It's happened: a new front in the preservation wars has opened up in the Presidio, though it's probably not like very much like the usual kind. Consider, if you will, buildings 40 and 41, a pair of military barracks that arch critic John King points out as key to a confusing (if fun!) struggle between two factions of preservationists, or at least two schools of thought on the matter. The barracks sit on top of El Presidio, one of the key Presidio projects (along with Don Fisher's ill-fated art museum) meant to help bring the Main Post back to life. To completely unearth El Presidio, the "birthplace of San Francisco, from beneath its present-day parking lot, the Presidio would have to move buildings 40 and 41, which are — hold on tight here — also part of history, albeit another part! In an area with so many "layers" of history, this kind of battle was probably inevitable, though it certainly offers no satisfying side for the peanut gallery to choose. And then there's the "nondescript" laundry shed that one guy wants to save. This'll be a long one.
· 2 Presidio barracks fuel preservation debate [SFGate]
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