Laborers, Contractors Join Forces to Service a Ship That Served Our Nation
Volunteers connect USS Iowa, the “Battleship of Presidents,” to city utilities
LOS ANGELES -- Laborers’ International Union of North America (LIUNA) Local Union 802 and the Engineering Contractors Association (ECA) coordinated the volunteer efforts of several groups to connect the battleship to the sewer utilities of the city of Los Angeles. The vessel, known as the Battleship of Presidents, was donated to the Pacific Battleship Center to become a museum and tourist attraction docked at the Port of Los Angeles. Prior, visitors to the USS Iowa, a storied battleship that served our country for 50 years and is now a museum, had to use portable toilets in a parking lot whenever needing restroom facilities. Recognizing that this was both uncomfortable for visitors and undignified for the ship herself, the volunteers set out to fix the problem.
LIUNA, the contractors and the ECA worked with Los Angeles City Councilman Joe Buscaino’s office and the Pacific Battleship Center to develop the construction plans, expedite permits, and set the construction schedule. By permanently connecting the ship to the city’s water and sewer utilities, the project enables visitors to use comfortable restroom facilities on board the Iowa herself.
LIUNA Local 802 Business Manager Debbie Baker called these efforts, and the construction work that followed, “a labor of love and respect, not only in honor of the USS Iowa, but also in honor of the brave men and women who served on her. We hope that this will encourage and enable more people to visit the USS Iowa and learn about the important role she played in U.S. history.”
http://www.fortmilltimes.com/2013/06/18/2767864/laborers-contractors-join-forces.html