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CAMP LEATHERNECK, Afghanistan – Planners, developers and overseers of Camp Leatherneck’s daily operations came together Dec. 15, for a brief ceremony and luncheon that signified passing the torch as responsibilities for base operations and maintenance have been handed from the Marine Corps to the Army.
The nearly three-year-old installation is under a new administration in all regards except battle space management.
“This transition occurred as the result of some extremely talented senior Army leaders and visionaries who understood the value proposition of a forward deployed expeditionary (Installation and Management Command) garrison command team, right-sized for an austere environment,” said Army Col. Bruce Pollard, commanding officer of Camp Leatherneck and resident of Woodbridge, Va.
Pollard arrived to Camp Leatherneck on Nov. 16 and immediately began the indoctrination process as he took on the role of base commander.
Camp Leatherneck, centrally located in the Helmand province in southwestern Afghanistan, is a forward operating base and major hub for satellite installations throughout Regional Command Southwest’s area of operations that includes both Nimroz and Helmand provinces.
The base is comprised of approximately 1650 acres, 27 miles of road, 3300 on-site facilities and a population of nearly 20,000 personnel at any given time, said GySgt. Peter McCollough, base operations chief, and a Miami, Fla. native.
The base, called “Leatherneck” for the old Marine nickname derived from leather collars Marines wore on their uniforms in the Civil War, is the largest expeditionary Marine Corps base in the world.
“The U.S. Army’s Installation and Management Command (IMCOM) answered the call for a base control group,” said Marine Lt. Col. Brian Bower, deputy commander for the Base Operating Support-Integration and a Hudson, Ohio native. “They bring the expertise to run an installation this large based upon their worldwide experience operating bases. The professionals they bring aboard will ensure that Leatherneck continues to improve,” he added.
The key in maintaining Leatherneck’s successful functioning as a mid-sized city during the transition is to allow the Army to take over base operations without hindering daily business within the camp.
“For the boots-on-the-ground guy here, there should be near zero changes noticed,” said Phillip Russo, Leatherneck’s camp architect and a resident of Chicago. The Marines that have served in (Base Operating Support-Integration, or BOS-I) have completed a monumental task under extreme conditions with minimal staff, support or resources.”
The new camp managers will take on the task of overseeing housing, bathroom and shower upkeep, electrical maintenance, wastewater distribution, road development, antiterrorism force protection measures and any other needs Camp Leatherneck requires.
Ultimately, as the force drawdown in Afghanistan becomes a reality, base operations will accommodate a smaller amount of service member traffic.
“The focus of development has changed from growth in support of overall operations to a stronger focus upon the retrograde effort required to move Marines out of theater,” said Bower.
“What we know for sure is that this will free up Marines to do what the Marines do best,” Russo said.
For more on this and other stories from Regional Command Southwest, including follow-on interviews with servicemembers featured in this story, please contact Tim Love at tlove@dvidshub.net and follow us on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/regionalcommmandsouthwest, Twitter http://www.twitter.com/#!/RCSouthwest, YouTube http://www.youtube.com/RCSouthwest, and Flickr http://www.flickr.com/photos/regionalcommandsouthwest.
Also, be sure to check out the Regional Command Southwest Roundup http://www.scribd.com/RCSouthwest, a weekly selection of the top stories from combat correspondents in Helmand and Nimroz provinces.
| Date Taken: | 12.17.2011 |
| Date Posted: | 12.16.2011 23:39 |
| Story ID: | 81520 |
| Location: | CAMP LEATHERNECK, AF |
| Web Views: | 2,573 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
This work, Camp Leatherneck turns base operations over to US Army, by Sgt Timothy Solano, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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