Some people manage to carve out comfortable lives for themselves within this extreme environment, and looking out over Whittier harbor at dawn, or on a snowy day while a neighbor fed the fat crows perched on his windowsill, it wasnt so hard to imagine why someone might choose the limitations of a place like Whittier over the limitations of life in a big city down in the Lower 48. Explore selling options, sales history, home details and more on . The new Begich Towers includes 196 units, enough to house the entire town. For example, the state constitution has written into it a right to privacy; if something is occurring in your own home, you have the right to keep it private. During this time Whittier was a SECRET installation known as H-12. Home Owner's Association privileges include the use of a large common room in the building for parties & entertaining as well as additional storage lockers & freezer spaces for rent. ActiveRain, Inc. takes no responsibility for the content in these profiles, The exterior of the building is getting power-washed and painted and inside the tan colored hallways have been replaced by bright yellow. It has vacant units for sale and some units belonging to seasonal residents. and Anchorage real estate Were All in for Arena Reel Star! You can find Condos for sale in Begich Towers (if there are any available today) as well as all available Whittier AK Condos for sale on my website. Its a concrete building, he said. The two largest of those are the Buckner Building and the Begich Towers. 762 SqFt Condo In Begich Towers for sale in Whittier, AK. (See it on Google Street view). The first floor of the building had almost everything a city needs to function. Winters paint a different picture. The purpose of the bomb-proof mid-century Hodge Building was to support a remote logistics station in Whittier, Alaska. In the summertime you can look out and see whales breaching in the harbor, or mountain goats grazing on the slopes across the water, but mostly people use binoculars to spy on their neighbors. This has earned Whittier the nickname of a "town under one roof". In Whittier's 99693 neighborhood, moving to this community offers plenty of nearby highlights. Heres A One Stop App For All The Needs! Next to the school and towers is the indoor playground (pictured), which protects kids from the elements year-round. It is a must see in Whittier . Reviewed on /Date(1606051739000+0800)/ carlsonstephanie. "It really isn't," the mayor responded. Most of the local businesses in Whittier are in the triangle by the waterfront or Anchor Inn building, but employment options are limited. It was designed to house a 1500-man garrison with its own chapel, command offices, brig, TV station, PX, theater, laundry facilities, barber, an enormous mess hall, craft shop, a bowling alley, a shooting range, commissary, bakery, dispensary, and private rooms for officers and NCOs. It was part of a completely self-sufficient complex designed to allow its residents to stay indoors for months at a time during the harsh coastal Alaskan winters. When it was finished, it was the longest tunnel in America. Photos from a recent listing: In Whittier population turnover can be high, understandable given the lack of consistent, year-round work. It was named the Hodge Building in memory of Colonel William Walter Hodge, commander of the 93rd Engineer Regiment on the Alcan Highway. The weather in this corner of Alaska is very unpredictable - winds blow at speeds of up to 60 miles per hour and snowfall reaches 250 People in Whittier get out of their cars carefully; the wind has been known to shatter windshields and bend car doors backwards. Whittier is known as "the town under one roof" since nearly all of its roughly 200 residents live in Begich Towers, an army barracks turned residential tower block. From small staff to the owner, all live together in this building where all the facilities like a police station, provision store, laundry, church and hospitals are located under one roof. Located around 60 miles southeast of Anchorage, the town of Whittier has a 14-storey building that also houses a health clinic, police station and convenience store. Because villages in remote areas may go many months without a visit from an itinerant dentist, the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium has started a dental health aide program--the first of its kind in the United States. Grounds are kept in excellent condition. "But, I've gotten used to it.". A skeleton crew stayed behind while the buildings were realigned as a sub-installation of AnchoragesFort Richardson. Begich was flying with House majority leader Hale Boggs from Anchorage to Juneau when the incident occurred. Recognized by ActiveRain as a 2013-2014 Top Contributor for Real Estate Blogging. booj. (Whittier has an EMT team but no hospital, so in the case of a nighttime emergency, a police officer has to run ahead of the ambulance to unlock each of the four gates inside the tunnel.). June Miller runs Junes Whittier Condo Suites, a B&B on the Towers top two floors. In addition, we feature unusual hotels and restaurants. "We don't need all of the big box stores," said Dave. With 200 inches of rain and 250 inches of snowfall annually, only the dedicated stay in Whittier through the winter months. Gary grew up in the hills of Arkansas, where he watched the Little Rock Crisis unfold on his TV screen. Its a concrete building. "It's like, no, it's not! In 1941 the United States military took an interest in Whittier to function as the backup port to the primary one at Seward, about 50 miles to the south. In 2000 the tunnel was retrofitted to accommodate cars, but before that, the train sometimes came through only once a week, so residents were well-protected from whatever they might be running away from. Check The Alaska Marine Highways Website for a current Port Schedule for Whittier AK. A Trending Reel Challenge That Can Win Us a Brand-New Swift? The U.S. government returned to Whittier at the onset of the Cold War. Some have a combination of all four!. ", "I just want them to know it's just a unique, beautiful place in