Course: Biology 28: Ecology of GGNRA
Professor: Crima Pogge
Student: Catherine Hsieh
Term: Fall, 2008
Homework research topic:
History of the Presidio (political angle, Presidio Trust)
THE PRESIDIO TRUST
CHILD OF A UNIQUE HISTORY AND PARENT OF A CONTROVERSIAL "PARK"
INTRODUCTION
The Presidio Trust was conceived and created by the Congress in 1996 to manage and fund the
Presidio. The history of the Presidio turning from an army post into a national park brougth with it a heavy
financial burden of cleaning up the contamination and restoring historical building, a financial burden that
neither the Congress nor the National Park Service wanted to bear. Furthermore, the uniqueness of the
Presidio being inside a metropolitan city of San Francisco, and the city-like infrastructure with nearly 800
buildings, called for a management and funding model unique among national parks. Thus, the Presidio
Trust was born.
A GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF THE PRSIDIO TRUST
As stated in the homepage of The Presidio Trust at www.presidio.gov, "The Presidio Trust is governed
by a seven-member board of directors. Six members are appointed by the President of the United
States. The seventh is the U.S. Secretary of the Interior or his/her designees" . The Presidio Trust
manages the interior 80% of the Presidio lands known as Area B while the National Park Service
manages coastal areas known as Area A. (For a view of a map indicating jurisdiction Areas A and B, go
to the Presidio Trust Homepage under the Mission and History topic.) The major tasks and goals of the
Presidio Trust are to preserve and protect the park's natural and cultural resources as well as managing
the finance of the park's care, including a goal to be financially self-sufficient by 2013.
