PRESIDIO OF MONTEREY, Calif. -- Workers hit a milestone in the construction of the much-anticipated dining facility here June 19.
That milestone is the completion of the leveling of the surface structures on site in preparation for work on the foundation for the new dining facility.
The new 26,000 square-foot one-story dining facility is being constructed to replace Combs Hall, built in 1966, which is currently operating at over capacity in support of service member students of the Defense Language Institute Foreign Language Center.
When completed near the end of 2015, the new facility will be able to accommodate and serve more than 1,300 personnel in just less than 90 minute, three times a day.
The new DFAC is designed to alleviate overcrowding during peak periods and provide students with a more pleasing indoor and outdoor dining experience. The new DFAC plaza and main front entrance will face the Monterey Bay and provide student service members with scenic hilltop views of the Pacific Ocean while simultaneously alleviating overcrowding and delay for Defense Language Institute Foreign Language Center students on the run.
Combs DFAC will close following the opening of the new facility, which should provide a seamless transition for patrons, said Bethany Pinkas, plans and operations chief for the Logistics Readiness Center here.
During construction all local state and federal environmental stipulations, such as dust control and noise abatement, as well as others are scrupulously observed.
In keeping with the Presidios' long-range sustainability plan the state-of-the-art facility is designed under current standards by the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, known as LEED, to the Silver Criteria, leveraging the latest energy- and water-conservation technologies, while operating efficiently, and in a sustainable, environmentally friendly manner, and with a significantly reduced carbon footprint than that of the current Combs Hall dining facility.
No less important than its construction and operation, the new facility is designed to be both practical and pleasant, enhancing the quality of life for service members while stationed on the Presidio, and is a key part of a larger funded military construction plan for a new 320-service member barracks building and 18,000 square-foot administration building to be built nearby.
"It takes a solid, committed team to keep a project of this size and complexity on schedule," said Capt. Andrew Boggs from Sacramento District U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, who is a senior project manager for construction. "We're making excellent progress and on-track for completion of the facility."
To learn more about the people and facilities of the Presidio of Monterey visit www.monterey.army.mil.
Related Links:
Presidio of Monterey on Twitter
Presidio of Monterey on Facebook
Social Sharing