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Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni residents attended the commanding officer’s town hall at the Sakura theater at MCAS Iwakuni, Japan, June 7, 2017.
The town hall is held annually and covers a wide variety of topics ranging from new facilities and services coming to the air station, to information related to housing, finances and much more.
“The event is an opportunity for the commanding officer (and subject matter experts) to discuss issues that are important for the community to know,” said Terrell Harkness, the director of Performance and Innovation at MCAS Iwakuni. “It is an opportunity for the community to come and provide comments, questions and concerns back to Iwakuni leadership, so we can try and make the community a better place with the involvement of everyone.”
U.S. Marine Corps Col. Richard F. Fuerst, commanding officer of MCAS Iwakuni, presented a detailed brief and outline of planned changes and renovations being made throughout the air station.
Subject matter experts, such as department heads and leaders from around the air station, were on hand to answer questions in one-on-ones and large groups. The aim was to give insight into what has happened, what is happening and what is yet to come for MCAS Iwakuni.
“There are a plethora of changes coming,” said Harkness. “Some will be liked and some will be liked less, but it is important information for everyone to (know).”
Some of those changes include the main gate being closed for construction, the completed renovations of the seawall and the addition of a Chili’s Grill & Bar restaurant.
Station residents brought up concerns on matters like street safety and housing issues, and they made suggestions for things such as extra recreational activities and field space for children.
“I think my questions were heard and most were addressed well,” said Stefanie Hansen, a station resident, who brought up questions dealing with traffic and child safety. “It was a lot of really good information, and I appreciate it all being laid out in the power point as well as discussed.”
In recent years, comments and concerns brought up in previous town halls have created changes that can be seen today such as safer roadways and the addition of Monzen Dog Park, which was a suggestion made from the community of pet owners.
This year, Performance & Innovation (P&I) coordinated and organized the town hall. P&I’s mission is to be the proponent of the "voice of the customer," and they manage programs like the Interactive Customer Evaluation (ICE) system for the air station.
“I enjoy helping everyone in our community understand how things work for an installation,” said Harkness. “This gives us an opportunity to reach our community and interact, and I think that is fantastic.”
| Date Taken: | 06.08.2017 |
| Date Posted: | 06.08.2017 01:46 |
| Story ID: | 236803 |
| Location: | MARINE CORPS AIR STATION IWAKUNI, YAMAGUCHI, JP |
| Web Views: | 52 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Questions, concerns discussed in town hall meeting, by Sgt Carlos Jimenez, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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