USAG YONGSAN, South Korea -- The move from United States Army Garrison Yongsan to United States Army Garrison Humphreys has begun. USAG Yongsan held a town hall April 20 in an effort to keep the community informed on how the transition is progressing.

"The move is becoming real for some in the next couple weeks as the Eighth Army headquarters physically relocates the General Walker statue to Camp Humphreys," said Eighth Army Deputy Commanding General - Sustainment Maj. Gen. Smith. "It will be a tangible visual that our move is real."

The statue is a memorial for Gen. Walton H. Walker, the first Eighth Army commanding general during the Korean War. The ROK-U.S. Alliance Friendship Society donated the 10-foot-tall bronze statue to Eighth Army in 2010 to mark the 60th anniversary of the beginning of the Korean War. A ceremony is scheduled here on April 25 to mark Eighth Army's historic transition to USAG-Humphreys.

During the town hall, panelists updated community members on housing, medical, schools and additional information for U.S. civilians and Korean national transitions.

The housing office has begun to hold Yongsan Relocation Program briefs. These briefs are highly recommended to smooth the transition into USAG-Humphreys housing for personnel who do not reside in the barracks.

Beth Wilson, chief of USAG Humphreys Housing division, explained that people who attend these YRP briefs will not have to inprocess housing at USAG Humphreys.

Due to the increase in population on USAG Humphreys, housing on post is limited, with most families are required to live off the installation. Over the next year it is projected that the population of USAG Humphreys will increase by 10,000 people. Construction is progressing rapidly and some new services are scheduled to open late this year or after 2018. The new commissary and Post Exchange on USAG-Humphreys are scheduled to open in 2018.

In order to assist families with children, multiple child development centers are planned for USAG-Humphreys.

"Child development center 10, the school age center, will be opening on April 27 and a brand new CDC will be opening the first week in May," said Col. George R. Shatzer, Eighth Army G5 plans director. This will be a back-to-back opening of two new CDC buildings to go along with our current CDC increasing our capacity to 613 children.

The U.S. Army's transformation and relocation ensures sustainable readiness, capability, force posture and presence in the Republic of Korea. This transition will also further enhance Eighth Army's partnership with local communities and continue to strengthen the alliance with ROK partners.

The next town hall is scheduled for May 25 and will be for Korean national civilians.

For more information on the transition to USAG Humphreys, including a cheat sheet with timelines and phone numbers, visit the Eighth Army transformation web page at http://8tharmy.korea.army.mil/transformation.