March 18, 2011 (Seattle, WA) – On March 16 the Seattle Landmarks Preservation Board designated the former Sand Point Naval Air Station as the city’s newest historic district.  The last historic district to be designated in Seattle was the Fort Lawton Landmark District in 1988.  

Throughout 2010, Friends of Naval Air Station Seattle Historic District, a group of community members and neighbors, spearheaded the effort to get the historic buildings, structures, and the site recognized as a local landmark district. By being designated as a historic district, modifications to the exteriors of buildings and site elements will be reviewed by the Landmarks Preservation Board to ensure the integrity of the district.  

The Sand Point Naval Air Station Historic District was designated because of its unique contribution to the history of not only Seattle, but to the nation as well:

• It was the first naval aviation facility established within the Thirteenth Naval District prior to WWll. 
• It is the site of the first around-the-world flight. 
• As Seattle’s first Municipal Airport from 1920-1926, it was important to the early development of the Boeing Company.
• Its buildings comprise a large collection of WPA built colonial Revival, Art Deco and Art Moderne architecture, and the site has rare examples of pre-WWII aviation hangers.
• As one of only four Naval Air Stations in the nation during WWll, it was important as a supply, training, and maintenance facility for the Pacific front.

The historic district is also listed in the National Register of Historic Places. For photos and a map of the historic district, visit http://www.seattle.gov/neighborhoods/documents/LandmarksPresentationMap03-22-11.pdf. 

Seattle has other seven preservation districts, each with community members working together to protect the characteristics that make their community a unique place. They are the Ballard Avenue Landmark District, Columbia City Landmark District, Fort Lawton Landmark District, Harvard-Belmont Landmark District, International Special Review District, Pike Place Market Historical District, and Pioneer Square Preservation District. For more information on Seattle’s Historic Preservation Program, visit www.seattle.gov/neighborhoods/preservation. 

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