Iowa

So the ship's operators have now staked the Iowa's future on its current spot, just north of the Los Angeles Maritime Museum, and next to the town's cruise ship terminal and the Vincent Thomas Bridge.

The ship is set to receive a $6.7 million state grant to create a Freedom of the Seas Park and Pavilion at berths 88-89, according to a harbor commission board report.

The historic vessel, Battleship Iowa CEO Jonathan Williams told the harbor commission on Friday, is looking to “continue to carry that message of freedom of the seas.”

But the California Department of Natural Resources required the Iowa to have at least a 30-year permit before formally approving the grant.

While the City Council still needs to OK the lease extension, the Iowa on Friday moved closer to meeting that condition.

Plans for the project are still in the initial phase, though renderings are expected to come out this summer.

The project would eventually create:

• The 35,000 squarefoot Freedom of the Seas Park, with walkways, benches, plazas, memorials, family-friendly public art and luggage storage for cruise passengers who are visiting.

• A 5,000 square-foot multipurpose building near the historic LA Fireboat canopy. That building will offer space for community gatherings, conferences, graduations and other events, and will also boast a restaurant, catering kitchen and smaller spaces for some functions.

• Pedestrian friendly connections, with a pathway linking the southern end of the cruise terminal to the Iowa, culminating at the Downtown Harbor cut at Sixth Street and Harbor Boulevard, and to the main promenade connection that will lead into

West Harbor.

• Roadways, parking, signage, fencing, landscaping, decorative elements, programming and public transit connections that will help serve as a bridge to the downtown and harbor improvements.

The parking area should remain relatively the same — but with landscaping elements — while the roadway that currently curves around and alongside the Iowa will be replaced by the park space.

“Twelve years ago when it arrived, it was doubtful we'd succeed,” Williams said about the battleship. “Today, we are the waterfront's most transformational asset.”

And the Battleship Iowa is set to be transformational for decades to come.

RENDERING COURTESY BATTLESHIP USS IOWA A preliminary rendering of Battleship USS Iowa and proposed linear park area with multipurpose building on the left. More finalized renderings are expected this summer and the building will not necessarily reflect the design in this view.

PHOTO BY RAPHAEL RICHARDSON Hundreds of high school students walk past the guns of the USS Iowa for a Black History event on the ship in San Pedro on Feb. 9, 2023.