Base expansion

Selicia Kennedy-Ross

NEWPORT BEACH -- The Boy Scouts of America Sea Base in Newport

Harbor will be the beneficiary of a $14-million fund-raising drive by the

county’s Scout Council.

The Orange County Boy Scout Council began its two-year capital campaign

in June 1998 in order to refurbish and expand local scout camps and other

facilities across the county.

The council plans to use money from the final six months of the campaign

next year -- when they expect to raise about $4.5 million -- to refurbish

and expand the sea base, said Bill Mountford, base property manager.

The sea base campaign has already raised more than $500,000 in pledges,

Mountford said.

The money will be used to add two new buildings, remodel existing

structures and improve the base’s parking lot. The base was last

refurbished in 1980.

Expansion blueprints are being studied and soil grading has already

begun, said Brett Beck, financial director for the council.

Along with weekend merit badge classes, the base provides maritime and

sea scout activities such as sailing, rowing, kayaking, motorboating and

whale watching for boy scout troops and the community. The base is also

home to the Argus, a 100-year-old ship used for whale watching and other

educational purposes.

“We’re able to give kids who don’t have membership to a yacht or boating

club access to the water,” Mountford said of the base’s aquatic programs.

Some of the scouts who were involved with the sea scout programs have

gone on to to pursue careers in the Navy and Coast Guard, or as boat

captains and sailmakers.

“Of the sea scouts who go on to pursue a maritime career, most received

much of their education here,” Mountford said. “For many, their first

introduction to the water happened here.”According to Mountford, the sea

base receives more than 25,000 visitors per year.

The improvements to the parking lot will greatly reduce traffic buildup

in the lot, said David O’Hara, facilities manager for the sea base. Plans

call for additional spaces and a new driveway to be added to the 35-space

lot.

“It gets crazy here sometimes when the parking lot fills up,” O’Hara

said.

“People will double park or leave boats in the lot blocking other

people,” he added. “Right now, we only have one driveway ... we want to

add another one and have entrance and exit driveways. If the lot is full,

drivers have to turn their cars around and exit, so an extra driveway

will help.”

The sea base, which was established in 1937, is run by a four-person

staff and several volunteers.

The fund-raising campaign is scheduled for completion in June 2000.