its own way," he said. Over the years the building has started to look a little rundown. In the 1950s the Army began construction on BTI (then called the Hodge Building) and another barracks, the Buckner Building, which was built for enlisted men. While the United States was engaged in World War II, resources were temporarily diverted away from Whittier, leaving little activity in the area for the next five years. The complex consists of three connected modules that make up the main structure and two separate modules connected via tunnels. Are you sure you want to report this blog entry as spam? Contact Address: 110 Kenai Street Whittier, AK 99693 Phone Number: (907) 472-2484 Home AK Whittier Begich Towers Apartments Report an Issue Contact this Property (907) 472-2484 Pastor Kevin is a Southern Baptist, but most of his parishioners are Catholic immigrants from the Pacific Islands. The buildings former jail, now apartment 411, was appraised at $19,500 and listed for sale in 1976: the old jail, complete with bars on both bedroom doors, steel bunks hanging from the wall, three authentic bullet holes in the walls and window sill, plus a front view of the city, small boat harbor, and Prince William Sound.. (There once was a combination video rental store and tanning salon, but its been closed for a while now.) The search was called off after 39 days; the plane and its four passengers were never found. A police station, grocery store, clinic, church, convenience store, and school are all housed within the structure. Whittier AK is located just fifty miles outside of Anchorage. The building, called Begich Towers, is a former Army barracks that resembles a very large hotel. And some people love it because it can be reclusive.. Seward Highway south to Portage Road, go east to, Free Community and Demographic Reports for Whittier, Access detailed information on Whittier Community School, Home Prices in Anchorage Alaska for March 2018, Home Prices in Anchorage Alaska for February 2018, Home Prices in Anchorage Alaska for November 2017, View all Activerain Blog Posts By Katrina Benton. I mean, when you think of all those things that you value in a community, we found that here. In 1948 construction began in Whittier on the first of two enormous concrete structures. The 2.5-mile Anton Anderson Memorial Tunnel, which was converted from railroad use, alternates the flow of traffic every fifteen minutes. If there is a fire, at least everyone will stay warm. We Say, Yes! Instead they go directly from the cruise ship to a train that takes them to Anchorage. The Buckner Building housed, among other things, a bowling alley, a movie theater, a shooting range, a barbershop, and a six-cell jail. Adventure Tours. Start a conversation, not a fire. When we shot this photo, the wind was blowing upwards of 60 mph and there were no other customers in the bar. Employment protections include being fired, denied employment, or otherwise discriminated against by an employer. Some keep them for watching whales or goats grazing, but one resident admits theyre for determining if your husbands at the bar.. ]. The population drops to less than two hundred, and the streets empty as most of the town moves back indoors. The settlement sits on a delta in which mountains rise to 3,500 feet within two miles on either side. Nothings going to burn down.. Following the Army's departure, each building had to get its own system, including the Begich Towers, which had a pair of boilers in a side building. June Miller runs June's Whittier Condo Suites, a bed and breakfast on the fourteenth and fifteenth floors of Begich Towers. Google India Employee Gets Laid Off After Earning 'Star Performer' Award, Asks 'Why Me? The Hodge and the Buckner Composite building, dubbed a city under one roof, are the largest most modern inhabited structures built by the Corps of Engineers since the Pentagon.. Begich Towers Condominium Association of Apartment Owners Inc. The flat-roofed Hodge Building was the militarys residential tower, built for bachelors quarters and family housing. Begich Towers Condos in Whittier AK have an active Home Owner's Association with dues of about $250 to $550 per month depending upon the size of the unit. The structure is notable for operating like a small-scale arcology, being the residence for nearly the entire population of the city, as well as containing many of its public facilities. The tower is actually three structures mashed into one: an east building, a middle building, and a west building, combined over four years from 1953 to 1957. The first floor of the building had almost everything a city needs to function. The majority of the Alaska Railroad workers commute from Anchorage,as does Whittiers mayor and all but one of the towns police officers. A museum about the Japanese occupation of Alaska during World War II, an abandoned army barracks called the Buckner Building which once housed Whittier residents as Begich Towers does today, and a handful of delectable restaurants that serve fresh seafood are some other points of interest. Every kid is seen. Access detailed information on Whittier Community School,school ratings, test scores by grade, student-teacher ratio, and much more. Residents sell food and crafts to visitors, but most of the tourists money goes straight out the tunnel. Orlet us know your school story in the comments section below and share this info with your friends and family, and keep readingIndiatimes.comfor the latest trending news. Ironically, when the conversion was finished, more people moved out. Wealthy residents of New York who pay big bucks for condos with in-house amenities could only dream of such lavish luxury. The Buckner Building over here was named after General Buckner. Dr. Michael Costa is a visiting dentist who spends nearly half his year traveling between Alaskan villages, and Erik Linduska is a dental health aide therapist based out of King Cove. He was born and raised in Whittier, and came back because it's home. ", Beverly Walts has been bartending at the Anchor Inn ever since she moved to Whittier from Texas in the early 1990s. And it is strange: