Photo By Matthew Stinson | Chief of Naval Operations, Adm. Mike Gilday, and NAVFAC Commander, Rear Adm. John...... read more read more
Naval Facilities Engineering Command (NAVFAC) Washington began renovation of Naval History and Heritage Command (NHHC) facilities on the Washington Navy Yard in Washington D.C. Aug. 5, after a ceremonial groundbreaking event.
“NAVFAC Washington is honored to support this important project to transform this former industrial facility into the Navy’s premier operational archives,” Said Capt. Greg Vinci, NAVFAC Washington commanding officer. “When completed, these facilities will aid in bridging the gap between scholars and warriors to cement our military’s legacy in history.”
Chief of Naval Operations, Adm. Mike Gilday, one of the honorees who broke the ceremonial wall, attended the ground breaking event, hosted by Samuel Cox, NHHC director and curator for the Navy. NAVFAC was represented by Rear Adm. John Korka, commander, Naval Facilities Engineering Command, along with Capt. Vinci.
The project, budgeted at $41 million, will entail the reconfiguration and renovation of Washington Navy Yard buildings 46 and 67, built in 1851, in order to create the Operational Archives and Repository Complex. The multi-faceted complex will consist of the Navy’s Operational Archives, the Department of the Navy Library and Rare Book Room, Navy Art Collection, and the Underwater Archeology Conservation Laboratory.
“What’s most unique is that this project involves building a facility that focuses first on the comfort of its artifacts, and second on the people actually occupying the building,” said Peter Mattes, NAVFAC Washington project manager. “This project will create facilities capable of properly protecting the historic art, documents, and memorabilia of the Navy.”
The renovations include storage, labs and office space, along with the replacement of electrical, mechanical, and architectural in both buildings. Structural work will be completed to add a second story in both buildings. Finally, a top secret Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility (SCIF) will be constructed for the protection of Cold War documents currently stored in inadequate environmental conditions elsewhere in the National Capital Region.
“The current storage capacity of NHHC does not allow for the proper preservation of these priceless artifacts.” said Mattes. “Details such as climate, lighting, and other factors can degrade the artifacts over time, so the objective is to preserve them however possible.”
Temperature, humidity and daylight control features built into the facilities will meet the unique archival preservation needs of the NHHC in order to support their mission of preserving and presenting an accurate history of the U. S. Navy.
The construction contract was awarded to Grunley Construction Co. Inc. in September 2018. The scheduled completion date for the Operational Archives and Repository Complex is August 2022.
| Date Taken: | 08.05.2020 |
| Date Posted: | 08.06.2020 10:40 |
| Story ID: | 375399 |
| Location: | WASHINGTON, DC, US |
| Web Views: | 458 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
This work, NAVFAC Washington Begins Construction of Historic Archival Complex, by Matthew Stinson, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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