BOSTON (WBZ NewsRadio) —Pier 5 at the Charlestown Navy Yard has been a sorry sight for the past two decades. Owned by the city, plans have been in the works to turn the crumbling pier into something bigger and better.

A non-profit sailing school based in Charlestown, Courageous Sailing, has plans to turn the dilapidated structure into a futuristic harbor-side hangout, equipped with facilities like pools and a green roof to socialize.

The pier was built back in 1941, rapidly constructed to build warships as the United States geared up to join World War II. The Navy Yard ended operations in the 1970s, and the parcel was eventually bought by the City of Boston in the early 2000s. It is now run down and inaccessible, surrounded by fencing to keep people off.

“For the last 20 years or so, it has been a derelict pier with a chain link fence,” Bill Jacobson, board member of the nonprofit told WBZ NewsRadio. He said part of the point was to give more kids a place to sail. Courageous Sailing is headquartered around neighboring Pier 4 in the yard. “The program has grown considerably, but the facilities have not," he said.

The non-profit offers sailing lessons to children all around the Boston area. They want the reconstructed pier to be a kind of harbor community center for the public. In public documents supplied by the non-profit, mock-ups show a wave-like main building structure surrounded by walkable green space. There are plans for a "Learning Lagoon" full of native plants, a pool, classrooms, and lookouts. The organization says the center would be open for the public to peruse.

The plan would hugely expand the scope of the sailing organization, up to ten times its current enrollment, and significant fundraising would be necessary. Representatives for Courageous did not want to share precise financials, but said that the project would be a public-private partnership.

The decision lays in the hands of the City, as the nonprofit awaits a response on their proposal. Another possible plan is to demolish the pier and expand the adjacent Charlestown Marina. And this isn't the first time ambitious plans have been laid for the pier in recent years.

"Boston is a harbor city. But so many people in it do not realize all the potential that it can have for them," Jacobson said.

Even if everything goes according to plan, it could be a while until people splash away at this new activity center. Current plans point to a possible completion date in 2032.

WBZ NewsRadio’s Chaiel Schaffel (@CSchaffelWBZ) reports.

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