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AR15.COM
9/25/2007 5:14:33 AM EDT
Here's a link to the ultimate, and a bargain at just $1.5m.



Hot property: a spacious missile base as your new home

Sep 24 03:26 AM US/Eastern

Looking for a new home with a bit more space as well as a 1950s Cold War ambiance?
A US intercontinental ballistic missile base, equipped with a vast underground network of tunnels and rooms but no atomic warheads, is for sale in a remote corner of the United States.

The warheads and missiles went when the US government abandoned the Titan bases in the 1970s.

Located near remote Moses Lake in the northwest state of Washington, the former Larsen military base includes 4,000 square meters (43,000 square feet) of "usable" space on 23 hectares (56 acres) of land, and the owner is only asking for 1.5 million dollars -- which might buy a small home in Hollywood.

The seller, Bari Hotchkiss, sees the base as a "gorgeous" property and potential resort. He has put it up for sale on the eBay auction site.

"We used to use it as a summer camp, for our kids and their friends," he told AFP.


"The only limit is imagination. We've always wanted to see it turn into summer camp or resort camp," he said.

The Los Angeles investor bought the former base 10 years ago from owners who had purchased the property in the 1970s, when the US government concluded the Titan missiles had become obsolete.

Hotchkiss said there are 18 former Titan bases and nearly all of them were sold off, but -- sounding like most proud property owners -- he said his base is in excellent condition.

"Most of those former bases are much much smaller, and most all of them have water problems with water leaking in them. So they're filled with water or so wet there is terrible rust, and ours is dry, and portions of our missile base look like it's built last year," he said.

"It is kind of like a big shopping center underground that needs to be refurbished," he said.

To use the entire underground network, he said several million dollars worth of remodeling would be required. But a cheaper option was also possible.


"If you only need one or a couple of the buildings to begin with, several hundred thousand dollars might do it," he said.

The ailing housing market in the United States might slow down the sale, Hotchkiss admitted. But he said he's patient.

"There is plenty of time. No rush. And the base is really reasonable priced."

There is competition, however.

The website missilebases.com offers up a similar underground base for Titan missiles outside of Denver, Colorado, touted as a "very rare piece of history" with a mountain views and only 20 minutes from the local airport. All this for the asking price of 1.8 million dollars, in cash.

According to the website, this base is "the ultimate home" offering "the utmost security," while providing a chance for the buyer to enjoy "your own underground city."

The website offers other bases for sale, which it calls the "castles of the 20th century." Designed to withstand nuclear attack, these unique properties "bring new meaning to the word 'shelter.'"


Copyright AFP 2007
9/25/2007 5:28:04 AM EDT
[#1]
I wish!!
9/25/2007 5:50:35 AM EDT
[#2]
It would be a bitch if the Soviets still had this place on their target list.
9/25/2007 5:59:32 AM EDT
[#3]
Group buy?
9/25/2007 6:02:19 AM EDT
[#4]

Quoted:
Group buy?
yes, group buy
9/25/2007 6:13:34 AM EDT
[#5]
If only we could have machineguns in WA state...

Did any of these old silo installations become museums?  I would love to see one some day...
9/25/2007 8:04:41 AM EDT
[#6]
I saw one of these on TV the other week (military history channel or something similar). I was thinking to myself that it would be a great location to buy. Unfortunately it's out of my price range
9/25/2007 10:12:08 AM EDT
[#7]
I have been in those, your gonna need some water pumps to get all that slimy water out, then their is all the empty beer bottles to deal with. And then their is the ghost of the kid that died in their in 1987 to deal with....
9/25/2007 10:25:29 AM EDT
[#8]

Quoted:
I have been in those, your gonna need some water pumps to get all that slimy water out, then their is all the empty beer bottles to deal with. And then their is the ghost of the kid that died in their in 1987 to deal with....


Zombies are no problem for this group.  Nope, none at all
9/25/2007 10:55:04 AM EDT
[#9]
I'll take it!!
Oh yeah, could someone please loan me 1.5 mil?.....................................Please
9/25/2007 3:15:28 PM EDT
[#10]
Ditto on the water pumps, I've climbed into two old Titan sites, the silos were full of water. After reading the story in this particular site, which looks like a Titan 1 site, the control room (Launch Control Center, and the Security bunk down room) would be pretty cool to have, and there were access tunnels to the silos, assuming they are intact, and have not been imploded for verification purposes. Best ICBM sites I have seen for sale, are the Atlas sites that were available in N.Mexico and Texas, they were very nice, single missile units with undergournd control center, water, fuel storage, generator room, and Helo pad! If I remember correctly, some had runways too.....memory is getting foggy now.
9/25/2007 3:57:54 PM EDT
[#11]

Quoted:

Quoted:
I have been in those, your gonna need some water pumps to get all that slimy water out, then their is all the empty beer bottles to deal with. And then their is the ghost of the kid that died in their in 1987 to deal with....


Zombies are no problem for this group.  Nope, none at all


Zombies are easy, all you need is a weapon accurate enough to make consistent head shots or a cricket bat. Ghosts require hk416s or ar15s with at least a dozen magpul aftermarket parts.
9/25/2007 6:06:12 PM EDT
[#12]
after all the $$$ you'd spend on repairs, and refurbing it, you could do something better on undeveloped land for 1.5 million.

Even after all the waters drained out, imagine how much more work would be left.
9/25/2007 6:17:57 PM EDT
[#13]
Buy it intending to make it a museum, make back some money and have it all tax deductible.
9/25/2007 6:18:30 PM EDT
[#14]
Buy it intending to make it a museum, make back some money and have it all tax deductible.
9/26/2007 1:12:55 AM EDT
[#15]
better pics:
http://www.themissilebase.com/photos
9/26/2007 2:09:21 AM EDT
[#16]
Pretty crazy. I would love to see pics of the inside though.