Land Use

Developed Land

With up to 15,000 active duty military personnel and 5,100 military family members during its active history, developed areas at Fort Ord resembled a medium-sized city, with family housing, medical facilities, warehouses, office buildings, industrial complexes, and gas stations.  Individual land use categories were as follows:

• Residential areas included military housing, such as training and temporary personnel barracks, Army family housing for both officers and enlisted soldiers.
• Local services/commercial areas provided retail or other commercial services, such as gas stations, mini-markets, and fast food facilities.
• Military support/industrial areas included industrial operations, such as motor pools, machine shops, a cannibalization yard (area where serviceable parts are removed from damaged vehicles), and the Fritzsche Army Airfield.
• Mixed land use areas combined residential, local services/commercial, and military support operations.
• Schools included the Thomas Hayes Elementary, Roger S. Fitch Junior High, General George S. Patton Elementary, Marshall Elementary and Gladys Stone schools.  High school students attended Seaside High, outside Fort Ord's southwest boundary.
• Hospital facilities included the Silas B. Hayes Army Hospital, medical and dental facilities, and a helipad.
• Training areas included a central track and field, firing ranges, and obstacle courses.
• Recreational areas included a golf course and club house, baseball diamonds, tennis courts, and playgrounds.

The three principal developed areas are described below:

East Garrison

The East Garrison is on the northeast side of the base, adjacent to undeveloped training areas.  Military/industrial support areas at the East Garrison included tactical vehicle storage facilities, defense recycling and disposal areas, a sewage treatment plant, and a small arms range.  Also at the East Garrison areas were used as recreational open space, including primitive camping facilities, baseball diamonds, a skeet range, and tennis courts.  Recreational open space comprised 25 of the approximately 350 acres of the East Garrison.

Fritzsche Army Airfield

The Fritzsche Army Airfield is in the northern portion of Fort Ord, on the north side of Reservation Road.  The primary land use was for military/industrial support operations; facilities included air strips, a motor park, aircraft fuel facilities, a sewage treatment plant, aircraft maintenance facilities, an air control tower, a fire and rescue station, and aircraft hangars.

Main Garrison

The Southern Pacific Railroad right-of-way and Highway 1 separate the coastal zone from Fort Ord's Main Garrison.  The Main Garrison consisted of a complex combination of the various land use categories.  Facilities included schools; a hospital; housing; commercial facilities, including a former dry cleaner and a gasoline service station; and industrial operations, including motor pools and machine shops.

Undeveloped Land

Coastal Zone

A system of sand dunes lies between Highway 1 and the shoreline.  The western edge of the dunes has an abrupt drop of 40 to 70 feet, and the dunes reach an elevation of 140 feet above mean sea level on the gentler, eastern slopes.  The dunes provide a buffer zone that isolates the Beach Trainfire Ranges from the shoreline to the west.  In some areas, spent ammunition had accumulated on the dune slopes as the result of years of range operation.  Numerous former target ranges, ammunition storage facilities, and two inactive sewage treatment facilities lie east of the dunes.  A well-known coastal landmark and former recreation center, Stilwell Hall, was demolished between Auguest 2003 and February 2004 due to coastal bluff erosion, building deterioration and weathering.

Because of the presence of rare and/or endangered species and because of its visual attributes, Fort Ord's coastal zone has been designated an environmentally sensitive area.  The beach dune area at Fort Ord has been identified as among the best coastal dunes in California because of significant features including coastal strand vegetation and the extent of natural dune habitat.

Inland Areas

Undeveloped land in the inland portions of Fort Ord included infantry training areas and open areas used for livestock grazing and recreational activities such as hunting, fishing, and camping.  A large portion of this undeveloped land is occupied by the Impact Area (formerly called the Multi-Range Area). This area was used for advanced military training operations.

These undeveloped areas are primarily left in their natural state, without the development of facilities.