[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 104 (Tuesday, June 2, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 26375-26377]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-12710]


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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Navy


Notice of Availability for Donation of the Test Craft Ex-SEA 
SHADOW (IX 529) and the Hughes Mining Barge (HMB-1)

AGENCY: Department of the Navy, DoD.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Department of the Navy (DoN) hereby gives notice of the 
availability for donation, under the authority of 10 U.S.C. 7306, of 
the test craft ex-SEA SHADOW (IX 529) and the Hughes Mining Barge (HMB-
1), both located at the Maritime Administration's Suisun Bay National 
Defense Reserve Fleet, Benicia, CA. Availability for donation was 
previously announced in a Federal Register Notice of Availability dated 
September 14, 2006. DoN is revising the requirement to display both ex-
SEA SHADOW and the HMB-1 either individually or together as a single 
unit as a static museum/memorial. This notice cancels and supersedes 
the Federal Register Notice of Availability dated September 14, 2006, 
in Vol. 71, No. 178, of the Federal Register.
    Ex-SEA SHADOW is contained inside HMB-1, which is a covered 
floating dry-dock, and is being offered for donation as a single unit. 
The donee may display the two vessels as currently configured as a 
single unit, or display only ex-SEA SHADOW as a public museum and 
reactivate the HMB-1 for commercial use. The Navy will consider 
applications from municipalities and eligible U.S. non-profit 
organizations (the lead organization) who have partnered with industry. 
The lead

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organization must agree to display ex-SEA SHADOW as a static public 
museum. The lead organization may propose to further transfer the HMB-1 
to an industry partner for reactivation for commercial purposes. The 
DoN intends to donate the two vessels as a single unit to the lead 
organization who must remove the two vessels from DoN custody as a 
unit.

