Base-closing panel spares two New England facilities (Huge: 1ID & IAD Return US from Europe)

Stars and Stripes ^ | 25 Aug 05 | Liz Sidoti

[xzins]

By Liz Sidoti, The Associated Press
European edition, Thursday, August 25, 2005

J. Scott Applewhite / AP
With fate of the Navy submarine base at New London, Conn., at stake, Anthony J. Principi, center, chairman of the Base Realignment and Closure Commission, leads the vote to keep the Atlantic Coast sub facility, rejecting the Department of Defense recommendation for closure, during the BRAC hearing in Arlington, Va., Wednesday.

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The verdict ...

Stars and Stripes

The nine-member Base Realignment and Closure Commission voted Wednesday to shutter major Army bases in Georgia and Michigan, and to close nearly 400 Army Reserve and National Guard facilities in dozens of states. Here is a look at the decision affecting major Army bases:

Fort Wainwright, Ala.

Realigned; Relocate Cold Regions Test Center to Fort Greely, AK

Fort McPherson, Ga.

Closed

Fort Gillem, Ga.

Closed

Fort Riley, Kan.

Realigned; Relocate 1st Infantry Division units and various echelons above division units from Germany to Fort Riley.

Fort Campbell, Ky.

Realigned; Relocate an attack aviation battalion to Fort Riley, Kan.

Army Garrison Michigan — Selfridge

Closed

Fort Monmouth, N.J.

Closed

Fort Bragg, N.C.

Realigned; Relocate the 7th Special Forces Group to Eglin AFB, Fla.

Fort Hood, Texas

Realigned; Relocate a BCT and a unit of employment headquarters to Fort Carson, Colo.

Red River Army Depot, Texas

Realigned (instead of closed); Relocate maintenance of tactical missiles to Letterkenny Army Depot, Pa. Eliminate supply and storage for fuels, tires and compressed gases.

Fort Bliss, Texas

Realigned; Relocate air defense artillery units to Fort Sill. Relocate 1st Armored Division and various echelon above division units from Germany to Fort Bliss.

Fort Monroe, Va.

Closed

— Leo Shane

WASHINGTON — Overruling the Pentagon on two of its biggest requests, a commission reviewing base closings voted to keep open a shipyard and a submarine base in New England that military planners wanted to shut down.

The panel also spared three other major facilities, in Texas, California and Louisiana, against the Pentagon’s wishes as it sped through its first day of deliberations, debating and voting on even the most contentious proposals in under an hour each.

But it was New England that got arguably the biggest victories of the day: the commission voted to save two of the Navy’s oldest facilities — the Portsmouth shipyard at Kittery, Maine, and Submarine Base New London in Connecticut. Together, the bases are considered economic engines of their region and elected officials from Maine, New Hampshire and Connecticut lobbied intently for months to save them.

“Yahoo!” said Sen. Joe Lieberman, D-Conn. “Submarine base New London lives, and I think that it will live forever.”

The survival of the two bases marked big wins for New England congressional delegations and governors, who fiercely lobbied against the Pentagon plan. Even as the commission was voting, elected officials from those and other states — such as Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Texas — attended the hearing and served as visual reminders of their efforts.

The commission did, however, decide to close Naval Air Station Brunswick in Maine, rather than drastically reduce forces there as the Pentagon wanted. Commissioners argued that savings could be realized more quickly if it was shut down altogether.

Over the past four months, the nine-member panel has expressed worries that Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld’s proposal would leave the Northeast unprotected.

“If we close New London down, we will never get it back,” the commission’s chairman, Anthony Principi, said Wednesday. “I think it would be a tragic mistake, a tragic loss for this nation.”

But the decisions to spare both the submarine base and the shipyard were somewhat surprising. Lobbyists and some lawmakers had privately speculated that the panel would save one base and scrap the other.

In the end, the panel sided with community groups and lawmakers from the Northeast. Analysts have said closing both the shipyard and the submarine base would devastate the economy along the coast from Maine to Rhode Island. Loss of the submarine base, which former President Carter, a dozen admirals and high-ranking Congress members urged saved, would have cost about 8,000 jobs and closing the shipyard would have cost 4,000 jobs. Many more jobs at businesses that depend on the bases also were at risk.

“This is a sweet victory,” said Sen. Judd Gregg, R-N.H., who was among the Congress members who lobbied the commission to save the shipyard in Maine near the New Hampshire border.

In other reversals, the commission kept open, rather than closed Naval Support Activity Corona in California, the Red River Army Depot in Texas and Naval Support Activity in New Orleans.

Lobbying efforts to save other major bases failed. The panel sided with the Pentagon in shutting down five large Army bases and four big Navy installations.

The panel also signed off on closing hundreds of Navy Reserve and Army Reserve and National Guard facilities in dozens of states.

The decisions on Army and Navy proposals Wednesday began a three-day series of votes planned before the commission sends its final report next month to President Bush, who could make his own changes. Congress also will get the chance to reject the plan after Bush considers it. Lawmakers haven’t done that in previous rounds.

Before voting started, Principi said the task was especially difficult because Rumsfeld’s proposal included more than double the recommendations in the four previous rounds of base closings combined.

Principi said the commission recognizes that closing bases is necessary to save money and transform the military to meet new challenges.

“At the same time, we know that the decisions we reach will have a profound impact on the communities hosting our military installations, and more importantly, on the people who bring those communities to life,” he said.

To reject a recommendation, the commission had to find that the Pentagon substantially deviated from criteria that focuses mainly on the military value of each facility.

Previous commissions — in 1988, 1991, 1993 and 1995 — altered about 15 percent of what the Pentagon proposed as it sought to get rid of bases considered no longer needed. But analysts say the post-Sept. 11 threat of terrorism makes this time different.

