FORT LEONARD WOOD, Mo. — Changes to post access, an upcoming housing inspection and holiday hours of operation for services on post were just a few of the topics discussed Wednesday evening, when Maneuver Support Center of Excellence and Fort Leonard Wood senior leaders hosted a town hall at Baker Theater for installation residents.
After thanking everyone for attending, Maj. Gen. Christopher Beck, MSCoE and Fort Leonard Wood commanding general, said the goal is to “do this every six months.”
“There is a lot of incredible stuff happening on this post every day — we want to tell you about the progress we are making and give you the opportunity to ask questions,” Beck said.
Coming hours of operation changes at two of Fort Leonard Wood’s access control points were explained by Beck, who noted the West Gate — also known as Waggener Gate — which is currently open 24/7, will change to 5 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily, and the South Gate, also currently open 24/7, will be open 4 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily. Beck said the changes are due to take effect Feb. 1.
“We didn’t make this decision lightly,” Beck said. “I understand that we are affecting people. If we get a call from a first responder while the gates are closed that says they have got to get in that gate to (General Leonard Wood Army Community Hospital), we will have that gate open for them within 20 minutes of that call. I am committed to that.”
Beck said the decision to close the two gates during the night came down to two missions Fort Leonard Wood performs.
“No. 1 is to train. We train Soldiers, officers and noncommissioned officers. No. 2, we drive change for the Army. We are responsible to help develop and shape the Army of 2030, and the Army of 2040,” Beck said. “We have had to look at borrowed military manpower throughout the installation. We are using our Soldiers for functions they weren’t originally designed to be used for.”
Beck explained many of the Soldiers serving as gate guards serve other roles here as well.
“You may not realize that staff sergeant scanning your card may be a drill sergeant, or that specialist is a 92Y Supply Specialist that is the only person doing that function in their entire company,” Beck said. “We need those Soldiers developing the next generation of Soldiers, period.”
He said he plans to reevaluate the decision in the next few months.
Beck said community members can use the Interactive Customer Evolution system, also known as ICE, to bring up any concerns — anonymously or with contact information if a direct response is requested.
Beck said another coming gate access update is what’s called a trusted traveler program.
“If you are a common access card holder, when you pull up with multiple people in your vehicle, you can vouch for them. The guard will scan your ID and you can go through,” Beck said.
Don Rose, Directorate of Emergency Services deputy director here, said officials are still working on when the program will be implemented, but people coming on the post might see the system being tested in the near future.
Beck said there are no hours of operation changes planned for the Main Gate, also known as the Sverdrup Gate or North Gate, or to the East Gate. The Main Gate is open 24/7; the East Gate is open from 5 to 8:30 a.m. and 2 to 6 p.m. weekdays.
When Megan O’Donoghue, Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation director, took the stage, she started by explaining home-based businesses and the application process.
Home-based businesses provide services, such as hairstyling, baking, meal preparation, pet grooming, pet sitting, massage therapy, multi-level sales and retail sales, O’Donoghue said.
“You have to register on the installation,” she added. “There is no cost to this and it is easy to do.”
O’Donoghue said to get the ball rolling, a home-based business application needs to be filled out with FMWR. A home-based business addendum will need to be added to the home lease with Fort Leonard Wood’s on-post family housing partner, Balfour Beatty Communities. The final application and supporting documents, licenses or certifications should be turned in to the FMWR office in Bldg. 470, room 1104.
“Make sure you research what your business is to make sure you are following federal, state and local law.” O’Donoghue advised, noting on-post, in-home child care is a separate registration process through the Family Child Care program in Bldg. 470, room 1125.
O’Donoghue highlighted some of the upcoming FMWR happenings, including a Candy Cane Toss event, scheduled to start at 2 p.m. Wednesday, when Fort Leonard Wood firefighters will escort Santa through the on-post housing areas to deliver sweets and holiday cheer.
“When you hear the sirens, come outside and wave to Santa,” O’Donoghue said.
A complete calendar of upcoming events can be found on the FMWR website.
O’Donoghue said FMWR facilities will have adjusted hours and scheduled closures during the holidays. A complete list can be found here.
Carl Norman, Fort Leonard Wood Blood Donor Center recruiter, said the Army needs more blood donors during the holidays.
He said a blood drive is scheduled from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Monday in GLWACH’s Primary Care conference room.
