Fort Bliss Monitor

Troop Talk

This will conclude the majority of the questions that were pending from previous Troop Talk columns.
The 1-44 ADA will be coming to Fort Bliss in the near future, will this unit be living in re-built or renovated homes within the installation? The 1-44 ADA advanced party is scheduled to arrive in December 2004, with the main body arriving by June 30, 2005. GMH Military Housing is scheduled to take over and start operations July 1, 2005. New construction of homes and renovation of vacant homes (not scheduled for demolition) will commence July 1, 2005, therefore it is anticipated married personnel from 1-44 ADA will be living in existing family housing units.

During the RCI process, where will family members live whose homes are scheduled to be torn down? Families living in homes scheduled for demolition will be moved to newly constructed or renovated homes. GMH is planning to move a family only one time during the 6 year Initial Development Period.

What can the units do to assist in getting acceptable materials to the Recycle Center? The Directorate of Environment has taken over the operations of the Recycling Center. In order for the center to succeed, it needs recyclable materials. The materials needed are cardboard, newspaper, magazines, white paper, mixed or colored paper, plastics #1 and #2 (for example, water bottles, soda bottles, milk jugs, colored plastic bottles), and aluminum cans. These items are the ones with the highest payoff. All these materials are sold locally and all proceeds from the sale of the recyclables are used to pay for the Recycling Center’s overhead, operations, and maintenance. In addition, if these materials are kept out of the Fort Bliss Landfill, it helps extend the life of the landfill.

Military units send a lot of materials to the Recycling Center but there are still a lot of recyclables in the dumpsters that must be re-routed to the Recycling center. The center receives tons of cardboard from the training ranges and the 15 green cardboard recycling containers are picked up weekly from motor pools. The Recycling Center has an additional 11 cardboard containers that will shortly be distributed to other motor pools. If you need a cardboard recycling container, call the center at 568-1537. I strongly encourage units and offices to recycle – it is the right and responsible thing to do. With good planning and execution, we can turn this into a profitable program for our installation in the next five years.

The motor pools produce substantial amounts of recyclables that are ending up in the landfill. The Recycling Center cannot currently afford to pick up these materials but soldiers should collect and deliver these recyclables to the center. If you would like to start a recycling program at your unit call the Recycling Center at 568-1537. The center is located at B-1336, corner of Marshall & Cassidy Roads; hours of operation are Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

In response to the many inquiries about the barracks renovation plan DPWL has posted the schedule on the DPWL Web site, which is accessible from the Fort Bliss web site.

Where do we stand in the tree planting program? There are many drought resistant trees that have been suggested for use on Fort Bliss. This information has been published in The Monitor and a chart of those trees and how to plant and maintain them is posted at the Fort Bliss Self Help Store. DPWL has an on-going program to remove dead trees and has funded some replacement trees in the areas of greatest need. All members of Team Bliss (including housing residents) are encouraged to call the DPWL Service Order Desk if they see dead trees that have been missed. Housing residents and occupants of other facilities are also encouraged to purchase and plant additional trees in areas where they can nurture them ( with proper fertilizer and water) as even drought resistant trees generally require more water than can be obtained strictly from rainfall in the El Paso Area. Residents and facility occupants desiring to plant trees should obtain a digging permit from DPWL at Bldg. 777 prior to digging to verify no utility lines at the locations they wish to plant.
There is a plan for a new CRC building, where, how much space will they have? There is a future construction project on the Master Plan to construct a large Soldier readiness Processing facility. If funded, this project would absorb some of the administrative activities from the CRC building, but there is no planned military construction project to replace the billeting that is presently located there. DPWL, in response to the need for continuous improvement and in conjunction with the CRC, is looking into what can be done at Bldg. 503 and surrounding buildings to provide more space and greater privacy for the individuals billeted in the CRC facility. Increasing the amount of space per individual would allow some type of modular partitioning and also reduce the occupancy per building.

When will the new ACUs be issued here at Fort Bliss? The ACU fielding date for units stationed at Fort Bliss has yet to be determined. Expect only deployer or redeployers to be issued ACU in the near term. The tentative ACU fielding schedule from PEO Soldier is as follows:

Febuary 05: Begin issue to deploying units (order of units is still TBD by DA G3) through transferable OCIE w/ nametags, U.S. Army, Unit Patch (Airborne Tab-if applicable), U.S. Flag, IR Flag and elbow/knee pad inserts. (Skill badges and combat patches not issued).