residents wander through the halls of BTI in pajamas; there is a provision on fish slime in the condo association guidelines; a pair of reindeer lives in a pen out front. The purpose of the bomb-proof mid-centuryHodge Building was to support a remote logistics station in Whittier, Alaska. At night the tunnel is closed. The only way to get to Whittier is to drive through a one-lane railroad tunnel through the middle of a mountain. Copyright 2023 Alaska Multiple Listing Service, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Both were constructed in the wake of World War II along with the railroad leading in, a combined $55 million build that . Author Bio: Katrina is a top producing Realtor from Anchorage, AK. We were tough in those days.". Begich Towers 110 Kenai Street, Whittier, AK 99693 Studio Beds Property Information 196 Units 14 Stories Built in 1956 Begich Towers Description Experience Whittier living at Begich Towers. Floral Dresses To Chic Bags - Heres How I Refreshed My Summer Closet From Flipkart On A Budget! Because the weather can be so extreme, kids often walk to school via an underground tunnel. The former military gym and basketball courts (pictured) are massive and offer an expansive indoor area for activity and exercise. The Hodge Building was part of a larger project meant to include the construction of ten other similar buildings for military use. Brenda Tolman is known for the two reindeer she keeps in a pen across the street from Begich Towers, but she also spends much of her time making wood carvings, dolls, jewelry and other crafts to sell to tourists at her shop on the harbor. After a drug bust on the 10th floor of Begich Towers, the Whittier Police donated a hydroponic garden to the kids at Whittier School. The area where modern-day Whittier sits was developed during World War II, when it was chosen as the place to build a military harbor and a logistics base for the US Army. In addition to the residential units, the first floor has several businesses: a laundry mat, Post Office, condo association offices and more. In addition to the residential areas, the building contains the basic services for condo owners and guests: a post office, a general store and a laundromat. Recreational activities near Begich Towers Apartments are plentiful. The first thing we noticed when we arrived in Whittier was the windwe were barely out of the car when a powerful gust pushed us down the hill. "I can remember the old tough Alaskan style, you party all night till five in the morning, and then you went to the cannery at seven to start pitching fish. Please check the Whittier AK Tunnel Schedule before driving to Whittier AK. Use the map to locate points of interest like shopping, restaurants, andhealth care services. The Buckner, as it was called, was the social center for the posts military, civilian and dependent population. The building was built in 1956 and duringWorld War II, there was an army barrack at this place, due to which all the facilities are available here. Karen Dempster, who owns two units in the building, an attorney and a professor at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, helped write a grant, which will pay for several upgrades to the building. At 11 pm the tunnel is locked for the night. Brokered And Advertised By: Keller Williams Realty Alaska Group Listing Agent: Michael Schwartz. [5], Last edited on 21 December 2022, at 18:47, Learn how and when to remove this template message, "Northern Enclosure: Alaska's One-House Town, Home to Hundreds", "Army's Seaport On Glacier Rim Is Unique City", "Begich Towers, home to about half the population of Whittier, gets a much-needed overhaul", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Begich_Towers&oldid=1128738094, Majority of Whittier's population, local government, public services and businesses. On Good Friday in March of 1964, the second most powerful earthquake in recorded history buckled the floor underneath Prince William Sound, registering a whopping 9.2 magnitude on the Richter scale. She'd like to move to Anchorage, but her teachers don't want her family to leave, because to lose Lucky and her five siblings would be disruptive in such a small school. It has 196 apartment units, most of which are . In the summertime Whittier is bustling. Copyright 2023 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. Wildlife Photographer Captures Rare Photo Of Three-Headed Cheetah, What's The Story Behind It? Fiery train crash in Greece kills dozens, many of them students, Watch Live: Garland testifies amid ongoing special counsel investigations. The serene setting,mountain and harbor views make this the perfect Alaska getaway. "Yeah, it is known as the weirdest city in Alaska," said her husband, Dave Dickason, who is Whittier's Mayor. Whittier started to emerge from the Armys shadow when the city was officially incorporated in 1969. It is 14 floors high and is made up of three modules connected together. Inside, the painted concrete hallways illuminated by the ubiquitous yellow fluorescent lighting always remind that you are inside what used to be a government building. 60 miles from Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport. Each office independently owned and operated. The Kozy Korner grocery store is stocked with essentials. The post office is near the buildings entrance and the police station is just down the hall. Now, though, Begich is much more than . Residents must learn to love their neighbors because despite Whittiersisolation from the rest of the world, living in a tower with the rest of the town offers an experience devoid of privacy. The Hodge Building was transformed into a public building with several units, including the headquarters of the major institutions and commercial services of Whittier. ]. In addition to the residential units, the first floor has several businesses: a laundry mat, Post Office, condo association offices and more. The impressive engineering behind the 14-story Hodge Building was on display as its three separate towers swayed but miraculously did not collapse. 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