San Diego (FOX 5/kusi) – A naval base in San Diego County has caused controversy for its exterior design, especially when viewed from above.
The long-time San Diegans may have been familiar with the controversy over the buildings of the Navy amphibious base, which appears on four “L” s, which together can resemble the shape of Swastika, a symbol associated with the Nazi Party.
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The four buildings are military camps located on the pedestal between Bougainville, Eniwetok, Tulagi and Rio Road.
According to the Navy website, San Diego Bay built the base, which was designed to allow large ships to steam into the San Diego Naval Station during World War II.
In architects William T. Hendrick and John R. Mock.
Israeli citizen and former U.S. resident Avrahaum Segol discovered the shape in 2006 and helped promote the controversy, hoping to change the design.
In a 2007 article by the New York Times, the Navy said the design of the building was unintentional, and it plans to spend $600,000 on landscaping and roof adjustments.
Aerial view of the area on Google Maps shows that the design has not changed as of 2025.
“You have to realize in the 60s that we don’t have the internet,” a spokesperson for the base told The Times in 2007. “We don’t want to be associated with symbols.”
The Navy even made a statement about the buildings on its website, saying their configuration was a “sensitive topic.” The barracks carried out $14.1 million in repairs for three buildings.
The money is used to repair bathrooms, tiles and ducts as well as electrical systems and lighting, the Navy said. However, the shape of swastika still exists.
“There were some considerations for installing shadow screens during the design and development of the project, which could confuse any references to the shape of the Swastika,” the Navy said in its statement. “The concept was not proposed due to funding restrictions on the repair project.”
The theory some San Digan people (including San Diego hidden on the blog) responded to is that the two buildings are two southwest of the barracks, designed to depict bomb aircraft, flying towards Swastika to destroy it.
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