First BRAC Construction Project Begins on Fort Meade

By George Berkheimer, STAFF WRITER

An April 16 groundbreaking ceremony for the new Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) headquarters on Fort Meade marks a significant physical milestone in the Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) process.
The first and largest of three BRAC-related projects slated for the installation, the new DISA facility will provide a state-of-the-art, high tech home for an agency that is commonly referred to as the AT&T Corp., America Online, Google and OnStar of the nation's armed forces.
"We're building a 21st century home for a 21st century agency," said Brig. Gen. Todd Semonite, commander of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' North Atlantic Division.
The new facility will consist of seven buildings encompassing roughly 1.1 million square feet at a cost of $442 million. It is being designed to enhance DISA's mission of providing a global command, control, communications and computer network for the Department of Defense.
The headquarters building will be ready for occupancy by October 2010, said outgoing DISA Director Air Force Lt. Gen. Charles Croom, Jr., while completion of the remaining buildings is expected by Sept. 2011. Approximately 4,300 DISA jobs will relocate to Fort Meade from Northern Virginia during the next 35 months.

Building Blocks
The Army Corps of Engineers, Baltimore District, awarded the contract for the project to Virginia-based Hensel Phelps Construction Co. two months ago. Steven Speer, vice president of Hensel Phelps, said more than 200 local suppliers and vendors will be involved in the construction of the new DISA complex.
"This truly is a one-Maryland joint effort," said Maryland Lt. Gov. Anthony Brown during the ceremony, recognizing the level of regional cooperation being undertaken to prepare for anticipated BRAC moves to Fort Meade and Aberdeen Proving Ground in Harford County.
Brown added that the state has dedicated $13 million during the next four years to invest in college-level education programs aimed at creating and preparing the workforce that will fill future DISA jobs. In addition, Anne Arundel County is also taking steps to boost science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) educational programs, as County Executive John Leopold's 2009 budget includes a proposal for a regional STEM center at Anne Arundel Community College's Arundel Mills facility.
Many of the high tech jobs at DISA pay salaries of $100,000 on average, Leopold said. "DISA forms the epicenter of our national security efforts. Everybody [in the region] has a responsibility to make sure we succeed."
An accommodating transportation network and a central bus operations and maintenance facility planned at Tipton Airport are part of the equation for BRAC success at Fort Meade, as are the federal funds that have been secured for improvements to MARC train service and to Route 175.
"We're going to do everything we can to work with the Maryland Department of Transportation to improve the quality of life and make sure we maintain that quality of life for our corporate and resident citizens," said Rep. C. A. "Dutch" Ruppersberger, D-Baltimore County.

Phased Relocation
DISA's information technology infrastructure serves more than 6,000 clients worldwide, "from the President, whether he's at the White House, Camp David or in Crawford, [Texas], down to the soldier at the tactical edge," said Croom. "[Soon] we're going to be in one building instead of multiple buildings scattered [throughout Arlington, Va.] ... and we're going to do that job better."
Rear Adm. Elizabeth Hight, the current vice director of DISA who is set to become the agency's new director when Croom retires on Sept. 1, said the move wouldn't necessarily change much about the way she performs her duties, but would provide a number of other benefits.
"It's going to be great to be in a state-of-the-art facility," Hight said. "We also work closely with NSA, so this will bring us closer to a lot of the people we do business with."
The proximity to BWI Thurgood Marshall Airport and its ease of access is also an advantage compared to using Reagan National Airport for official travel, she added.
Site work on the project is scheduled to begin on July 15, Croom said, and contractors should be able to begin outfitting the buildings by May 2010. The first wave of employee relocations will begin in October 2010 and will continue in phases until relocation is completed in July 2011.
"Rapid decision making is the key to keeping [the process] moving and getting the project completed on time," Speer said.

Getting to Work
When it was established in 1960, DISA's staff numbered just 34. Currently, a total of 4,272 DISA personnel are expected to transfer to Fort Meade, including 392 military personnel, 2,407 civilians and 1,473 direct contractors. Indirect contractors could add an additional 3,000 to 5,000 workers.
In order to retain as many workers from Northern Virginia as possible, DISA has instituted a flexible telework policy that allows some employees to telecommute up to two days per week.
Fort Meade's Commander, Army Col. Kenneth McCreedy, officially welcomed DISA to the 91-year-old installation, observing that the agency's presence will ensure "the continuation of Fort Meade into the next 100 years that will be brighter in the service to our nation than the ones that went before." He also hailed the relocation as an action that will "turn into a tremendous benefit for the entire community."
That benefit includes DISA's ability to stimulate local economies, Ruppersberger pointed out, with somewhere in the neighborhood of $800 million in procurement contracts going to small businesses throughout the United States each year.
But for now, it's first things first. "There's a lot of work to do," much of which has not yet been started, Ruppersberger said. "The only way we're going to make it is that team approach. If we keep our focus on the mission, we will be successful."