A fitness centre and several cafes located near the house have also been built to the service of local residents. Home Owner's Association privileges include the use of a large common room in the building for parties & entertaining as well as additional s. torage lockers & freezer spaces for rent. The majority of the Alaska Railroad workers commute from Anchorage,as does Whittiers mayor and all but one of the towns police officers. There are pleasant touches (such as the exteriors newer blue, cream, and peach paint scheme) that try to establish a playful identity for the formerly drab Hodge Building. Now, though, Begich is much more than . While most of the town was destroyed, the rail lines, docks, deep water wells, and massive concrete buildings remained largely intact. Whittier residents who ventured to Anchorage for an evening of fun, and missed the 10:30 tunnel cut off time have been known to spend the night in their car. A supply barge comes into town once a week, but most of the workers who unload the freight commute from Anchorage. It also has radar-unfriendly claustrophobic topography and famously terrible weather, which obscures visibility for much of the year. Electric Sunroof, Head Up Display & Other Features That Make The All New Hot & Techy Brezza A Hit. Some people love it because IT CAN BE REALLY SOCIAL. 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. The oldest surviving structure from this occupation is the Alaska Communication Systems (ACS) building, also the oldest concrete structure in Whittier (pictured below, source). All rights reserved. Check The Alaska Marine Highways Website for a current Port Schedule for Whittier AK. Since the vehicular passage in the tunnel is one lane, inbound and outbound traffic is staggered in fifteen minute intervals twice per hour; in the winter this shrinks to five-minute windows to keep the tunnel warm. Too costly and dangerous to demolish, the building is still there today. The two largest of those are the Buckner Building and the Begich Towers. Whittiers school is connected to Begich Towers by an underground tunnel, so young residents never have to brave harsh wind and snow on their way to the classroom. The school (yes, there is one; it's connected to the building by, you guessed it, yet another tunnel) currently has about 50 students ages 3-18. Real estate listings held by brokerage firms other than , are marked with either the listing brokerage's logo or the AK MLS logo and information about them includes the name of the listing brokerage. Its a concrete building, he said. The former Army barracks is often described. There is also a small Baptist church, two floors of bed and breakfast daily rentals, a conference room, and an indoor playground at the school. Perhaps the best reason to live in Begich Towers is its perceived invincibility. 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. It's home.". But thriving harbor industriesfreight, fishing, tourismdont seem to translate into growth for the city. ]. I got so many comments on my TikTok saying, 'It looks sad. One unique feature, there is a pedestrian tunnel linking . A police station, grocery store, clinic, church, convenience store, and school are all housed within the structure. Beverly looked out at the snow whipping sideways past the window and told us, Down in the Lower 48, this would have a name., Whittier has a city manager style of government, which means that the mayor mainly serves as a figurehead, and the city manager, who is not elected but hired, is in charge of all the municipal operations. RE/MAX, LLC is an Equal Opportunity Employer and supports the Fair Housing Act and equal opportunity housing. Residents sell food and crafts to visitors, but most of the tourists money goes straight out the tunnel. 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. [ Before the tunnel conversion began, BTI condos sold for as little as $9,000. It is one of Alaska's most famous buildings, mostly, because more than half of Whittier lives here. There are benefits to living in the Begich Towers. The town of Whittier, AK is served by a tunnel with a toll of $13 per round trip. Begich Towers is essentially a fully functional condo that is equipped to take care of most of the residents needs in-house. The first floor of the building had almost everything a city needs to function. But is it? It has 196 apartment units, most of which are . The U.S. Army began construction of a rail line in 1941 from Whittier to nearby Portage, Alaska. Valentines Day Gifting Stressing You Out? Jim carves figures of Alaskan animals out of native Alaskan ivory. Brokered And Advertised By: Keller Williams Realty Alaska Group Listing Agent: Michael Schwartz. Tourism is a source of income for the town, although its guests tend to have brief visits. In addition to the residential units, the first floor has several busine. It was named the Hodge Building in memory of Colonel William Walter Hodge, commander of the 93rd Engineer Regiment on the Alcan Highway. A 1956 Fairbanks Daily News-Miner articlereported the new construction in Whittier: The tower steel and concrete Hodge Building might have been lifted out of New York City and dropped into the Alaskan wilderness intact. The windows are being replaced to protect the building from water damage. (Sarah Bell / Alaska Dispatch News) Trouble in paradise Dempster, a. Pastor Kevin is a Southern Baptist, but most of his parishioners are Catholic immigrants from the Pacific Islands. With 200 inches of rain and 250 inches of snowfall annually, only the dedicated stay in Whittier through the winter months. The exterior of the building is getting power-washed and painted and inside the tan colored hallways have been replaced by bright yellow. Time to Sell? They also had a lot of civil rights actions here [in Alaska] in the forties; the Natives werent even allowed to sit in the movie theater with white