By Brandy Cruz
Fort Hood Public Affairs

FORT HOOD, Texas – Lt. Gen. Douglas Gabram, commanding general of Installation Management Command toured housing and barracks here, Nov. 3, and also thanked the workforce for their hard work during the pandemic.

“First off, it’s always a privilege to be back at the Great Place,” Gabram said. “It’s great to see Soldiers, it’s great to hear from Soldiers, it’s great to go through barracks.”

The IMCOM commander, who is in charge of Army installations worldwide, was given a tour of Fort Hood’s housing areas and barracks, to see the improvements being made firsthand. He was also able to speak with Soldiers actually living in newly-renovated barracks to find out their perspective.

Pfc. Amber King, who moved into the recently-renovated 3rd Cavalry Regiment barracks six months ago, said having her own private room and a kitchen was a huge upgrade from her former barracks. The newly-renovated barracks are apartment-style, with a kitchen and two bedrooms. Each bedroom has a twin bed, bedside table with lamp, a desk and chair. There is also a large walk-in closet with the ability to lock it from the outside to keep items more secure.

“It’s much better,” King said. “I like having my own room, instead of just a wall locker to divide the space.”

Gabram said Army senior leaders’ number one priority is to improve barracks worldwide. He added that they are currently working to provide the resources available to fix them.

“The good news is for our Army, our facility investment plan … it’s a 10-year strategy,” he said. “Improvements to barracks and operational infrastructure at Fort Hood are a big part of that strategy.”

During the tour, Gabram was shown the interior of some older homes in McNair Village and Chaffee Village. Chris Albus, project manager for Fort Hood Family Housing, a Lendlease privatized military housing community, told the IMCOM commanding general that they are continuously making improvements to the homes on post.

“Frankly, I can’t say enough about the teamwork between the garrison, the installation, the senior commander, the senior command, the chain-of-command and our housing partner, Lendlease,” the general said following the tour. “We have new plans and renovations in the next five to 10 years that are going to fix a lot of the issues.”

Gabram also took the time to thank some garrison employees who provided significant contributions throughout the year, working tirelessly to provide the best service to the installation throughout the ongoing pandemic.

“You still are here, giving 110% and that means a lot,” the general told the assembled garrison employees before presenting them with his challenge coin.

Gabram encouraged them all to continue doing great things across the installation because, when it comes down to it, this is their home, even if they live in the surrounding communities.
“This is our home and we have to take pride,” he added. “Pride in ownership.”