As the director of joint staff for the South Dakota National Guard, Brig. Gen. Ted Johnson is looking forward to the day when he can walk down the hall, instead of all the way across Camp Rapid, to talk to his staff.
If more than $43 million in military funding for new buildings at Camp Rapid passes the Appropriations Committee of the U.S. Senate today, he will be able to do that sometime in 2011.
On Wednesday, the Senate's Military Construction/Veterans Administration Subcommittee approved a 2009 funding bill containing more than $60 million for several South Dakota military construction projects, Sen. Tim Johnson, subcommittee chairman, said. Those projects include a $29 million Joint Forces Headquarters Readiness Center at Camp Rapid and a $14.4 million classroom and billeting building. Also on the list is $11 million for a new base entry and perimeter gates at Ellsworth Air Force Base.
"We're very confident it's going to pass the Senate," Brig. Gen. Johnson said. The funding has the support of the Bush Administration and may go through the entire appropriation process as a stand-alone bill.
The headquarters center will be a 132,000-square-foot armory that will consolidate administrative and operational needs for Camp Rapid into one
"green" building that meets Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design standards. When completed, it will be the biggest LEED-certified building in the state, a Guard spokesman said, incorporating water conservation, recycled materials, energy-efficient lighting and heating and other environmentally-friendly features.
The National Guard hopes to put the project out for bids in January and expects construction to take about two years.
The current headquarters building, which will be demolished this fall to make room for the new armory, was built in 1936. Most of the camp's buildings are between 50 and 70 years old.
"We ask a lot of our soldiers, and these kinds of new facilities are what we need to do to keep people joining the Guard," Brig. Gen. Johnson said. A new armory and modern, comfortable housing quarters will enhance the training and the morale of guardsmen and reservists, he said.
The bill contains $14,463,000 for the third, and final, phase of a multi-use complex that combines barracks, dining, shower, education and administration facilities. That complex replaces an assortment of old tin huts that once served as billets for guardsmen.
"This will ensure our South Dakota airmen and Guards have the infrastructure they need to accomplish their mission," Sen. Johnson said about the funding bill.
Camp Rapid will continue its normal operations during the construction process, including hosting Golden Coyote, an international training exercise held during the summer every year. Personnel will squeeze into existing office space until the new headquarters opens.
"Construction is expected to affect a big part of Camp Rapid, but we'll continue operations the best we can," Brig. Gen. Johnson said.
Also included in the 2009 military construction/VA bill is $250 million for the Rural Health Outreach and Delivery Initiative, a new program championed by Sen. Johnson to address the unique needs of veterans in rural communities.
It gives the Veterans Administration the latitude to explore ways of serving this rural population: additional mobile clinics, establishing new outpatient clinics, expanding fee-based care in areas not served by VA facilities, accelerating the deployment of telemedicine and funding innovative pilot programs. Sen. Johnson said the initiative directs the VA and the Indian Health Service to collaborate on veterans health care.
"This will be a great benefit to rural veterans, many of whom live in South Dakota, because it explores new ways to address the unique needs of rural veterans," Sen. Johnson said.
Sen. Johnson expects passage by the Appropriation Committee on Thursday, July 17, and is hopeful it will be considered by the full Senate quickly. It is possible the bill will go through the entire appropriations process as a stand-alone bill, his office said.
