The Fort Gordon garrison command team and housing leaders held a quarterly housing town hall on June 10.
The virtual forum was an opportunity to update the community on information pertaining to housing on the installation since the last town hall, which was held March 11.
Jim Ewing, Fort Gordon’s Balfour Beatty Community project manager, opened the forum with an overview of housing renovations and construction. The “good news,” he said, is that not only has the roof replacement of 74 homes been completed, but an additional 23 homes are on par to receive a new roof, pending weather delays.
“Obviously if it’s going to rain tomorrow, we don’t want to rip your roof off today, because the chance of introducing water into your home without a roof is not good,” Ewing said.
On the flip side, new construction has come to a halt largely due to a soaring increase in costs believed to be directly tied to the COVID-19 pandemic. Ewing emphasized it is not a matter of if the construction will happen, but rather a matter of when.
“We’re working through some value engineering options to try to bring those prices down and we’re still working on that – unfortunately, we are not going to get started on construction probably until later in the calendar year,” Ewing said.
Adding to Ewing’s statements about construction, Fort Gordon Garrison Commander Col. Shaw Pick said, “Everybody in America that’s paying attention to the economy knows that inflation is starting to rear its head, costs are increasing, and the cost for construction have been exorbitant, and our funding for that first tranche of new construction … that funding is secure and it’s not reduced.”
As he stated during previous town halls, Pick reiterated that one of his top priorities remains to build as many new homes as possible for the most junior Soldiers. The trade-off is it will take a little longer than originally planned.
“I need to improve quality, but I need to do as much of it as I can,” Pick said.
On the maintenance side of the house, Tom Rodriguez, facilities manager, reminded residents about the text messaging system used to verify work order statuses. While there is an option to opt out of the system, Rodriguez encourages residents to use it.
“This puts a greater availability of accountability for you guys that you let us know whether or not we’ve completed a work order,” Rodriguez said. We’re hoping this is going to help us serve you better.”
Rodriguez also asked residents to complete surveys once a work order is closed out.
“Those are imperative to us so we know where we’re at with you guys and that we are meeting your expectations and getting the work taken care of,” Rodriguez said.
Angela Roggie, military spouse, shared some of her experiences as Olive Terrace mayor, which she said has been rewarding and encouraged others to get involved. Each neighborhood has a mayor and assistant mayor whose primary role is to be “the voice of the residents.” Mayor teams meet monthly with housing leaders and quarterly with the garrison command team to discuss all things community-related.
“And we’re doing constant follow-ups to make sure that we’re getting things addressed, because that’s important to us to be able to share that back to you,” Roggie said.
Fort Gordon Garrison Command Sgt. Maj. Brent Smith touched on several topics including pets and speeding. Per Garrison Commander’s Policy Memorandum No. 21 – Installation Pet Policy, pets must be on a leash when being walked.
“In order for a pet to be properly leashed, one end of the leash must be connected to the pet and the other end of the leash must be in the owner’s hand,” Smith said. “Anything other than that, you’re wrong.”
In regards to speeding, Smith said people need to pay closer attentions to speed limits and slow down.
“We have children who are out of school now … we have to be very careful about how we move about in our neighborhoods,” Smith said.
Following remarks, the virtual platform opened to viewers for questions.
Pick closed out the session by letting residents know that he and Smith are open to going to events in the community if residents want to invite them.
“We’re not hesitant about getting out amongst the residents… we want to hear from you,” Pick said. “I’ve had great conversations on the front lawns of many homes with many residents.”
Visit the Fort Gordon Facebook page for complete footage of the housing town hall.
DoorDash is here!
Door-to-door meal delivery service is now available to Fort Gordon residents and employees. DoorDash, the nation’s leading online food ordering and delivery platform, is now offering delivery from Fort Gordon Exchange restaurants including Charley’s Philly Steaks, Burger King, Subway, Boston Market, Popeyes, Taco Bell and Arby’s. Patrons can place an order via the free Digital Garrison app or online at Doordash.com.
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