Former U.S. Army Post Converted to Lodge, Conference Facility Using the Historic Tax Credit

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A former U.S. Army base just outside San Francisco has been rehabilitated and converted through adaptive use into a resort lodge and conference center, using the federal historic tax credit and other resources.

The nearly $100 million development, called Cavallo Point – The Lodge at the Golden Gate, also utilized the federal solar tax credit and green building features.

The project was described by John Clawson, of San Francisco-based Equity Community Builders LLC, the lead developer, at a conference of the National Housing & Rehabilitation Association.

The project just received a 2008 Timmy Award from NH&RA in the category of Best Historic Rehab or Adaptive Re-Use for Hotel/Hospitality.

“˜Post to Park’ Conversion

Cavallo Point, which opened in May 2008 and is operated by Passport Resorts, is an example of a U.S. Army “post to park” conversion. The 193,000-square-foot development occupies 45 acres once part of Fort Baker, a U.S. Army base built in 1897 as part of a coastal protection defense system and discontinued for military use in the 1990s. The 335-acre base was later transferred to the National Park Service, and now, still called Fort Baker, is a national park that is part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area. The new development and Fort Baker sit at the base of the north end of the Golden Gate Bridge in affluent Marin County near the city of Sausalito, with magnificent views of the bridge, San Francisco Bay, and the city of San Francisco.

Equity Community Builders was part of the development group chosen by the National Park Service in a competition to redevelop part of the base. “The overall concept was to create a lodge for the Golden Gate National Park,” said Clawson.

As completed, Cavallo Point consists of restored historic military buildings and new buildings containing 142 rooms of lodging, a restaurant, bar, meeting rooms, conference facilities, and a healing arts facility (i.e. spa). One of the new buildings houses the main meeting hall, which accommodates 200-300 people.

Sixty-eight of the lodging units were created from the rehabilitation of existing historic buildings that included Colonial Revival-style homes for officers and their families, and two-story barracks for enlisted men. These structures, among the 21 historic buildings renovated as part of the project, ring in a horseshoe pattern the former main parade group for troops that was retained as open space. The remaining 74 guest rooms are in new, clustered generally four-unit buildings built atop the existing slabs of previous, demolished non-historic buildings.

Clawson said the main parade ground and initial buildings were constructed between 1902 and 1905, while most of the historic buildings and the landscape were completed in the 1930s and 1940s. Fort Baker was designated as a national historic district in 1973.

The new development, open to tourists, business travelers, and the general public, is also the site for events held by the Institute of the Golden Gate, a program jointly created by the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy (GGNPC), the nonprofit partner for the Golden Gate National Parks, and the National Park Service. Under an agreement for the project, 10% of the resort’s room nights are set-aside at the federal per diem rate for persons attending the Institute’s events, which focus on environmental preservation and global sustainability.

Clawson said the site of the new development is leased from the Park Service under a 60-year participating ground lease, which he said will generate significant revenues for the Park Service over time that can be used to sustain the park.

Challenges, Green Features

Clawson described some of the challenges in developing the project and its green features.

He noted the porches on all of the officers’ housing structures were in “terrible shape” and many if not all had to be rebuilt. In addition, he said some of the historic buildings had interior tin ceilings comprised of 2-by-2 foot panels that were covered with lead paint. Clawson indicated there was initial puzzlement about how to remove the lead paint without spending a fortune. “Finally,” he said, “they found that if they froze the panels and then shook them, all the lead paint just fell off.” Clawson said after removal of the paint the panels had an attractive original look and were simply cleaned and re-installed.

Clawson noted the project has a “very strong focus” on environmental sustainability, with a number of green and sustainable features. “We have a target of achieving a LEED Gold [certification],” he noted.

Ninety-six percent of the exterior and 70% of the interior space of the historic buildings were retained. The new and historic buildings also incorporate energy-efficient lighting, hydronic heating systems, water-saving plumbing fixtures, and renewable and recycled materials, including bamboo, cork, recycled cotton insulation, and carpet.

Clawson said that thin-film adhesive-backed solar photovoltaic panels were installed, integrated into the metal roofing for the new lodging buildings. The system supplies nearly all the electric needs of the new lodging units. The solar system qualified for the 30% federal investment tax credit, and California’s state solar rebate.

Clawson said the 14 new buildings containing the 74 new lodging units have plenty of natural lighting and natural ventilation, with no air conditioning required.

Finally, he noted that natural native species were used for all the plantings. Seeds found around Fort Baker were germinated for three years, grown in a greenhouse, brought on site, and transplanted around all the buildings.

Funding Sources

The development benefited from $20 million worth of infrastructure improvements, environmental remediation, and other work done previously and paid for by the Park Service.

Of the total project cost of roughly $99.8 million for Cavallo Point, Clawson said Bank of America provided $49.9 million in construction financing and in mini-perm financing that will carry out seven years. In addition, through another entity, Bank of America provided $12.5 million in tax credit equity in exchange for its purchase of the historic rehabilitation tax credits, and another $317,000 in equity for the purchase of the solar tax credit and related depreciation deductions. Bank of America also made a $12.5 million loan to bridge its housing credit equity. The final piece of the funding package was $38 million in private equity secured from 50, primarily individual investors.

(Details: http://www.nps.gov/goga/planyourvisit/fort-baker. htm)