Fort Buchanan Army Reserve Center Ground Breaking Ceremony

Fort Buchanan Senior Commander and 81st Readiness Division (81st RD) Commanding General Maj. Gen. Kenneth D. Jones; Garrison Commander Col. Joseph B. Corcoran III; Deputy Garrison Commander Lt. Col. James K. Rowsey II; Deputy to the Garrison Commander Derrick W. Hood;  81st RD Command Sgt. Maj. Levi Maynard; Director of Public Works (DPW) María “Angie” López; US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Area Engineer Maricarmen Crespo; USACE Project Manager Carmelo Grau; RBC Construction Corp. Chief Operations Manager, Miguel J. Diaz; DPW Business Operations and Integration Division Director Carlos O. Guzman and Project Liaison and DPW Engineer Technician, Alex González broke ground at the construction site of Fort Buchanan’s Army Reserve Center complex July 15, 2020.

“In spite of the Coronavirus pandemic DPW has continued maintaining Fort Buchanan to support those in service, ensuring Soldiers and Civilians have reliable facilities,” said Angie López. “Part of our mission is to continue with projects already in process like this one, which has had few delays due to the health crisis,” concluded López.

“It is such a rarity that an Army Reserve Center is being built in Puerto Rico in the Southern US Region. We replace reserve centers approximately every 40 years,” said Maj. Gen. Jones. “This is the second one built under my tenure. It shows we are a forward thinking organization and have changed the face of Fort Buchanan with this new project,” said Jones. “Demonstrating our long term commitment to the Army Reserve, to the area and the US Army. It reflects a total planning of how to build readiness for the Army Reserve and sustainability of the force,” concluded Jones.

This $18 million project is composed of two phases, Phase I is the Training Facility site of the groundbreaking event and Phase II the construction of the Army Reserve Center’s Storage Facility and Assembly Hall.