#MISSILE SILO HOUSE LOCATION PLUS#

It was a good deal: He got a 33-acre site with a landing strip, plus 15,000 square feet of available underground space. But he saw the possibilities, so he paid a scrap dealer $40,000 for the property. 6 in 1982 when he went to inspect it, the underground portions were flooded, and he had to conduct his tour with a canoe and a flashlight. He got his first look at missile base No. The Pedens, on the other hand, are happy to share their story.īack in the early 1980s, Ed Peden, then a teacher of history and psychology in the Topeka public school system, began to hear talk of Atlas sites in the area. 'Others want to grow mushrooms.'Īt least one other Atlas site has been transformed into a home, but that silo owner guards his privacy assiduously. 'Most want them for secure storage, and paranoid people want bomb shelters,' he says. Worth, Texas, office says he gets hundreds of calls every year from prospective missile base purchasers (though the GSA no longer has any Atlas sites for sale, it does have sites once occupied by second-generation missiles). Realty specialist John Robinson of the GSA's Ft. In the years following, the Atlas sites were dispersed among local governments, companies, and individuals by the federal government's General Services Administration. The Atlases were decommissioned only four years later when they were replaced by Titan IIs and Minutemen. In a matter of a few months, Kansas will be the nation's No. A 1958 story in The Topeka Capital was headlined: 'Missile Base Is Viewed With Joy' another, in a 1961 edition of The Kansas City Star, began: 'What is happening in Kansas is almost incredible, and so awesome it shakes you right down to your boots. The Pedens' is one of 21 that went up in Kansas, which was happy to get the accompanying infusion of money. The entrance tunnel, which once connected the missile's launch area with its control center, has been painted red, white, and blue by the Jackson Heights High School student council.Ītlas missiles were America's first intercontinental ballistic weapons 100 were installed in permanent sites around the country during the 1950s and early '60s, mostly in the Midwest. About an hour from the Pedens' home, a missile base north of the town of Holton has been converted into a public high school. Mark Hannifin of Midland, Texas, bought one that was flooded with 130 feet of water he uses it for giving scuba diving lessons. Today, there are at least 15 decommissioned Atlas missile sites for sale, ready for transformation.

The section they use as a garage once housed a thermonuclear missile capable of flying 6,000 miles away and producing a four-megaton explosion. 6, just southwest of Topeka, Kansas, and their home lies beneath three feet of earth.

Ed Peden, an ultralight manufacturer, and Dianna Ricke-Peden, a speech therapist, live on Atlas E missile base No. The Peden family has given up seeing sunsets. “The same quality of condo in New York would have cost me the same, if not more per square foot,” one Survival Condo client wrote, “and you get peace of mind with this.Originally appeared in Air & Space/Smithsonian magazine. All the units have already sold, and he’s currently working on a second silo development. It features 12 private units ranging in price from $1.5 million to $4.5 million each. (Almost.)Īnd for the paranoiac looking for more of a turnkey experience: Developer and prepper Larry Hall converted a silo north of Wichita, Kansas, into a 15-story luxury “ Survival Condo” complex. “Cozy decor and soft lighting could make you almost forget you’re underground,” Insider notes. One couple renovated a silo into another kind of fortress - a castle. (Its owners had moved on to a different converted missile silo.) There are minimalist bachelor-pad silos and luxury silos. In April, a missile silo in Abilene, Kansas, a couple-hour drive from Kansas City, sold for $380,000. It’s hard to say whether interest has increased as we hit the gas on our way to democratic collapse and climate disaster (ha ha!), but the market seems steady: Every year or so, you see a new story about someone living in one. Despite what you may think, the property is not unique, as silo-living has become a thing in the U.S.

Missile silo house location