“It’s not about just trying to get rid of excess capacity. It’s actually about trying to reorganize the forces for future challenges,” said Loren Thompson, a military analyst with the Lexington Institute, a think tank in Arlington, Va.

On Tuesday, Rumsfeld was optimistic his plan would remain largely intact, predicting the commission would endorse “the overwhelming majority” of his recommendations.

The Pentagon proposed closing or consolidating a record 62 major military bases and 775 smaller installations to save $48.8 billion over 20 years, streamline the services and reposition the armed forces to face current threats.

Since the Pentagon announced its proposal in May, commissioners reviewing the plan have voiced serious concerns about several parts of it, including the Pentagon’s estimate of how much money will be saved.

Among the contentious issues remaining to be decided is the Air Force’s proposal to strip aircraft from about two dozen Air National Guard facilities.

The Air Force’s attempt to close Ellsworth Air Force Base in South Dakota, home to freshman Republican Sen. John Thune, has stirred the most political consternation. Thune argued during the 2004 campaign that he — not Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle — would be in a better position to save the facility.

The panel must send its final proposal to Bush by Sept. 8. The president can accept the report or order the commission to make changes. Then, Congress must reject the report altogether or it becomes law.

[xzins]

Hidden in the sidebar, the Fabled Fighting Units, 1st Infantry Division and 1st Armored Division Return to the US from Germany.

1st ID goes to Ft Riley, Kansas.

1st Armored Division takes over Ft Bliss, Texas.

Air Defense Artillery vacates Ft Bliss and Air Defense and regular Artillery create combined Fires mission at Ft Sill.

[Boundless]

> ... 1st Infantry Division and 1st Armored Division
> Return to the US from Germany.

Do we finally have an "exit strategy" for Germany?

Someone needs to dig up Roosevelt and demand a date.

[jimbergin]

thanks for the heads up on this. It is big!

[BladeLWS]

I was just up at Brunswick a week ago with my cousins. We rented a house right under the landing path to the base. You can see P-3's and C-130's landing all day, we even saw four F-14's fly in. It'll be bad for the area when its closed, its the 2nd largest employer in Maine.

[Indy Pendance]

My daughter is part of the 1st ID at Fort Riley. Because of this move, her group will be getting brand new barracks, or so they're told, when they return from Iraq next year.

[xzins]

There has been talk of moving platform type bases to Poland, Bulgaria, Czech, etc., but everyone always assumed it would be either the 1st ID or 1st AD remaining for that mission with the other returning to the states.

This means that any of the cohort-type units of action can occupy these forward bases for some period of time (6 months/year?)

[Indy Pendance]

I'm not sure of the terminology, but because Fort Riley was on the first call list for being deployed for Iraq, and some have been there 2-3 times, they're going on a 18-24 month stabalization period. Maybe this is in part to prepare for the troops to come home from Germany?

[xzins]

Yes, I think you've nailed it.

It will be a huge process to close bases and relocate from Germany. They have huge facilities all around the Wuerzberg area.

Schroeder is probably spinning in his political grave.

[Indy Pendance]

And add to the Germany troops returning, there are about 3000 troops scheduled to return to the States early next year from Iraq. The last time I was on base, January 2005, there was a lot of construction going on near the troops barracks. This move must have been planned for a long time. I'm sure all the families coming home will be happy to be back. On a side note, if you haven't had a chance and are in the neighborhood, Fort Riley has some awesome museums to visit.

[xzins]

I was stationed at Ft Riley from 95-96 with duty at KSU in Manhattan. In conjunction with studies at KSU, I had to perform counseling for families at Ft Riley.

I really liked the area.

BTW, Kansas isn't all that flat....at least that section isn't!

[Indy Pendance]

"Kansas isn't all that flat"

The first time I went to base, I ended up coming in after dark. I was really suprised at the terrain. And thank you for serving. Custer Hill is/was going through major construction. The entire 'loop' road was redone within the last year.

I'm not a fan of Junction City or Manahattan, but love the base. We even climbed up on that atomic cannon. :)

[neodad]

The news in El Paso is to expect 20,000 soldiers in the next few years. In addition to 1AD, we're supposed to be getting an additional brigade, but I don't know from where.

[xzins]

The article talks about units above division (Corps elements) coming with the division. I'd suspect some type of aviation brigade.

[lmr]

Kansas isn't all that flat....

Very close to the Flint Hills there... Very Beautiful country, I get to see it everytime I drive from Wichita to Kansas City.

[neodad]

Just checked the local paper article. 16,000 from 1AD, and 3,800 from the 4th Brigade, 1st Cav. They're already arriving.

[neb52]

We are supposedly going to land part of the new housing contract for Ft. Bliss. It starts towards the end of next year. 6 Billion contract.

[xzins]

It is amazing that all of this is happening and that it hasn't been fully realized (announced?) by the Army in Europe.

If they lose the 1st AD and the 1st ID, they lose Both of the only 2 divisions that reside on that continent ... both in Germany. 1AD is out of Wiesbaden and 1ID is out of Wuerzberg.

To send 1AD to Ft Bliss is a stroke of genius on the army's part.

[Always Right]

The closing of the sub base was the biggest shocker of the base closings.

[xzins]

That was denied wasn't it?

The base sub, until that decision was reversed might have been the big news, but now, in my opinion, it's the return of the 1ID and the 1AD from Europe to Ft Riley and Ft Bliss, respectively.

[neb52]

Not to mention the big boon that Hell Hole called El Paso, TX will receive from so much new development. The Army's contract is just for military housing, think of all the commercial property and feeder residential property that will be built as well.