Nov 10 2014

From The Space Library

RELEASE 14-305 NASA Signs Lease with Planetary Ventures LLC for Use of Moffett Airfield and Restoration of Hangar One

Deal Part of Agency Effort to Reduce Costs, Surplus Property

In an effort to reduce costs and shed surplus property, NASA today signed a lease with Planetary Ventures, LLC to manage Moffett Federal Airfield (MFA), an agency facility located in Moffett Field, California, and rehabilitate its historic Hangar One. NASA estimates the lease will save the agency approximately $6.3 million annually in maintenance and operation costs and provide $1.16 billion in rent over the initial 60-year lease term.

MFA, currently maintained by NASA’s Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, California, includes approximately 1,000 acres of land located on South San Francisco Bay. The land includes Hangars One, Two and Three, an airfield flight operations building, two runways and a private golf course.

"As NASA expands its presence in space, we are making strides to reduce our footprint here on Earth,” said NASA Administrator Charles Bolden. “We want to invest taxpayer resources in scientific discovery, technology development and space exploration – not in maintaining infrastructure we no longer need. Moffett Field plays an important role in the Bay Area and is poised to continue to do so through this lease arrangement.”

After a fair and open competition, the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) and NASA selected Planetary Ventures, LLC as the preferred lessee in February 2014 and began lease negotiations. The negotiated lease, which is neither a procurement action nor a government contract, will put Hangar One to new use and eliminate NASA's management costs of the airfield, with the federal government retaining title to the property.

“Hangar One is an important landmark in Silicon Valley,” said GSA Administrator Dan Tangherlini. “GSA was proud to support NASA in delivering the best value to taxpayers while restoring this historic facility and enhancing the surrounding community.”

Planetary Ventures currently plans to invest more than $200 million in capital improvements to the property and commits, in this lease, to several undertakings that will benefit the public upon completion, including:

• Refurbishing and protecting historic Hangar One in accordance with standards established for historic properties by the U.S. Secretary of the Interior;
• Rehabilitating historic Hangars Two and Three;
• Operating MFA in accordance with the Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement for public and private use; and,
• Creating an educational facility where the public can explore the site’s legacy and the role of technology in the history of Silicon Valley.

“We are fortunate to have had significant input from surrounding communities on setting a future path for Moffett Field,” said Ames Director S. Pete Worden. “With the involvement of the citizens of Mountain View and Sunnyvale, we are confident the results will benefit all parties.”

Planetary Ventures will assume operation of the site following the finalization of a joint plan with NASA, the federal Environmental Protection Agency and California Regional Water Quality Control Board to ensure continued environmental stewardship and protection of the existing remedies of the site.

As a tenant to NASA, Planetary Ventures will be required to comply with all applicable laws, regulations and policies, including those on topics of historic preservation, environmental compliance, security, health and safety, and airfield operations to support ongoing missions and other government objectives.

“We look forward to rolling up our sleeves to restore the remarkable landmark Hangar One, which for years has been considered one of the most endangered historic sites in the United States,” said David Radcliffe, Vice President of Real Estate and Workplace Services at Google Inc.

Once renovations are complete, Hangar One will again be home to high-tech innovation as Planetary Ventures begins using the historic facility for research, development, assembly and testing in the areas of space exploration, aviation, rover/robotics and other emerging technologies. Hangars Two and Three will be used for similar purposes.

RELEASE 14-312 NASA Administrator, Ambassadors Brigety and Haslach Discuss Application of NASA Earth Science for Planning in African Union Nations

NASA Administrator Charles Bolden, U.S. Ambassador to Ethiopia Patricia Haslach, and U.S. Ambassador to the African Union (AU) Reuben Brigety, met this week in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, to discuss resources available to help mitigate the impacts in Africa of global climate change.

On Monday, Bolden delivered high-resolution topographical data for the African continent to the technical committee of the Governing Council of the Regional Center for Mapping of Resources for Development (RCMRD), which hosts the SERVIR Eastern and Southern Africa Hub. SERVIR is a joint venture between NASA and the U.S. Agency for International Development that provides satellite-based Earth observation data and science applications to help developing nations. The data, collected by the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission, was recently released as part of President Barack Obama’s climate action plan, announced during the United Nations Climate Summit in September.

“It is vital that NASA and African nations continue to explore mutual areas of cooperation,” Bolden said. “I look forward to our ongoing collaboration and to making a difference on real world problems with our satellites in space and crucial ground observations. Working together, we can improve life for all of our people.”

While in Addis Ababa, Bolden and Brigety met with Tumusiime Rhoda Peace, the AU Commissioner for Rural Economy and Agriculture, and Martial De-Paul Ikounga, the AU Commissioner for Human Resources, Science and Technology, to discuss the potential for cooperation between NASA and the AU on education, disaster mitigation and applications for NASA’s Earth science research. “The United States has been partnering with the African Union on topics as diverse as security, governance and agriculture,” Brigety said. “Administrator Bolden’s visit is another concrete example demonstrating that the United States is the natural partner for Africa and for the African Union.”

Administrator Bolden and Ambassador Haslach met with Demitu Hambisa, the Ethiopian Minister of Science and Technology to discuss applications for NASA's Earth science research. Administrator Bolden also met with leaders at the Entoto Observatory and Research Center, an observatory and education center, and spoke with students at the International Community School Tikur Anbessa High School, and Addis Ababa Institute of Technology.

“We are excited Administrator Bolden visited Addis Ababa this week and that NASA is engaging with the government of Ethiopia and the African Union on our shared objectives,” Haslach said. “While here in Addis Ababa, Administrator Bolden participated in a range of outreach activities and engaged Ethiopian policymakers and technical experts on Ethiopia’s space program, which included a visit to the new observatory on Entoto Mountain and engagement with young Ethiopians interested in space exploration and how it can help us on Earth.”