[ad_1]
The US Army Corps of Engineers – Alaska District transferred ownership of an Army National Guard armory to the community of Scammon Bay on December 21, 2022. This real estate transaction marked the first division of military property within the state under the Bob Stump Act. Eight more facilities are scheduled for business in the coming years.
“This program allows us to partner with the National Guard and native villages to give a new purpose to the buildings and support the infrastructure needs of rural communities,” said Col. Damon Delarosa, district commander.
Because of Alaska’s proximity to Russia, the National Guard has armories in remote villages across the state during the Cold War.
“Many of the facilities are no longer in use, so the disinvestment program allows them to be used for additional housing and community services in the villages where they live,” said Gary Hanson, head of the real estate division.
In rural Alaska, available buildings are scarce and new construction is expensive. By divesting the property from the military, Scammon Bay would be able to use the existing facility rather than incur the cost of a new development.
“This event really is a phoenix,” said Kevin Vakalis, realty officer for the Alaska Army National Guard. “These deeply entrenched military facilities, once lost in the ashes of the Cold War, are now reborn in continued public service to support their communities.”
The Bob Stump National Defense Authorization Act authorizes the USSE to directly divest excess National Guard properties to wildlife refuges in Alaska. The district is using this authority to transfer additional property to local communities around the state.
Scammon Bay hosts a population of over 500 people. It is located within the Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge near the Bering Sea in the Southwest Territory of Alaska.
To learn more about the program, visit: https://www.poa.usace.army.mil/Media/News-Stories/Article/3001547/national-guard-armories-find-new-purpose-on- last-frontier /
[ad_2]
Source link
