Ground-breaking ceremony held for newest barracks project at Fort McCoy
(From left) Fort McCoy Garrison Commander Col. Michael Poss; Maj. Gen. Darrell Guthrie, 88th Readiness Division commanding general and Fort McCoy senior commander; Sean Giese, resident engineer with the Omaha District of the Army Corps of Engineers; and James French, chief operating officer with contractor LS Black Constructors, each dig in for a shovel full of dirt April 15, 2021, during a special ground-breaking ceremony in the 1600 block at Fort McCoy, Wis. The ceremony recognized the construction of a second transient training barracks beginning on post. The second barracks $18.8 million barracks project was awarded to L.S. Black Constructors, which is the contractor building the first barracks building, according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Resident Office at Fort McCoy. The new contract was awarded Sept. 29, 2020, and the notice to proceed was issued Oct. 28, 2020. The contract duration is scheduled for completion in 780 calendar days. Currently contract completion is scheduled for December 2022. The barracks is different than the traditional barracks located throughout the installation. This new building will be four stories and able to house 400 people in approximately 60,000 square feet. The building will be built with the latest in construction materials and include state-of-the-art physical security and energy-saving measures. The project also is part of the Fort McCoy master plan that looks at continuously upgrading the installation’s infrastructure to be prepared for the future. The Army Corps of Engineers is managing the project.