By April 05 fielding rate = 5 brigades per month (order TBD DA G3).

October 05: Issued to all Initial Entry Training Soldiers

April 06: On shelves- Clothing Sales

April 07: All Soldiers must have 2 sets

April 08: All must have 4 sets

May 08: DCU & BDU no longer authorized

Other stores outside the military may carry a like item, but they may not have the costly wrinkle resistant fabric.

Are there any plans to have more daycare centers, and can the prices be lowered? MWR has asked for one more Child Development Center to be built at Biggs Army Airfield in anticipation of additional troop strength. However, the two childcare centers we have are not full at this time and can meet current needs. Fees for childcare are established by DoD in respective categories based on total income per family and are not set at the local level by MWR. We recently asked the national board of directors of the ASYMCA to consider expanding the child care services at the El Paso ASYMCA.

Why did so many senior NCOs come up on orders to attend Recruiter School when they could be more needed here in the air defense field? Human Resources Command has to look at the total Army picture when assignments are made and even though there is a need for senior NCOs in the ADA career field; assignments are made by the HRC to best meet the needs of the Army at the time while balancing the needs of the branch. We appear to be OK in our branch at this time.

As ADA units from Germany gear up to re-locate to CONUS, will there be any opportunities for ADA Soldiers to be stationed somewhere else other than Fort Bliss and Korea? Transformation and restructuring of the force will mean the relocation of many units from overseas. However, no definite locations have been announced for the ADA units that may be returning. The branch is making every effort to ensure our units will be strategically located to facilitate the national strategy, to ensure proper joint and combined arms training opportunities, and additional reenlistment options. The BRAC will be the largest determiner of future locations, which is a congressional process.

Are there going to be any constructive plans to extend parking lots to allow more parking spaces on the installation, with emphasis around motor pools? DPWL will do a study to determine the best utilization of available parking spaces. We prefer to properly use what already exists versus building new parking lots if they are not absolutely needed. If you have a specific parking area that you are concerned about, please contact Ricardo Berumen at 568-5871.

Maj. Gen. Michael A. Vane
Fort Bliss Commanding General



www.bliss.army.mil	Published for the Fort Bliss/El Paso, Texas Community	November 18 , 2004

