Army training facility a "go"

After years of negotiation, agreement on Orchards location

BY MAT BOES of the VBJ

After seven years of searching and more than 20 proposed locations, the Washington National Guard and Army Reserve finally decided last week to go forward with a $28 million training center at the Birtcher Industrial Park in Orchards, to be completed in 2011.

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"We called it ‘Project Groundhog Day' because of how many times we had to redo it," according to Bart Phillips, president of Columbia River Economic Development Council, which together with the city of Vancouver, helped bring the facility to Clark County.

A dark-comedy classic starring Bill Murray, Groundhog Day seemed a good template for the real-life negotiations between the city and the U.S. Army regarding the location of the facility. The military's stringent rules covering security, road access and susceptibility to flooding made the process quite an ordeal, requiring both parties to return to the drawing board numerous times, according to Phillips.

And just as the hero in the film finally succumbs to the festive spirit of Groundhog Day, Phillips hopes Vancouverites will come to appreciate the positive economic impact the estimated 340 troops stationed at the new facility will bring to the city.

"It is an impact we are already feeling, with the troops here, staying in hotels, eating at restaurants," Phillips said, referring to the 104th Training Division, currently in the last stages of transferring operations from Vancouver Barracks to Fort Lewis. "We are very happy not to lose it."

Jan Bader, administrator with the City of Vancouver, agrees.

"Even though the full-time staff number is small - around 40 troops - we are glad to not lose 160 years of history," Bader said.

Garco Construction Inc., based in Spokane, will be in charge of the construction for the three-building facility, including a 78,455-sq.-footArmed Forces Reserved Center, a 23,300-sq.-foot storage unit and a 13,450-sq.-foot operation maintenance shop.

Meanwhile, the barracks vacated by the 104th training unit will be transferred from the U.S. Army to the National Park Service, potentially clearing the way for future development of the historic property.

Bader said there are already "lots and lots of ideas" for the land, though the actual reuse plan will be drawn-up by the city.

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