Soldiers at Fort Detrick are getting new furniture and facilities in the first phase of planned upgrades to their barracks.
The project kicked off in October by replacing old, wooden furniture with new furniture in Buildings 1532, 1533, 1534, 1535, 1536 and 1538. The new metal furniture is expected to have a longer life cycle and provide a quality-of-life improvement for unaccompanied Soldiers here.
Building 1532, which houses the Warrior Zone and Staff Duty section, was also refitted with a lot of new furniture, according to Stephen Kosaka, chief of the Housing Management Division here.
“We replaced all washer and dryer units, are installing new pool tables, foosball tables, ping-pong tables, dining tables and chairs, lounge furniture, and large screen televisions with surround sound and gaming systems set up for e-sports tournaments, movie nights, and special watch parties for sporting events,” said Kosaka.
Fort Detrick’s Garrison Command Sgt. Maj. Michael D. Dills II discussed the importance of this project after touring the facilities to see how renovations were coming along.
“It’s important that we pay close and continuous attention to the living conditions of our Soldiers,” he said. “However, it’s not enough to just know what needs to improve: leaders must act.
“Great leaders choose to be involved and aware of the conditions of their barracks,” continued Dills. “This, coupled with accountable, well-disciplined Soldiers, will ensure our barracks remain a place worthy to be called home.”
Both Dills and Kosaka acknowledged the impressive efforts of the Fort Detrick Housing team for executing this mission quickly and efficiently while under a great amount of pressure. Specifically, the work of Titan Lang, Army Furnishing Manager; Erin Carr, Unaccompanied Housing Manager; and the Soldier Barracks Managers for leading this first phase of improvements to the finish line.
“The Fort Detrick Housing team worked diligently to identify and acquire furniture and appliances that needed to be updated,” said Dills. “Additionally, they worked side by side with barracks managers and the BOSS team to inform the process.
“This was a great overall success!”
The Army Barracks Management Program is also playing a role in this transition and improvement project. Their mission is to provide the best quality unaccompanied housing in order to preserve and enhance the all-volunteer force and reinforce the Army’s commitment to providing a quality of life commensurate with their service and sacrifice to the nation.
The total contract cost for this phase came in at just over $300,000.
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