	Troop Talk This will conclude the majority of the questions that were pending from previous Troop Talk columns. The 1-44 ADA will be coming to Fort Bliss in the near future, will this unit be living in re-built or renovated homes within the installation? The 1-44 ADA advanced party is scheduled to arrive in December 2004, with the main body arriving by June 30, 2005. GMH Military Housing is scheduled to take over and start operations July 1, 2005. New construction of homes and renovation of vacant homes (not scheduled for demolition) will commence July 1, 2005, therefore it is anticipated married personnel from 1-44 ADA will be living in existing family housing units. During the RCI process, where will family members live whose homes are scheduled to be torn down? Families living in homes scheduled for demolition will be moved to newly constructed or renovated homes. GMH is planning to move a family only one time during the 6 year Initial Development Period. What can the units do to assist in getting acceptable materials to the Recycle Center? The Directorate of Environment has taken over the operations of the Recycling Center. In order for the center to succeed, it needs recyclable materials. The materials needed are cardboard, newspaper, magazines, white paper, mixed or colored paper, plastics #1 and #2 (for example, water bottles, soda bottles, milk jugs, colored plastic bottles), and aluminum cans. These items are the ones with the highest payoff. All these materials are sold locally and all proceeds from the sale of the recyclables are used to pay for the Recycling Center’s overhead, operations, and maintenance. In addition, if these materials are kept out of the Fort Bliss Landfill, it helps extend the life of the landfill. Military units send a lot of materials to the Recycling Center but there are still a lot of recyclables in the dumpsters that must be re-routed to the Recycling center. The center receives tons of cardboard from the training ranges and the 15 green cardboard recycling containers are picked up weekly from motor pools. The Recycling Center has an additional 11 cardboard containers that will shortly be distributed to other motor pools. If you need a cardboard recycling container, call the center at 568-1537. I strongly encourage units and offices to recycle – it is the right and responsible thing to do. With good planning and execution, we can turn this into a profitable program for our installation in the next five years. The motor pools produce substantial amounts of recyclables that are ending up in the landfill. The Recycling Center cannot currently afford to pick up these materials but soldiers should collect and deliver these recyclables to the center. If you would like to start a recycling program at your unit call the Recycling Center at 568-1537. The center is located at B-1336, corner of Marshall & Cassidy Roads; hours of operation are Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. In response to the many inquiries about the barracks renovation plan DPWL has posted the schedule on the DPWL Web site, which is accessible from the Fort Bliss web site. Where do we stand in the tree planting program? There are many drought resistant trees that have been suggested for use on Fort Bliss. This information has been published in The Monitor and a chart of those trees and how to plant and maintain them is posted at the Fort Bliss Self Help Store. DPWL has an on-going program to remove dead trees and has funded some replacement trees in the areas of greatest need. All members of Team Bliss (including housing residents) are encouraged to call the DPWL Service Order Desk if they see dead trees that have been missed. Housing residents and occupants of other facilities are also encouraged to purchase and plant additional trees in areas where they can nurture them ( with proper fertilizer and water) as even drought resistant trees generally require more water than can be obtained strictly from rainfall in the El Paso Area. Residents and facility occupants desiring to plant trees should obtain a digging permit from DPWL at Bldg. 777 prior to digging to verify no utility lines at the locations they wish to plant. There is a plan for a new CRC building, where, how much space will they have? There is a future construction project on the Master Plan to construct a large Soldier readiness Processing facility. If funded, this project would absorb some of the administrative activities from the CRC building, but there is no planned military construction project to replace the billeting that is presently located there. DPWL, in response to the need for continuous improvement and in conjunction with the CRC, is looking into what can be done at Bldg. 503 and surrounding buildings to provide more space and greater privacy for the individuals billeted in the CRC facility. Increasing the amount of space per individual would allow some type of modular partitioning and also reduce the occupancy per building. When will the new ACUs be issued here at Fort Bliss? The ACU fielding date for units stationed at Fort Bliss has yet to be determined. Expect only deployer or redeployers to be issued ACU in the near term. The tentative ACU fielding schedule from PEO Soldier is as follows: Febuary 05: Begin issue to deploying units (order of units is still TBD by DA G3) through transferable OCIE w/ nametags, U.S. Army, Unit Patch (Airborne Tab-if applicable), U.S. Flag, IR Flag and elbow/knee pad inserts. (Skill badges and combat patches not issued). By April 05 fielding rate = 5 brigades per month (order TBD DA G3). October 05: Issued to all Initial Entry Training Soldiers April 06: On shelves- Clothing Sales April 07: All Soldiers must have 2 sets April 08: All must have 4 sets May 08: DCU & BDU no longer authorized Other stores outside the military may carry a like item, but they may not have the costly wrinkle resistant fabric. Are there any plans to have more daycare centers, and can the prices be lowered? MWR has asked for one more Child Development Center to be built at Biggs Army Airfield in anticipation of additional troop strength. However, the two childcare centers we have are not full at this time and can meet current needs. Fees for childcare are established by DoD in respective categories based on total income per family and are not set at the local level by MWR. We recently asked the national board of directors of the ASYMCA to consider expanding the child care services at the El Paso ASYMCA. Why did so many senior NCOs come up on orders to attend Recruiter School when they could be more needed here in the air defense field? Human Resources Command has to look at the total Army picture when assignments are made and even though there is a need for senior NCOs in the ADA career field; assignments are made by the HRC to best meet the needs of the Army at the time while balancing the needs of the branch. We appear to be OK in our branch at this time. As ADA units from Germany gear up to re-locate to CONUS, will there be any opportunities for ADA Soldiers to be stationed somewhere else other than Fort Bliss and Korea? Transformation and restructuring of the force will mean the relocation of many units from overseas. However, no definite locations have been announced for the ADA units that may be returning. The branch is making every effort to ensure our units will be strategically located to facilitate the national strategy, to ensure proper joint and combined arms training opportunities, and additional reenlistment options. The BRAC will be the largest determiner of future locations, which is a congressional process. Are there going to be any constructive plans to extend parking lots to allow more parking spaces on the installation, with emphasis around motor pools? DPWL will do a study to determine the best utilization of available parking spaces. We prefer to properly use what already exists versus building new parking lots if they are not absolutely needed. If you have a specific parking area that you are concerned about, please contact Ricardo Berumen at 568-5871. Maj. Gen. Michael A. Vane Fort Bliss Commanding General