill Armbruster, Executive Director, FMFADA, 757.637.7778 or barmbruster@fmfada.com

FMDADA Endorses NPS Unit at Fort Monroe with Plan that Preserves State Ownership

November 23, 2009 - Fort Monroe, VA….Fort Monroe FADA board voted to push forward on making certain areas of Fort Monroe a unit of the National Park Service by requesting the Commonwealth of Virginia work with Congress to draft and get passed legislation.

FMFADA Chairman L. Preston Bryant Jr. explained, "Today, the board endorsed an expanded role for the National Park Service at Fort Monroe that also preserves the state's ownership of the property and adheres to Governor Kaine's goals that we respect Fort Monroe's history, keep it open to the public, maintain open space, and make it as economically sustainable as possible. Economic sustainability must include tourism, adaptive reuse of existing buildings and limited new construction. We must be able to begin those economic activities as soon as the Army leaves in September 2011."

The board recommended that the NPS focus on the Historic Fort, moat and outer works, Old Quarters #1, the radar station on the parapets, and Batteries Parrot and Irwin. The FMFADA will manage, reuse and redevelop other areas of Fort Monroe consistent with the approved Fort Monroe Reuse Plan. Bryant adds, “As we go forward, the State will be in a good position to have a constructive dialogue with the NPS and our congressional delegation to hammer out a well-balanced partnership."