Marine Corps Base at Floyd Bennett Field to see upgrades

Upgrades are in the works for Brooklyn’s Marine Corps Base at Floyd Bennett Field.

After incorporating several military-based priorities for the state into a military construction appropriations bill, Senators Charles Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand announced that the bill—which includes a $2.4 million facility upgrade at the Brooklyn Navy Reserve Center—has passed through Congress and is on its way to the president’s desk.

“The Brooklyn Marine Corps base is in need of additional space to store critical equipment and vehicles to help those who serve our country. I am pleased this $2.4 million in funding has now passed Congress, so we can ensure the Brooklyn Marine Corps Base has the proper resources it needs for our troops,” said Schumer.

According to Schumer’s office, the new storage facility will provide “space to store specialized communications vehicles and communications/electronic equipment,” as the existing buildings lack the space to house the current equipment.

Since the incoming equipment will need a covered storage facility, the funding will be used to construct a steel frame equipment building on a concrete foundation with metal insulated siding and roofing.

“Construction of the new storage facility at the Brooklyn Navy Reserve Center is a critical investment that will ensure the maintenance of specialized communications and electronic equipment and vehicles for the Brooklyn Marine Corps,” said Gillibrand, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee. “These federal resources are critical to provide necessary construction upgrades to help ensure our service men and women have the very best facilities available to them.”

Floyd Bennett Field, deemed New York’s first municipal airport in 1931, was a popular site for aviators at the time, according to the National Park Service. However, after LaGuardia Airport opened in 1939, the city sold the field to the U.S. Navy in June of 1941.

The field was used as a “home front” during World War II and then redesignated as a Naval Air Reserve Training Station in 1946. After the U.S. scaled back efforts during the Vietnam War, the field was no longer needed and was officially deactivated in 1971. The National Park Service, soon after, designated the park a part of Gateway National Recreation Area. The south section of the field has been the New York City headquarters of  the Marines’ 6th Communication Battalion since 1997.