NEWS RELEASES
Metroparks Completes First Phase Renovations of Historic Coast Guard Complex
Editor's Note: This news item was retrieved and first published through FreshWater's website.
A historic Clevelad U.S. Coast Guard station is now serving a new purpose following Cleveland Metroparks' first phase of renovations on the 1940 three-building complex. Situated on West Pier at the mouth of the Cuyahoga River on Whiskey Island, the station now operates some of The Foundry’s sailing programs and the Metroparks' learn-to-sail classes, as well as an ideal location to appreciate Lake Erie’s beauty. The building was designed by Cleveland architect J. Milton Dyer—who also designed Cleveland City Hall—in an architectural style similar to the style of the Cleveland Greyhound station. The Coast Guard station’s design is meant to mimic the streamlined profiles of ships on the water.
According to the article on FreshWater Cleveland by Karin Connelly Rice, "The complex includes a 60-foot observation tower, an operations building and garage, and a boathouse. Today, the interior has been gutted, with Foundry Sailing Center set up in the garage near a state-of-the-art floating steel dock system outside with the capacity to hold various boats in the Foundry’s fleet." The Coast Guard used the station until 1976, after which it sat essentially abandoned. In 2016, the Metroparks took over the complex—listed on the National Register of Historic Places—and began the first phase of renovations last year. Furthermore, some of the recent renovation work was funded through Great Lakes Burning River Fest, an annual event held at the Coast Guard station on Whiskey Island for the past nine years. The fundraiser builds awareness of clean water initiatives and helps fund similar restoration projects through the Burning River Foundation. This year’s event runs Friday, August 17, and Saturday, August 18.
For more information on the project and other events at the historic location, click here to read the full story.