The exterior design of a naval base in San Diego County, especially when viewed from above, has generated controversy for several decades.
Longtime San Diegans may already be familiar with the buildings on Naval Amphibious Base Coronado, which appear as four “L”s that together can resemble the shape of a swastika, a symbol associated with the Nazi Party.
The swastika symbol was linked to several Eurasian philosophies, such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Odinism, as a sign of good fortune before the Nazis adopted it in 1920.
The four buildings in question are barracks located on the base between Bougainville, Eniwetok, Tulagi and Rio roads.
According to the Navy’s website, the base was established in 1943 after the dredging of San Diego Bay, which allowed large vessels to steam into Naval Station San Diego during World War II.
The controversial barracks, or NAB Complex 320-325, were constructed in the ’60s, following a design submitted by architects William T. Hendrick and John R. Mock.
Israeli citizen and former U.S. resident Avrahaum Segol found out about the shape in 2006 and helped publicize the controversy, hoping to get the design changed.
In a 2007 article published by The New York Times, the Navy said the buildings‘ design was unintentional and that it planned to spend $600,000 on landscaping and rooftop adjustments.
As of Thursday, an aerial view from Google shows that the design remains unchanged.
“You have to realize back in the ’60s, we did not have the Internet,” a spokesperson for the base told the Times in 2007. “We don’t want to be associated with the symbol.”
The Navy even posted a statement on its website regarding the buildings, saying it understands their configuration is a “sensitive topic.”
The barracks underwent a $14.1 million repair project for three of the buildings. The money went toward fixing the bathrooms, tiling and plumbing as well as electrical systems and lighting, the Navy said. However, the swastika shape remained.
“During the design development of this project, there was some consideration given to installing shade screens that might obfuscate any reference to a swastika shape,” the Navy said in its statement. “This concept was not pursued due to funding limitations for repair projects.”
An unconfirmed theory echoed by some San Diegans, including on the blog Hidden San Diego, is that the two buildings southwest of the barracks were designed to depict bomber planes, flying toward the swastika in an effort to destroy it.
