Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/18929
LONGBEACHMAGAZINE.COM 59 "When I came to MOLAA, one of my first goals was to integrate the Museum more into the community. Establishing a fund at LBCF allows us to demonstrate our commitment to Long Beach, and I'm grateful to the Robert Gumbiner Foundation for providing the initial $100,000 to open the fund." – Richard Townsend, MOLAA President & CEO (562) 435-9033 www.longbeachcf.org Museum of Latin American Art This used to be the home of the world's largest flying boats — famed billionaire Howard Hughes' Spruce Goose, and was one of Long Beach's major tourist attractions. Now it is the home to one of the nation's major cruise ship terminals, and has been used as a movie set for such films as "Batman Forever", "Stargate", "Jack Frost", and the 1999 remake of "The Haunting." Once the Spruce Goose flew the coop to a new museum in Oregon, the Walt Disney Company, which owned the dome, transferred ownership to the city of Long Beach. The former Spruce Goose Dome and current Long Beach Cruise Terminal is one of the world's largest geodesic domes and has accompanied the Queen Mary since 1983. It features a single 1,100-foot long, 28-foot deep berth capable of accommodating some of the world's largest ocean liners. It also has a 1,450-vehicle parking garage and a 30,000-square foot embarkation/ debarkation facility that takes up nearly half of the existing geodesic dome that once housed Howard Hughes' famous seaplane. More than 500,000 passengers pass through the terminal every year to take cruises all around the world. After the Spruce Goose's departure, Miami- based Carnival Cruise Lines and five other brands spent $40 million to transform the dome into a modern cruise facility and docking pier. Artwork and banners blanket the facility inside and outside. For more information, call 562.901.3232. Photos courtesy of City of Long Beach Best Landmark to Store a Really Big Plane and Boats — Long Beach Cruise Terminal 231 Windsor Way (Formally known as the Spruce Goose Dome)