Hamilton Field, California

Hamilton Field is the oldest among a number of base closure and conversion sites around the bay, and an indication, perhaps, of the decades it can take for such redevelopment projects to come to fruition. Constructed in 1931 as a bomber base, it became a refugee center during the Vietnam war, and was closed by the military in 1974. Original use agreements with the military mandated that civilian redevelopment plans had to include a functional airport. Eventually those plans were abandoned, resulting in major portions of the base being given to the city of Novato. While some of the land is still owned by the military (which continues to oversee environmental remediation and monitoring efforts), most of the land has now been converted for civilian applications, including a housing development called The Landing at Hamilton, as well as an office park called Hamilton Landing, which makes use of all of the original hangers - excluding those used by the Coast Guard's Pacific Strike Team, which is one of three teams comprising the National Strike Force, a federal toxic/hazardous substance release response team. A levee which runs around the built up portions of the base and the new housing areas, was used to intentionally flood the airfield, as part of the Hamilton Wetland Restoration Project, whose goal is to restore the wetland habitats once found at the site of the former main airfield and North Antenna Field. The project is a collaboration between the United States Army Corps of Engineers, State Coastal Conservancy and the San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission.