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Fort Irwin plans new hospital
New facility scheduled to be completed in 2015
FORT IRWIN • Fort Irwin has plans to build a $400 million hospital on post that is expected to break ground this summer.
The new facility will replace the post’s current 40-year-old hospital, said Col. Michael Kiefer, Fort Irwin’s Medical Department Activity commander.
Construction on the new facility should begin in June and wrap up the summer of 2015, Kiefer said.
The post will be working with contractors who said they strive to hire workers mostly from Barstow and the High Desert, bringing about 600 living-wage jobs, according to Barstow Chamber of Commerce former president Carol Randall.
The new hospital will have the same capacity and offer similar services as the former facility, except it will consolidate all the services and administration offices into one building. The new hospital will also feature updated design and adhere to California seismic regulations.
Kiefer said a team of engineers have been developing its design for about a year and a half, after the Department of Defense approved the request for proposal.
Kiefer said the hospital is small compared to other Army hospitals. He said a new hospital is necessary because the base is so far from the nearest hospital in Barstow and also because of the dangerous nature of the post’s training with tanks rolling, planes flying, and bombs dropping, Kiefer said.
“It’s a small hospital, but we’re capable,” Kiefer said. “It’s a significant improvement and upgrade for the community.”
The hospital was build with sustainability in mind, featuring solar energy, recycled materials, tight water usage, and rooms designed to take advantage of natural sunlight, Kiefer said. He said the hospital will likely be the first Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certified platinum hospital in the DOD. LEED is a certification that measures how environmentally responsible a building is.
Though the post did not release an architectural rendering of the facility, Kiefer said designers used large windows and open spaces that “takes advantage of the beauty of the desert.”
“When you look, it’s just breathtaking,” Kiefer said. “All of the equipmemt, all the actual design of the building, were designed with patient in mind.”
Contact the writer:
(760) 256-4123 or klucia@desertdispatch.com
