Navy Boot Camp 'Extreme Makeover' Nearly Complete
Navy NewsStand
Story Number: NNS091118-17
Release Date: 11/18/2009 5:18:00 PM
By Bill Couch, Naval Facilities Engineering Command Midwest Public Affairs
GREAT LAKES (NNS) -- The 12-year, $770-million recapitalization of Recruit Training Command (RTC) Great Lakes, the Navy's only boot camp, is in its final stages, with the last major project expected to be complete in the fall of 2010.
Following the Navy's consolidation in the mid-1990s of its basic training facilities to RTC Great Lakes, the Navy began a complete rebuilding of the boot camp infrastructure to better meet the training requirements of 21st-century Sailors.
"The success of this decade-long effort is a testament to the Navy sticking to the RTC recapitalization plan over all these years, the flexibility of RTC's staff and also to our contractor partners making this happen day after day, safely and effectively," said Capt. Jake Washington, commanding officer of Naval Facilities Engineering Command (NAVFAC) Midwest, who also helped start the recapitalization program in 1998 when he was then a lieutenant commander on the staff of Great Lakes' resident officer in charge of construction.
Since 1998, the Navy has steadily replaced 1960s-and-older buildings with state-of-the-art facilities for training, feeding and housing new recruits during their eight-week indoctrination into Navy life. RTC's new facilities include 13 barracks - each with dining and computer classroom areas - three drill halls and training facilities, such as Battle Stations 21, the award-winning destroyer mockup that uses special effects technology from the theme park industry to simulate shipboard emergencies as a capstone test of recruits' skills and teamwork.
"These multi-function, self-contained buildings function independently, much like the proud ships that they take their names from," said Capt. John Peterson, RTC commanding officer. "They provide much more than simply a place to sleep and train. The updated facilities allow us to maintain a year-round rigorous training schedule that prepares recruits for the challenging demands that they will face in the Fleet – these remarkable facilities help us build our future Navy Sailors, consistently, efficiently and effectively. Our newest Sailors start their time in the Navy in the type of environment that exemplifies the high-quality organization they have joined."
Each new barracks can accommodate up to 16 recruit divisions of up to 88 recruits each. These 172,000-square-foot buildings support a much more efficient training day for recruits by reducing their transit time between classes, meals and other activities. The buildings' durable interior and exterior finishes and architecture will give them a significantly longer service life than their predecessors.
"Efficiency and sustainability over the long term is very important to us," said Cmdr. Phil Cyr, public works officer for NAVFAC Midwest's Public Works Department Great Lakes. "We want to ensure that we're investing taxpayers' money in something that will provide good quality and also stand the test of time -- and do it without wasting resources. The barracks are a great step forward from their predecessors."
The new RTC facilities are sited to create distinct functional areas, including a public zone for visitors and weekly graduation ceremonies, a living area and a central area for training, medical and administration. The RTC recapitalization projects follow current anti-terrorism/force protection construction standards and increase the safety of recruits by separating pedestrian and vehicle traffic.
Shifting to a more efficient, training-centered design required a new layout and more land, so in 2002, the Navy acquired the use of 48 acres of neighboring property owned by the Department of Veterans Affairs.
This land has been transformed into RTC's Camp John Paul Jones, a campus with seven new barracks and the Atlantic Fleet Drill Hall, which was certified at the gold level under the U.S. Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program in August, making it the second LEED Gold building in the Navy.
While most of the recapitalization work has been done by contractors from CBZG Design Builders, LLC, the drill hall was constructed by a service-disabled-veteran-owned small business.
"This was a great effort by Pacific/Old Veterans Joint Venture and our project managers," Cyr said. "They took an existing design used for the two other RTC drill halls and were able to modify it to create a remarkably environmentally friendly building. That's no small feat."
Camp Moffett, a smaller, separate RTC campus, is dedicated to in-processing new recruits. It gained two specialized barracks and a completely reworked central quad area that has improved the pedestrian flow of new recruits.
Camp Porter, the original RTC campus, remains the home of RTC headquarters and also includes four new barracks, two drill halls and other training facilities. It is the site of the final two recapitalization projects currently underway.
The last two projects include constructing a special-programs barracks, making infrastructure improvements such as revised roads and utility lines, and building a parking garage and visitor's center to more efficiently accommodate thousands of visitors each week.
USS Reuben James, the final barracks, is designed to be the first RTC barracks to meet Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Silver certification for environmentally-friendly construction. It will be Great Lakes' second LEED building, joining the Atlantic Fleet Drill Hall.
All construction is planned to be complete in November 2010.
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