As part of Fort Leonard Wood's ongoing pursuit to improve the quality of housing here, plans are currently underway to remove many of the dead trees around post.

The post is experiencing a wave of ash bore beetles and there are currently more than 100 trees in on-post housing requiring removal.

The housing contractor at Fort Leonard Wood, Balfour Beatty, has maintenance teams currently working to tag the affected trees in preparation for a Nov. 1 deadline to begin the removal process.

"Due to environmental regulations protecting endangered bat species living in the trees, there is a window from November to March when we can remove them while the bats are migrated south for winter," said Jason Williams, Balfour Beatty project manager. "We will do our best to get this project done in the early part of the removal season."

Anyone with safety concerns regarding the dead trees in on-post housing is encouraged to call the Garrison Emergency Operation Center Housing Hotline, which can be reached at 573.329.3926 -- available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Balfour Beatty also offers RentCafé, a phone application and online platform for residents found at https://www.rentcafe.com/residentservices/apartmentsforrent/userlogin.aspx. Residents can submit a work order, track the progress and even verify when the work was complete, said Luis Rosario-Febus, Housing Division chief.

"Service members will need to register for the portal and they can submit and track work orders on their home computers or mobile phones," he said. "Reservists, foreign military personnel, civilians and retirees living on post can pay their rent on their mobile phone, as well. Active-duty personnel pay their rent through allotment, but still can use the RentCafé portal to access and submit work orders."

In addition to removal, tree trimming is also a seasonal issue and on-post housing residents can expect to see maintenance teams pruning and trimming during the dormant winter months.

"We had an above-average rainfall this year, and our tree canopies have done well," Williams said. "We will trim these back from roof tops this winter."