Podcast: | Download

This week, The Real Story adds another chapter to its series on Transformational Development, and sits down with Peter Palmisano to talk about how the old Army Air Corps’ Hamilton Field in Marin County became a small-town enclave called, simply, Hamilton.

There is a preface that occurs before this story, of 17 years of processing and multiple developers before Hamilton, the largest entitlement in the history of Marin County, came into being. Peter talks about first seeing the decommissioned military base, with its superb architecture and mature landscaping, its abandoned buildings and parks on a bus ride with 30 local citizens, who wanted something more than new subdivisions in this unique site.

He realized that, since military bases are closed to the public, most of the residents of Marin County hadn’t driven through its gates before either. So he made the conscious decision to keep the public out of Hamilton for the next two years, while crews worked to bring the aging base up to expectation. He created an educational center outside the gates, to inform, engage and create the beginnings of a community of people who would become Hamilton’s first residents.

Hear Peter talk about Hamilton today, and every day this week, by downloading a new podcast every morning. They’re also available on iTunes.