CNIC Admiral Tours Naval Base Guam Facilities
Navy NewsStand
Story Number: NNS080822-22
Release Date: 8/22/2008 6:20:00 PM
By Oyaol Ngirairikl, U.S. Naval Forces Marianas Public Affairs
SANTA RITA, Guam (NNS) -- Commander, Naval Installations Command (CNIC), visited U.S. Naval Base Guam (NBG) Aug. 15-17, as part of a continued effort to improve support for Sailors and their families, and the fleet.
Vice Adm. Robert Conway, CNIC, said improvements to Navy installations are critical to fulfilling the Commander Naval Installations Command mission.
He noted CNIC's goals support critical Navy initiatives, including the U.S. Maritime Strategy and the Navy Ashore Vision 2035.
Like others in Navy leadership, Conway touts the importance of ensuring Sailors and their families receive the facilities and programs they need to "want to stay Navy."
As well, Naval facilities need to be updated to ensure Sailors and the fleet are supported in their missions.
To that end, Conway toured NBG, stopping at various facilities into which the Navy has invested millions of dollars.
Those stops included the newly constructed Commander William C. McCool Elementary/Middle School, the recently renovated youth and teen centers and the reconstructed alpha and bravo piers.
"I am seeing improvements visually around here, your new sidewalks, the gym that's going to be built, the [bachelors quarters], the visiting quarters, the Gateway Inn," Conway said. "I think it's a direct result of the superb leadership that is evident here in Guam."
In the past year, the Navy community has seen the construction of two new schools, McCool and Guam High School.
The designs of both schools were guided by teachers' recommendations and Department of Defense Education Activity requirements.
The end results are schools with closed-circuit television, computer labs and state-of-the-art school gymnasiums, among the assortment of modern features.
Buildings that house after-school programs, such as the teen, youth and school-age centers, were renovated to provide dependents with more activities in a safe, adult-supervised environment.
Many Navy family members have said the centers are an invaluable part of their lives, making it easier for Sailors to focus on their jobs because they know their families are getting the support they need.
Conway also visited the new homes in north Tipalao.
Lisa Kallio, Navy Family Housing director, showed off one of the homes, with energy efficient appliances and window shutters that can withstand typhoon-force winds.
"Houses were built with comfort, safety and convenience for the Sailors and their families," she said. "We understand that Sailors can be deployed for three, six, nine months at a time and we want them to know their family is cared for. We strive to provide quality housing that is expected throughout the Navy."
Conway, who oversees 80 installations around the world, said much of the upgrades seen on Guam is a part of Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Gary Roughead's vision for the Navy to become one of the top 50 employers in the nation.
He said being among the top 50 employers requires the Navy to upgrade and improve facilities and extracurricular activities.
"The way you go about that is a strategic plan...the Navy Ashore Vision 2035 (NAV2035)," he said. "And all that means is we are building now in 2008 the stair steps that will lead to 2035 and along that journey how are we improving, every year, the quality of our buildings and the quality of our extracurricular activities for our Sailors and their families."
Achieving that vision will help with recruitment and retention efforts. Conway called it the "wow" factor.
"In order to become one of those top 50, you have to stop talking about it and start producing results, where the Sailors and their families are seeing (it) and they say 'Wow, I want to be a part of this organization,' or, 'I want to re-enlist,'" Conway said.
Conway noted that as installations are modernized, like the new homes in north Tipalao, industry standards in technology will be utilized.
"What we're trying to do is take the standards that have been tried and true, proven from this private sector whose goal is to make money, and apply it to the Navy where our goal is mission readiness," Conway said.
NAV2035 is a long-term, strategic effort to redesign Navy installations and modernize aging infrastructure.
"It only makes sense," he said. "We don't need all this excess...and the reason is simple, we're throwing money out with bad [infrastructure] that we don't need to maintain anymore. We're on a very aggressive trend right now to identify what needs to be demolished...and get the people out of there and into better buildings."
The infrastructure to which Conway is referring was a worldwide Navy platform that once supported 7,000 ships during World War II.
Since then, bases have been closed, and missions for various installations refocused. Currently, the Navy has a fleet of nearly 300 ships.
Many of the facilities built during the war do not meet the needs of the current fleet of nearly 300 ships, or they are no longer needed.
"We'll have the adequate resources then, to support what we're going to keep and not using those resources supporting stuff that we don't need anymore," he said.
Conway said reallocating resources to mission-essential programs and funds will help build a stronger Navy capable of fulfilling the U.S. Maritime Strategy.
"Our mandate is the support of the fleet, the fighter and the family," he said. "So as we continue to improve the mission, that means the piers get refurbished here, the buildings that support the operators are in such a good condition that it allows for the people to be housed properly in order to execute the mission."
For more news from U.S. Naval Forces, Marianas, visit www.navy.mil/local/guam/.
|
NEWSLETTER
|
| Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list |
|
|
|
