MILCON projects at Ft. Lewis, WA 2008

By Dick DevlinMarch 3, 2008

Seattle, WA--Military Construction (MILCON) Projects, recently completed and those underway this fiscal year, have set a fast-paced and highly competitive environment for the District's Military Construction Branch. With major, critical projects underway and planned at Fort Lewis, Mountain Home and Malmstrom Air Force Bases, MILCON is looking at a record-setting year.

Fort Lewis and the Yakima Training Center, the largest customer for MILCON, currently have very robust construction programs. Anticipation is that those programs will continue strong for the next five years. Installation infrastructure is being transformed to accommodate newly-arriving tactical units. The MILCON budgets for Fiscal Years 09-13 is $2.05 billion at Fort Lewis for the Army, Army Reserve, Army National Guard, National Guard, Non Appropriated Funds (NAF), SOCOM and DoD Medical, according to Thomas Poole, Army Program Manager.

Projects include new barracks; company, battalion, and brigade headquarters; tactical Equipment maintenance facilities; ranges, and working dog kennels. Additional projects include medical/dental clinic and military treatment facility and child development centers. Major infrastructure improvements include a fitness center; ROTC renovation (currently housed in WWII-era buildings), chapels and fire stations. Fort Lewis will expand from about 21,000 soldiers to 32,000 soldiers and family members over the next few years with new units being stationed there. Fort Lewis had previously been very aggressive in demolition of WWII facilities to meet Congressional requirements and that has left Fort Lewis short of facilities to adequately support garrison activities, train soldiers in the field and to maintain weapon qualifications.

New Army standards require larger facilities so that the soldiers have the correct amount of space to accomplish their missions. In addition the increased numbers of soldiers require more and updated ranges and training facilities.

Due the significant population growth, family and community support services for soldiers and family members are severely strained. Fort Lewis is short o Child Development Centers and Youth Centers to support the increase in the number of soldiers' families. Projects have been inserted into the Fort Lewis Military Construction (Army) program to provide the number of facilities need to support the need, according to Poole.

A common thread through all District MILCON programs is the booming civilian construction market all across the District's area of operations. Because of increasing costs it has become even more of a challenge to build the size and quality of facilities needed since funding lines are generally written several years in advance of construction and rarely keep pace with inflation in the construction industry. In addition there is a significant volume of non-Army construction available for contractors to pursue. MILCON planners expect this trend to continue in the near term.

MILCON projects, for which the U.S. Air Force is our customer, include Malmstrom Air Force Base near Great Falls, Mont. and Mountain Home Air Force Base, an hour south of Boise, Idaho.

Some Air Force projects at Malmstrom have included a new $4 million Corrosion Control/Air-Ground Equipment Facility, for the 341st Space Wing as well as a major airman dormitory renovation.

At Mountain Home projects include the new 19,100-square foot base operations building costing $9.3 million and replaced one of the oldest standing buildings on the base. It will be home to the 366th Operations Support Squadron incorporating airfield operations, airfield management, Radar Approach Control, or RAPCON, and a weather detachment. Construction of a 55,000 square-foot "extended stay-hotel" for the base.

Similar in nature to a dormitory or hotel complex the facility is intended to provide temporary lodging for airmen and their families awaiting available permanent residences on base, or those who have quarters and are preparing to relocate to their next assignment. The majority of military installations worldwide have similar projects already in use.

It is also the scene of a massive demolition and rebuild of sub-standard, old family quarters with the latest completion of Phase V Housing bringing to 462 the number of new units brought on line in the past few years. Phases 6 and 7 are under construction now and will include another 318 units. The total program calls for 1,324 units on base at completion of all construction.

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