Team Sheppard, Community break ground on new facility

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Adawn Kelsey
  • 82nd Training Wing Public Affairs
SHEPPARD AIR FORCE BASE, Texas --  The 80th Flying Training Wing will host a ground breaking ceremony Dec. 3 at 11:15 a.m. for a new operations facility.

Pre-construction steps are nearly complete including surveying of the site, soil sampling and marking utility lines. The excavators are scheduled to begin digging in February, and the completion of the facility is estimated for May 2012.

The facility will cost about $15.5 million and cover more than 50,000 square feet of the field on the south side of Bldg. 2326. Air Education and Training Command is funding $1.5 million of the project.

Lt. Col. Bryan Schrass, 80th OG academics chief, said the new facility will replace out-of-date, Cold War-era facilities.

"This facility will be taking functions out of the current (80th FTW) buildings that need to be replaced and the idea is to have a campus layout for the complex," the colonel said.
Colonel Schrass said the facility will have state-of-the-art class rooms, office space and a large auditorium.

"For the first time, the 80th FTW commander will be able to get everyone together in one place at the same time," Colonel Schrass said. "There will be convertible classrooms in the back of the auditorium so if more room is needed the walls can be moved to create more seating."

He said the building is also environmentally friendly, it will be certified silver in the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design criteria.

"The facility is certified based on requirements for LEED such as insulation, energy efficiency and performance of heating and air conditioning and environmentally friendly landscaping," Colonel Schrass said.