“The Fort Leonard Wood Blood Donor Center supports hospitals across the Department of Defense,” Norman said. “A large turnout for this drive will help the Armed Services Blood Program through the last two weeks of December, the most difficult time of year for blood collection.”
He said the center is going to be open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sundays through Wednesdays during the holidays, except for Christmas Day and New Year’s Day. The donation center is in Bldg. 759, on the corner of Buckeye Avenue and 11th Street, across from Cunningham Gym.
Ron Hestness, Balfour Beatty Communities’ facility director, took a turn on the microphone to address winter weather and leaving homes empty during vacations.
“Last year, a lot of people left and came back to a big mess. When they left, it was in the 50s, but there was a deep freeze here and a lot of pipes were burst,” Hestness said. “We offer a caretaker program for residents going on vacation. Let us know if you plan to be away on leave.”
Winter care tips Hestness offered included cleaning windowsills to prevent mold, dusting heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems and changing the filter routinely, disconnecting garden hoses from outdoor spigots and setting thermostats to auto, not on.
“We drove through the communities today, and there are still a lot of garden hoses hooked up. They need to be disconnected before it freezes, splits the pipes and floods your home,” Hestness said. “Always know where your water shutoff is, just in case. If you are new to your home, your leasing agent can show you where it is.”
Col. Anthony Pollio, U.S. Army Garrison Fort Leonard Wood commander, addressed a mandatory housing inspection scheduled for early next year.
“Congress has mandated that all services must do a 100% inspection of every family home on every installation,” Pollio said. “A team of about 40 inspectors from an independent company will be here in February.”
He said the government housing office will work with post residents to schedule appointments to be available for the inspection.
“An operation order will be published with more details,” Pollio said.
With the new year comes tax season, and MSCoE and Fort Leonard Wood Command Sgt. Maj. Jorge Arzabala announced changes to the tax center operations on post for 2024. Read more about those changes here.
Before wrapping up the town hall, Beck went over some of Fort Leonard Wood’s numerous achievements throughout 2023.
“It is pretty impressive; we were named the Best Garrison in the Army for 2023,” Beck said.
He said Fort Leonard Wood also has had the highest donation rate for the Army Emergency Relief fundraising campaign three years in a row.
“It is Soldiers giving to Soldiers. We out-donated the rest of the Army, regardless of installation size, by almost double,” Beck said. “You should be proud of that. It is a big deal.”
Beck also discussed the Arrive Strong program, saying it has been, “completely revamped.”
“On Thursdays, from 11 a.m. to noon, there is basically a community fair at the USO. It is to welcome new families,” Beck said. “I don’t care if you have been here for a year, bring your spouse. We want you to understand what great opportunities Fort Leonard Wood has for you.”
Beck said organizations and agencies from across post, such as the Truman Army Education and Personnel Testing Center, FMWR and spouse resource center, are there providing information.
When it was Arzabala’s turn to mention accomplishments, he said out of the 10 U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command centers of excellence, only two of them offer certification for the Expert Soldier Badge and Expert Infantry Badge — Fort Leonard Wood being one of them.
“We ran the third iteration this year. Our vision is to ensure that Soldiers depart here better than they arrived,” Arzabala said.
Another achievement Arzabala mentioned was the Standards Book Published last month. Read more about the updates here.
“I got a working group together and they went through the book page by page. We looked at how we could align Army regulations within our operating realm,” Arzabala said.
Beck also had an update on the new hospital under construction, saying the first patient will be seen in 2025.
“I don’t know if you have ever been on an installation that went from an old to a new hospital. It is game changing and I am really excited about it,” he said.
Beck said the point of listing Fort Leonard Wood’s achievements was to show, “every day, the team is trying to make the installation better than it was yesterday.”
During the town hall, several community members asked questions.
One of the questions was if the parks on post could be upgraded to be more accessible to children who have autism or developmental disabilities, and if sunshades could be added for the summer months.
“We will look into park accessibility. We have asked the BBC team about sunshades before; we will get with them to see what options they have come up with,” Pollio answered.
Another attendee mentioned trees and foliage covering road signs. Pollio advised listing the affected signs in an ICE comment to the Directorate of Public Works.
Beck closed the town hall with a thank you for the feedback.
“I want to finish where we started. Thank you for the feedback. Thank you for coming out tonight. If you think of anything, please send us feedback on ICE. Tell us who you are, your thoughts and give me a way to contact you,” he said.
