DoD’s Joint Expeditionary Base in Hampton Roads

Excerpts from Meredith Kruse, The Virginian-Pilot

On October 1st, the military’s newest, revolutionary experiment in running its bases more efficiently kicked off in Hampton Roads’ Virginia Beach with the merger of two of the region’s best-known installations: Little Creek Naval Amphibious Base and Fort Story.

The combined base has a mouthful of a moniker: Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek-Fort Story.

And it’s got a Navy commanding officer – Capt. William Crow – and an Army deputy commander – Lt. Col. Jayne Jansen.

The merger was one of a dozen around the country that the Defense Base Realignment and Closure Commission ordered in 2005 in an effort to operate more efficiently and save money. Early next year, Langley Air Force Base and Fort Eustis will merge, becoming Joint Base Langley-Eustis.

Military bases all provide similar support functions – facility operations and maintenance, security, family support and so forth – so the Defense Department should be able to save money by combining bases, paring the number of managers and profiting from economies of scale, according to the BRAC Commission report. At the time, the BRAC Commission estimated that the mergers would save $184 million per year.

So far, no jobs have been eliminated – a few have even been added, said Jansen, formerly the garrison commander at Fort Story. She expects the base will become more efficient over time, perhaps trimming some jobs or reassigning employees.

In its first year, the merged base will actually receive more money than both Fort Story and Little Creek previously got on their own. The combined funding before the merger was $70 million; the merged base will receive $88 million, according to spokesman Scott Mohr.

That’s because the Defense Department set minimum standards for the new merged bases to ensure that service members receive the same level of support no matter where they’re stationed. And both Fort Story and Little Creek needed more money to reach that standard, officials said.

Among other things, that money will pay for a new child care center serving 124 children on the Fort Story side of the base – now technically known as the “east campus.”

Other than the new signs and a new blue-and-olive-drab logo, the merger should largely be invisible to civilians, Crow and Jansen said.

The Fort Story side will remain open to people who want to visit the historic lighthouse and to the half-dozen marathons that pass through it each year.

Why choose a name with twice as many syllables as the original proposal: Joint Base Little Creek-Story?

Two reasons, Crow said. First, both sites have valuable beachfront property that the Navy and Army alike crave for training. It is hoped that working “expeditionary” into the name will remind political leaders of the beachfront’s military value and protect it from encroachment by developers. Second, officials didn’t want to slight Fort Story’s rich history by dropping the “fort.”

During Thursday’s ceremony, Crow told the crowd, “If you don’t think our title is correct, let me tell you a little about history.” Just over the hill, he said, is “the birthplace of America” – the site of Capt. John Smith’s first landing.

“Our country’s first expeditionary and amphibious landing took place right here,” he declared.

See also the DoD’s Video of the event.