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Fort Monroe may become a beach destination

Posted at 9:25 PM, Jul 28, 2012
and last updated 2012-07-28 21:25:46-04

HAMPTON, Va. (WTVR) - A former military base may become a vacation destination for you and your family.

Fort Monroe re-opened as "The Paradise Beach Club" earlier this week.

The new owner, Baxter Simmons Jr., told the Daily Press that they are trying to renovate the facility to attract people for the summer season.

The Daily Press also reported that the Paradise Beach Club will have live musical performances.

However, they are working with the National Park Service to make the property a vacation destination, while still preserving its history.

A representative of the National Park Service described Fort Monroe as a place to have some fun, as well as a place for historical preservation.

"This Fort is kind of interesting in the fact that a lot of places that you go to, you think of this as a history park, or this is a natural park or this is a place that you can go to recreate and really Fort Monroe is all three."

In addition to getting folks to visit the Fort, they also want people to live there.  Of the 174 former army houses on base, 100 of them have been rented to the public.