The completion of Barrack 100 was celebrated Thursday with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at Fort Cavazos. Fort Cavazos leadership, community leadership and Soldiers gathered in front of the newly constructed building, which lies within the 69th Air Defense Artillery Brigade’s campus.
The $49.6 million barrack is the first to be built from the ground up on the installation since 2012 and will house 250 69th ADA Bde. Soldiers in two-Soldier suites — as a one plus one configuration. The project was funded by Congress in 2020 under the National Defense Authorization Act.
“The funding for Barracks 100 came directly from Congress in 2020 ($32 million) and then an additional $17.6 million in 2021 when bids exceeded the original budget,” said Brian Dosa, Directorate of Public Works director. “As the chair of the MILCON (Military Construction) subcommittee, Rep. John Carter was instrumental in funding the project.”
Col. Brian C. Campbell, 69th ADA Bde. commander, said the new barrack will be a great addition to the unit’s footprint.
“This barrack will improve the quality of life for these Soldiers by providing modern barracks rooms located on the campus where they work,” he said.
Lt. Gen. Sean C. Bernabe, III Armored Corps and Fort Cavazos commanding general, welcomed the attendees and thanked the Fort Cavazos community for their unending support. Bernabe stressed that he prioritizes the care of Soldiers at Fort Cavazos by ensuring they are provided proper training, nutritious meals and empathetic, engaged leadership, as well as a great place to live, which Barrack 100 will fulfill for Soldiers living on-post.
“Here at Fort Cavazos, we renovate our existing barracks every chance we get and then, as fiscal resources allow, we absolutely invest in new barracks,” he said.
Bernabe shared that more than 70 barracks have been renovated in the last 12 years and 15 more are actively being renovated throughout the installation.
“I’m happy and proud of the work that we’ve put into those existing barracks and I’m even happier to be standing here today as we prepare to cut the ribbon on this brand new building that will soon house our great Soldiers,” he expressed.
Soldiers in 69th ADA Bde. are eager to occupy Barrack 100, as it minimizes their commute to work, and the one-plus-one configuration of the rooms will allow for more privacy and a space to designate as their own. In addition to having their own rooms, each with a walk-in closet and will share a larger, open kitchenette area as well as a bathroom.
Spc. Damien Knapp, Charlie Battery, 1st Battalion, 44th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, 69th ADA Bde., lives in a currently existing barrack (Building 39004) where he and a roommate share a small communal space in the kitchen area, and they each have a bedroom and desk area that are adjacent to each other. He expressed excitement in
possibly being able to move into the larger space in Barrack 100 because it would allow him to do more, specifically gaming, which is what he does to wind down after work.
“I think having a better space to live in will be better for my own personal morale,” he said. “Being able to put up more of my stuff instead of having it packed in boxes in the closet. And being able to set up some of my knick knacks and decorations.”
Dosa was pleased to see the culmination of two years of planning and construction and said the Soldiers are well worth the effort.
“We couldn’t do anything without our Soldiers,” Dosa said. “We have great
equipment, we have great leaders, but we need Soldiers. We want to provide a quality, safe, healthy place for them to live that will be commensurate with their service.”
He said the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Southwestern Division was vital to the
building process.
“USACE was responsible for contracting and project oversight,” he said. “This was executed by our local geographic district in Fort Worth, whose higher HQ is Southwest Division in Dallas. USACE’s role was instrumental in the project’s success from project acquisition to contracting to quality assurance of construction by MW Builders.”
Bernabe concluded by saying that this project and the other barrack projects being carried out can only be accomplished by a team.
“It took a team effort to get us to this point,” he said. “Therefore, I think it’s certainly appropriate that we pull the team up here to help cut this ribbon. And, it’s certainly a great thing that the Soldiers that are going to call this (barrack) home get to be a part of this and get to witness this. To the Soldiers from 69th (ADA Bde.) that are about to call this their home away from home, let me just say, congratulations and welcome home.”
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