The Alaska Army National Guard wants to know whether its armory building in Kenai should be deemed “historically significant” — a designation that would insure any work on the facility moving forward fits the historical character of the building.
Tom Wolforth is cultural resource manager for the Alaska Army National Guard. He said the guard considers making that designation when one of its buildings is more than half a century old.
“But just because something is over 50 years old does not mean that it’s necessarily, automatically historically significant,” he said. “And that’s the key phrase — ‘historically significant.’”
Wolforth said there are four major criteria to determine whether a building is “historically significant,” per the process outlinedby the National Historic Preservation Act. It can be tied to a historical event or an important person. It can also be an exceptionally built building or can have archeological significance.
The armory in Kenai, on Forest Drive, was built in 1973 and is one of 19 active armory sites in the state today. The guard has divested from many others around Alaska, as the use for those buildings in some communities has waned.
The Alaska Army National Guard bought the land beneath the building from the City of Kenai in 1967 for $10, said guard Realty Officer Kevin Vakalis. At that time, the guard was building up what said was the “ice curtain” during the Cold War.
“The ice curtain was predominately the armories out toward western Alaska,” he said. “The idea was that was first the place the Russians would infiltrate.”
Today, the Kenai building is a training base for National Guard soldiers and can sleep hundreds in case of emergency. It’s made of concrete and is designed to withstand heavy weather.
And it’s in the middle of its second-ever remodel, said Armory Attendant Sgt. Buddy Ranel. He said they’re building a bigger gym and bathrooms designated for women — which weren’t included in the original building plan.
Wolforth said if a building like the armory is designated “historically significant,” any construction on it will have to fit the existing, historical character of the building.
“If it’s historically significant, we will do our very best and put in doors and windows that look exactly like, or very close to like, what was there before,” he said. “So we retain as much as possible the look.”
The guard has hired an external company to do the historical analysis on the building. That company will spend some time looking at the space and collecting information through interviews with veterans and old newspaper articles.
The company’s report on the armory is due next spring.