DATES: The deadline for submission of a Letter of Intent and Executive 
Summary is sixty (60) days from the date of this notice.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under the authority of 10 U.S.C. 7306, 
eligible recipients for the transfer of a vessel for donation include: 
(1) Any State, Commonwealth, or possession of the United States or any 
municipal corporation or political subdivision thereof; (2) the 
District of Columbia; or (3) any not-for-profit or nonprofit entity.
    The transfer of a vessel for donation under 10 U.S.C. 7306 shall be 
at no cost to the United States Government.
    The donee will be required to maintain ex-SEA SHADOW as a static 
display in a condition that is satisfactory to the Secretary of the 
Navy.
    The Navy has revised its ship donation application process, which 
applies to ex-SEA SHADOW and HMB-1. Phase I documentation consists of a 
Letter of Intent and an Executive Summary which must be submitted 
within sixty (60) days of a Federal Register notice. The Navy will 
provide written notification to those whose Phase I documentation is 
acceptable to submit Phase II documentation consisting of Business/
Financial and Environmental plans, within twelve (12) months of such 
notice. The Navy will provide written notification to those whose Phase 
II documentation is acceptable to submit Phase III documentation 
consisting of Towing, Mooring, Maintenance, and Curatorial/Museum 
plans, within six (6) months of such notice. Applicants who fail to 
meet the minimum requirements at any phase may be disqualified from 
participating in the next phase of this ship donation opportunity.
    Actions Required: Within sixty (60) days of this Federal Register 
notice, applicants must complete and submit Phase I documentation for 
ex-SEA SHADOW/HMB-1, consisting of a Letter of Intent and Executive 
Summary. The minimum requirements are identified herein. Applicants are 
advised to take special notice of page length limitations for Phase I 
documentation.
    Phase I of the ship donation application process must include the 
following documentation addressing the following areas:
    a. Letter of Intent: The Letter of Intent must include the 
following:
    (1) Identify the specific vessels sought for donation (Ex-SEA 
SHADOW (IX 539) and HMB-1);
    (2) Include a statement that the vessel(s) will be used as a static 
public display as a museum or memorial without activating any system 
aboard the vessel(s) for the purpose of navigation or movement of the 
vessel. If an alternative use for HMB-1 is proposed, identify its 
proposed use;
    (3) Identify the proposed permanent berthing location for vessel(s) 
used as a static public display, identify the current property owner of 
the proposed permanent berthing location, and provide evidence from the 
current property owner of its intent to make the proposed permanent 
berthing location available to the applicant;
    (4) Include a statement that the applicant understands and agrees 
that it will be solely responsible to obtain, repair, and maintain the 
vessel(s) used as a static public display at its own expense, in a 
condition satisfactory to the Secretary of the Navy, in compliance with 
all Federal, State, and local laws, that no expense shall be incurred 
by the United States Government, and that the applicant will not seek 
financing from the United States Government;
    (5) Include a statement that the applicant understands and agrees 
to take delivery of the vessels in an ``as is/where is'' condition, and 
assume all costs associated with the vessel's removal from Navy 
custody, including, but not limited to, towing, insurance, berthing, 
restoration, maintenance and repair, periodic dry-docking, and, 
ultimately, ship dismantling in the United States;
    (6) Include a statement that the applicant will not use the 
vessel(s) used as a static public display other than as stated, or 
destroy, transfer, or otherwise dispose of such vessel(s) or any 
artifacts without the written approval of the Secretary of the Navy or 
his designee;
    (7) Include a statement that the applicant will agree to indemnify, 
hold harmless, and defend the government from and against all claims, 
demands, actions, liabilities, judgment costs, and attorney's fees, 
arising out of, claimed on account of, or in any manner predicated upon 
personal injury, death, or property damage caused by or resulting from 
possession and/or use of the donated property;
    (8) If the applicant is not a State, Commonwealth, or possession of 
the United States, or a political subdivision or municipal corporation 
thereof, or the District of Columbia, the applicant must provide a copy 
of a determination letter by the Internal Revenue Service that the 
applicant is exempt from tax under the Internal Revenue Code, Section 
501(c)(3), or submit evidence that the applicant has filed the 
appropriate documentation in order to obtain tax exempt status;
    (9) If the applicant asserts that it is a corporation or an 
association whose charter or articles of agreement deny it the right to 
operate for profit, the applicant must provide a properly notarized 
copy of its charter, a certificate of incorporation, and a copy of the 
organization's by-laws;
    (10) Provide a notarized copy of the resolution or other action of 
the applicant's governing board authorizing the person signing the 
Letter of Intent to represent the organization and to sign on its 
behalf for the purpose of obtaining the vessels;
    (11) Provide a signed copy of the Assurance of Compliance Form in 
compliance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. See the Ship 
Donation Web page for the Civil Rights Compliance (Assurance of 
Compliance) Form located at this link: http://teamships.crane.navy.mil/Inactiveships/Donation/pdf/material_donation_pdfs/civil_rights_act_of_1964_compliance_form.pdf;
    b. Executive Summary: The applicant shall limit the Executive 
Summary submission to eleven (11) pages total. The Executive Summary 
must address the following:
    (1) Organizational Description: Provide an overview of the 
applicant's organizational structure, functional components, and names 
of current key leadership and staff positions;
    (2) Market Analysis: Summarize the local and regional market demand 
for additional museum/memorial attractions. Succinctly define the 
target market. Discuss the available demographic information, the 
existing competition in the local and regional area for visitor museum/
memorial attractions, visitor attendance numbers for existing area 
museum/memorial attractions, and projected visitor attendance for the 
applicant's proposal;
    (3) Marketing and Sales Outreach: Outline the overarching marketing 
strategy for integrating the proposed ship museum/memorial into the 
local and regional community, and how the applicant plans to penetrate 
that market. Provide an overview of customer and market analysis, 
marketing communications, and sales strategies;
    (4) Museum/Memorial Services Assessment: Discuss the benefits the 
proposed ship museum/memorial will

