Yanks Air Museum

About the Museum

The Yanks Air Museum and Recreation Center Greenfield has been 24 years in the making. At last, Charles Nichols' vision, and the years of planning and preparation to expand his existing museum to Greenfield, is now coming to fruition.

The existing Yanks Museum facility in Chino, founded in 1982 by Mr. Nichols, houses one of the world's finest aviation museums dedicated to exhibiting, preserving and restoring American aircraft and artifacts. Since its inception in 1973, the Yanks Air Museum collection has grown to more than 170 aircraft and is the world's largest private collection of American WWII aircraft, ranging from the Curtiss Jenny fight trainer of 1917 through today's supersonic fighters. The new museum facility in Greenfield will feature a world-class collection of restored aircraft that reflect the entire spectrum of American aviation and portion of the museum will be set aside for the creation of an advances-technology education center devoted to stimulate and educate new generations about aviation.

Phase 1

Located on a 440 acre parcel along Highway 101 at the Thorne Road interchange Greenfield, Phase I of the Yanks facility Greenfield is completed. Phase I construction of the Yanks facility consisted of: grading approximately 30 acres, the creation of 1 service station building pad, construction of Livingston Road, construction of Yanks Way to provide access to U.S. Highway 101 in accordance with State Department of Transportation (Cal Trans) Encroachment Permit No. 0509 6MC 0461 issued on 2010-08-24, and construction of the Recreational Vehicle Park in accordance with the State Housing and Community Development Department (HCD) permit Nos. 6892822, 6976220, 6915733, and 6922748. It also included construction of requisite infrastructure to implement sewer, water, gas, electrical and telephone main line service to the site in accordance with EDA Grant No. 07-01-04968 and City/County Agreement No. A-08204.

Tourism

In an area with limited offerings for overnight accommodations or dining, the Yanks Air Museum and Recreation Center Greenfield includes a visitor serving/recreational component to enhance the attractiveness of the venue and help sustain the non-profit museum. With the Yanks Air Museum as the anchor, the visitor serving facilities include a quality hotel, winery, restaurants, aviation themed shops and recreational vehicle park making the Yanks Air Museum and Recreation Center Greenfield a key destination point for visitors to Monterey County and gateway to Monterey County's nearby wine corridor.
A large building with a fountain in front of it.
Moreover, with the new visitor's center at the Pinnacles National Monument, restoration efforts at the San Antonio and Soledad Missions, and the growing Monterey County wine corridor, the Yanks Air Museum and Recreation Center provides the synergy to enhance the entire South Monterey County and the Salinas Valley area as a tourism destination. Another significant element of the Yanks Air Museum and Recreation Center Greenfield is the permanent preservation of 306 acres of agricultural land through the dedication of an agricultural easement to the Monterey County Agricultural and Historical Land Conservancy, now known as the Ag Land Trust.

Economic Development

It is estimated that the Yanks Air Museum and Recreation Center Greenfield will have the beneficial effect of providing employment and economic opportunities to the County of Monterey and the City of Greenfield, in that nearly 400 permanent jobs are being created. Additionally, construction jobs will continue to be created as the various phases of the facility move forward. Moreover, the Yanks facility Greenfield will provide additional transient occupancy tax, sales tax, and increased property taxes which benefit the County of Monterey and City of Greenfield, as well as providing an overall economic boost to the entire South County area.

The Yanks Air Museum and Recreation Center Greenfield is a once in a lifetime opportunity for Monterey County and the City of Greenfield, made possible through private ownership and public participation. In partnership with Yanks Air Museum and the City of Greenfield, Monterey County is currently supervising the phased development of the proposed project along with its planned development, subdivision and annexation.

View an archive of documents outlining the planning and project timeline.

For more information about the Yanks Air Museum project, contact Mic Steinmann, Community Services Director. You can also contact Christine G Kemp, Esquire at:
Noland, Hamerly Etienne and Hoss
333 Salinas Street
Monterey CA, 93902
Phone: 831-272-7525
Email