Retiree News

The Hawaii Army National Guard (HIARNG) dedicated its new 29th Infantry Brigade Combat Team (IBCT) Readiness Center in Kalaeloa on August 2, 2014. Governor Neil Abercrombie, Brigadier General Joseph Kim, the Deputy Adjutant General, and Brigadier General Bruce Oliveira, HIARNG commander, were among the dignitaries in attendance.

The Brigade Readiness Center is a 55,000 square foot building that is comprised of an auditorium, assembly hall, administrative spaces, storage vaults, locker rooms, IT rooms and classrooms. Co-locating all administrative and logistical support under one roof will tremendously enhance the brigade’s readiness to respond to future overseas or domestic operations. The facility will support a combined strength of 871 drill-status and full-time personnel.

The contractor for the $31 million facility was Dawson Technical LLC. The Readiness Center was designed and built in accordance with the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), a green building certification program which recognizes best-in-class building strategies and practices. LEED establishes uniform standards for new buildings that focus on environmentally-friendly design, construction, and operation. The Brigade Readiness Center has been designated as LEED Silver.

“The Brigade Readiness Center is an expression of confidence in our local soldiers and a lasting investment in their training,” said Governor Abercrombie. “Built by a local company, the project served as a boost to our local economy and job creation, and over the long-term the facility will further our state’s ambitious energy goals with LEED-certified efficiency.”

The 29th IBCT has been mobilized four times since its formation in 1959: Vietnam (1968), Iraq (2004, 2008), and Afghanistan (SFAT, 2012).

Video of the dedication ceremony can be downloaded at http://ow.ly/ACFfc

Taken from a State of Hawaii Department of Defense press release.