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offer to visitors/customers and the community. Identify challenges 
anticipated in establishing a new ship museum/memorial. Cite available 
data/evidence regarding the willingness of a defined customer base to 
pay for the services being offered;
    (5) Funding: Provide a Rough Order of Magnitude (ROM) cost estimate 
that the applicant anticipates will be required to cover all costs 
associated with the acquisition/start-up costs of the proposed ship 
donation transfer, including mooring, towing, environmental surveys and 
cleanup, dredging, museum development, maintenance, refurbishment of 
the vessel(s) to be used as a static public display, pier, insurance, 
legal services, etc. Separately provide a ROM cost estimate of the 
annual operational and support costs of the proposed ship museum/
memorial. In addition, provide a ROM cost estimate of the applicant's 
cost of dismantling the vessel in the United States upon completion of 
its use as a museum/memorial or in the event of bankruptcy or inability 
to properly maintain the vessel(s) to be used as a static public 
display. If HMB-1 is proposed to be reactivated for commercial use, 
demonstrate how the HMB-1 will be economically viable;
    (6) Financial: Provide a summary of projected sources of income to 
support both the acquisition/start-up costs and the annual operational 
and support costs for the vessel(s) used as a static public display;
    (7) Environmental: Discuss the challenges anticipated in meeting 
the environmental requirements regarding hazardous materials, 
maintenance of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB) containing materials, 
endangered species, dredging disposal, and required environmental 
permits from all cognizant authorities;
    (8) Mooring: Discuss the approach to be proposed for the mooring 
plan for the vessel(s) used as a static public display, including 
location, design, and mooring system in accordance with U.S. Coast 
Guard (USCG) requirements;
    (9) Towing: Discuss the approach to be proposed for relocating the 
vessels from their current location to the proposed permanent berth 
location in conformance with the Navy Tow Manual and USCG requirements;
    (10) Maintenance: Discuss the challenges in restoring and 
preserving for an infinite period the steel-hulled vessel(s) proposed 
as a ship museum/memorial; and
    (11) Curatorial/Museum: Discuss the approach to be proposed for 
display and interpretation of the vessel(s) used as a static public 
display, including collection management procedures.
    The Phase I documentation (Letter of Intent and Executive Summary) 
must be submitted to the Navy Inactive Ships Program in hard copy and 
electronically on a CD-ROM in either an MS Word document or word 
searchable PDF format. The Phase I documentation must be mailed to: The 
Columbia Group, 1201 M Street, SE., Suite 020, Washington, DC 20003; 
marked for the Ship Donation Project Manager (PMS 333). Applicants are 
discouraged from photocopying, cutting and pasting, and generally 
providing information which is easily accessible via the Internet and/
or is already in the public domain. Original content which is specific 
to the vessels being donated is of greatest importance to the 
evaluators.
    If the DoN does not receive satisfactory Phase I documentation 
(Letter of Intent and Executive Summary) from any applicant, the DoN 
reserves the right to enter into discussions with all applicants in an 
effort to achieve at least one acceptable submission; or remove the 
vessels from donation consideration and proceed with disposal of the 
vessels.
    Note that any future changes to guidelines, policy, and law will be 
reflected in the guidance published on the DoN Ship Donation Web page 
located at: http://teamships.crane.navy.mil/Inactiveships/Donation. 
Guidance and requirements posted on the Ship Donation Web page shall 
take precedence over the contents of the Federal Register notice. 
Applicants are advised to read and follow the Web page guidance for the 
most current set of ship donation requirements.
    For Further Information and Submission of Ship Donation 
Applications, Contact: Ms. Elizabeth Freese of the Naval Sea Systems 
Command, Navy Inactive Ships Program (PMS 333), telephone number 202-
781-4423. Mailed correspondence should be addressed to: The Columbia 
Group, 1201 M Street, SE., Suite 020, Washington, DC 20003; marked for 
Ship Donation Project Manager (PMS 333).

    Dated: May 26, 2009.
A.M. Vallandingham,
Lieutenant Commander, Judge Advocate General's Corps, U.S. Navy, 
Federal Register Liaison Officer.
[FR Doc. E9-12710 Filed 6-1-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3810-FF-P