people. The fourteen-story high-risecalled Begich Towers, or BTIcontains a post office, a police station, a grocery store, a Laundromat, a health clinic, and a church. This has earned Whittier the nickname of a "town under one roof". (Some residents opposed the tunnel retrofit, afraid that it would bring an influx of people to town. The 14-story building is a former Army barracks built in 1956, yet it houses all the amenities youd expect from a small town: a laundromat, health clinic, corner store, police station, church, video store, city offices and the homes of nearly 200 residents.Photo via California Sunday Magazine. When the second largest earthquake in recorded history leveled much of southern Alaska in 1964, the 14-story Cold War relic was one of few structures to survive. All information is deemed reliable but is not guaranteed and should be independently verified for accuracy. These real estate profiles, blogs and blog entries are provided here as a courtesy to our visitors to help them Disclaimer: ActiveRain, Inc. does not necessarily endorse the real estate agents, loan officers and brokers listed on this site. People in Whittier refer to Bob as something called "old Alaska"--he settled in a pre-pipeline Wrangle during Alaska's Wild West days. Non-residents can enter the 1s floor where the city offices are and the top two floors where there is a bed and breakfast. . Enjoy the excellent mountain and waterfall views from this 2 bedroom, 1 bath fifth floor condo in Begich Towers. Jim's studio is located in Whittier Manor, the only other residential building in Whittier besides Begich Towers. 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. Ed Hedges lives year-round on a 28-foot sailboat with his cat, Whatever. Each office independently owned and operated. And some people love it because it can be reclusive.. So it actually makes sense for the city's citizens to have everything in one place and live under the same roof. 2023 ActiveRain, Inc. All Rights Reserved :) homeFair Housing: Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity, Real Estate Agent with Come Home Inc License #16564, Affordable Condos with Unobstructed Views, Depending upon placement within the towers, each unit has an unobstructed view of the. Now, a high rise does seem out of place here, but what's more surprising is, the Begich Towers (as they're officially called) is about the only place to live in all of Whittier. Adjustment is not easy, nor guaranteed, for those who make an attempt. Wildlife Photographer Captures Rare Photo Of Three-Headed Cheetah, What's The Story Behind It? The shore is lined with small stores that open up during tourist season. The 14th floor of the Begich Towers remains quiet in Whittier on Tuesday, August 9, 2016. "Yeah, it is known as the weirdest city in Alaska," said her husband, Dave Dickason, who is Whittier's Mayor. Its a concrete building. [2] After the war, the military planned to develop a large complex in the area. Paranormal enthusiasts claim that the Buckner Building is haunted by restless spirits. Society. "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. And that tunnel shuts down at night, leaving Whitter cut off until morning. Whittier operates under a city manager form of government, which means that the mayor serves mainly as a figurehead. The next day we were on the ground floor at the grocery store when a painfully loud fire alarm went off. make an informed decision when buying or selling a house. 100 Kenai St Unit 414, a condos home located in Whittier, AK has 2 beds, 1 baths, and is 932 square feet. The impressive engineering behind the 14-story Hodge Building was on display as its three separate towers swayed but miraculously did not collapse. Walk a little into the room and you will see government offices, as well as Kozy Korner convenience store, a shop where everyone is shopping. Mon, Feb 27, 2023 LOGIN Subscribe for $1 Google India Employee Gets Laid Off After Earning 'Star Performer' Award, Asks 'Why Me? The population drops to less than two hundred, and the streets empty as most of the town moves back indoors. This has earned Whittier the nickname of a "town under one roof". 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. Find similar condos for sale to the Begich Towers Condos in Whittier AK. Most of the local businesses in Whittier are in the triangle by the waterfront or Anchor Inn building, but employment options are limited. The Begich Towers Condominium is a building in the small city of Whittier, Alaska. Story produced by Sari Aviv. One benefit of living at BTI is that kids dont need jackets when they go to school in the winter because the towns school was built immediately behind Begich Towers; it connects to the base of the west tower via an underground tunnel, which shields the kids from Whittiers extreme winter weather. The average 3 Bedroom Apartment in Whittier is $1,585. 2021 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. Begich Towers: Tour the most famous building in Whittier, Man charged in 1994 sexual abuse cold case, Fairview neighborhood to receive $537K in federal grant to reconnect community, Alaska groups celebrate Juneteenth, Indigenous Peoples Day becoming city holidays. 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 "You know, you get to thinking, Oh man, the tunnel's the only way out. Part of the heating system has been replaced. It was promoted as the City Under One Roof.. The problems were traced back to the hydronic loop using water, which was susceptible to freezing, instead of a mixture of domestic water and glycol, which lowers the freezing point and prevents pipes from bursting due to ambient temperature drops below zero degrees Celsius. (800) 525-7452. Over the years the building has started to look a little rundown. Coordinates: .mw-parser-output .geo-default,.mw-parser-output .geo-dms,.mw-parser-output .geo-dec{display:inline}.mw-parser-output .geo-nondefault,.mw-parser-output .geo-multi-punct{display:none}.mw-parser-output .longitude,.mw-parser-output .latitude{white-space:nowrap}604620N 1484108W / 60.77222N 148.68556W / 60.77222; -148.68556 Its a concrete building, Good Friday (or Great Alaskan) Earthquake, Where to Download and Play RetroPie ROMs with Emulators, 5 reasons why a student needs to follow the daily routine, Summer Will Never Be Hot Again with These Home Cooling Tips, Canadas Approach to Online Gambling Over the Years, Employee Motivation: How to Empower Your Team Motivation, Comprehending the Difficulties of Android Device Management. 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. The 14-story Begich Towers Incorporated, known around these parts simply as BTI, is probably the last thing you'd expect to see in an outpost as remote as this. As the closest town to the disaster, Whittier was an important base camp for authorities and clean-up crews, and its rail barges shipped the hazardous material out of Alaska. Begich Towers is currently home to 75% of Whittiers 300 permanent residents. The Buckner Building housed, among other things, a bowling alley, a movie theater, a shooting range, a barbershop, and a six-cell jail. 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. Shuford said. Copyright 2023 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. The location was strategically important because of its deep-water port, which stayed ice-free all year long, and its lousy weather: the near-constant cloud cover made it difficult for enemy aircraft to spot. Luckily there is a drain in the middle of the floor, because church is held in the basement of Begich Towers. Named in honor of General Simon Bolivar Buckner, the large building crammed an entire military post into one building. It can shatter windshields and rip your car doors right off. After its military service the building was modified for civilian life. Anna laughed. Ratings are on scale of 1 (below average) and to 10 (above average) and can include test scores, college readiness, academic progress, advanced courses, equity, discipline and attendance data. Being the third generation in her family to sell real estate in Alaska gives her unique perspective and experience. Most in Whittier eventually found their way to the building, which was renamed Begich Towers (or BTI) after a missing Congressman. "Before you judge the town of Whittier, you need to come visit it first.". In Whittier, Alaska, almost the entire population of 318 year-round residents live under one roof. Grounds are kept in excellent condition. This dental device was sold to fix patients' jaws. Begich Towers also has a video rental spot, laundry, and at one point there was even a tanning bed. The tunnel to Whittier, Alaska was built in 1939 and is the only road accessible way to access Whittier. 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. In December of 2012 we traveled to Whittier, Alaska, a town where nearly everyone lives in the same building. In the summertime Whittier is bustling. Some keep them for watching whales or goats grazing, but one resident admits theyre for determining if your husbands at the bar.. Your email address will not be published. Shuford, originally from North Carolina, now lives on the 12th floor of what some describe as the "Wilderness Tower." Fiery train crash in Greece kills dozens, many of them students, Watch Live: Garland testifies amid ongoing special counsel investigations. The Hodge Building was part of a larger project meant to include the construction of ten other similar buildings for military use. "No kid in this school can sit in the back of the classroom and not do something. The Exxon Valdez oil spill occurred when a ship ran into the Bligh Reef off the coast of Alaska, spilling nearly eleven million gallons of crude oil into Prince William Sound. Several bathrooms still have the original pink tiles and the yellow counter tops in the kitchens. Another Good Friday disaster would strike in March of 1989. Directions by Land: From Anchorage, take the Seward Highway south to Portage Road, go east to Anton Anderson Memorial Tunnel to City Center of Whittier. "But, I've gotten used to it.". ]. Whats it like inside? A skeleton crew stayed behind while the buildings were realigned as a sub-installation of AnchoragesFort Richardson. 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. '. Outsiders have called Whittier the strangest town in Alaska. The settlement sits on a delta in which mountains rise to 3,500 feet within two miles on either side. Photos from a recent listing: In Whittier population turnover can be high, understandable given the lack of consistent, year-round work. "It's important to be here for the right reasons," said Lindsey Erk, who moved here from South Dakota to teach. 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. "Yeah, it's a very strange town, because there's only one way in and one way out," said resident Lee Shuford. Top ways to experience Begich Towers Incorporated and nearby attractions. Two winters ago the snowdrifts near Whittier School were piled so high that the principal let students go outside to take pictures of one another hanging from a street lamp. Author Bio: Katrina is a top producing Realtor from Anchorage, AK. The Buckner, as it was called, was the social center for the posts military, civilian and dependent population. "The law says you can't have drugs within 500 feet of a school; there's not a unit in this building that's 500 feet from the school, but we have the right-to-privacy issue.". Anna said, "If I had one word, I'd say it's magical.". 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And Equal Opportunity Employer and supports the Fair Housing Act and Equal Opportunity Employer and supports the Fair Housing and... Road accessible way to the service of local residents renamed Begich Towers ( or )!