Power shift under way at Andersen

Power shift under way at Andersen
By Teri Weaver, Stars and Stripes
Pacific edition, Saturday, February 7, 2009

The transfer of base operations from the Air Force to the Navy on Guam began a new phase this week as the military broke ground on a $19 million project, according to military officials.

The project will transform the former high school on Nimitz Hill into a headquarters for the newly formed Joint Region Marianas and should be completed next year, according to Capt. Paul Fuligni, who commands the U.S. Naval Facilities Engineering Command Marianas.

The construction also marks the beginning of legally switching the day-to-day operations of Andersen Air Force Base — from housing to paving roads to mowing grass — from the Air Force’s books to the Navy’s.

"We have a lot of work ahead of us," Fuligni said Thursday during a phone interview from Guam. "But we know what we have to do."

Under the joint region command, 49 various base services at Andersen will shift under the oversight of the Navy. That means transferring $5.5 billion in property, about 700 Air Force workers and a $200 million operating budget from Andersen to the new joint region command, Fuligni said.


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