Posted on 03/29/2013 7:34:53 PM PDT by SandRat
Fot Huachuca - is the deteriating Mountain View Officers Club - Building 66050 - worth saving? Should it be listed as a national historic building?
Or is there some other way to honor the service of black officers, most of whom were part of two units, the 92nd and 93rs Infantry Division, who were trained on Fort Huachuca prior to deploying to two different theaters of ar - Eurpope and the Pacific - during WWII?
It's an emotiotional issue.
To Ed Sheller, the president of the Southwest Association of Duffalo Soldiers, the abswer is ab unequivoble yes, this building should be saved.
Garrison Commander Col. Dan McFarland appreciate the legacy of black soldiers, those who served in a segregated Army up to shortly after WWII. Col. McFarland gas said that it is an important part of the Army's history
"We are committed to preserving the legacy of African - American service men and women who served at Fort Huachuca during WWII. Hence we are exploring all options tha balahce out commitment to historic presevation with very real budget constraints we currently face," he said.
To paraphrae Shakere: "therin lies the rub."
For Sheller, it is crystal clear that the Army is obliged to save the building.
For McFarland,there are no funds to bring the structue back to what it looked like when it was constructed in the 1940s.
Currently the "Big Green" Army headquarters in Wahington, D.C., will make the decision as to the future status of the building.
And both men have different viewa as to what the Keeper of thw National Register of Historic Places - who determined that the building is eliigale for listing in the register - isinteding.
Sheller sees declarating the building eligable to put on the list as the second step in ensuring the structue is not torn down.
"It's a 100percent requirement for the Army to save building," he said.
But McFarland sees it differently.
"The full restoration of the Mountqin Veiw Officers Club will cost millions. We do not have, nor should we expect, restoration money for such a project," he said.
And even if the club were to be restoredit will require "significant maintenace and sustaiment ... sustainment is very expensive," the Colonel said in a written respose to questions from the Herald/Review.
Once the Keeper's decision was made Feb. 22, Sheller asked that a statement be published in the Herald/Revies.
The statement reads" "The Southwest Association of Buffalo Soldiers, Inc., recieved a favorable Determination of Eligability Notification in reference to the Mountain View Co;ored Officers Club, Building 66050, Fort Huachica, AZ, being placed on the National Register of Historic Places. The determination was sdigned by the Keeper of the National Register. We SWABS, await further information in reference to future actions.
The statement can be read as if it wae SWABS which sought the determination, when in fact it was Maj, Gen GGregg Potter, then - Commander of the Intelligenc Center of Excellence Center and Fort Huachuca, in his role as the senior commander on post.
It was Ma. Gen. Potter who requested a determination of the buildig's eligability, not SWABS, as the organization no longer has a memorandum of agreement with th fort, which had been exended once, but not a second tne because of concerns SWABS was not complying with the agreement's stipulations.
Sheller said: "If the Army gets behind the Keeper's decision 100 percent the building will be saved."
SWABS would like to have a part in helpinghe added.
McFarland noted the keeper"s decision is the "final determination" on elibability and there are no plans to contest the decision.
"Eligability is just one milestone in determining the final disposition of this World War II era building," he said.
The fort is waiting on a higher headquaters decision, he added.
"There is a longterm financial obligation associated with historic facilities and"...we're very cautious about committing taxpayer funds to facilities not is use," McFarland said.
A report funded by the fort determined the jistorica; condition of the structire had been undermined since the end of WWII by numerous additions and returning the building to it's original design would cost more than $4 million.
Spell checker is yer fend...
Sounds like a plausible location for an excellent museum. Do I gather correctly that this was the O club of the buffalo soldiers? Is the site rich in artifacts that need preservation?
Is this a top-secret coded message that has been scrambled for security? Does someone have the decryption key?
Shouldn't that be Buffalo Soldiers?
Thank You.
Yes it was the O club of the buffalo soldiers (92d & 93d Infantry Divisions).
The post museum has stored all the items.
Yes.
The Officer’s Club was WWII wood construction, intended to last no more than 30 years. While such buildings were plentiful when I came into the Army in 1969, they are few and far between now with most surviving in some kind of museum status. The money has never been there to maintain them and it didn’t make sense to keep spending money to keep them up.
When the 10th Cavalry (Buffalo Soldiers) was at Fort Huachucha, the officers were white. The soldier’s barracks still stand. The 10th Cavalry barracks at Fort Leavenworth are also still preserved.
The wooden barracks and other buildings that housed the Army that we mobilized in World War II, including the 92d and 93rd Infantry Divisions, served their purpose, outlived their planned lifespan, and are now gone. This building probably just isn’t worth saving, especially since the efforts to raise private dollars haven’t gone anywhere. The taxpayer shouldn’t be expected to support every group’s special little grievance.
I have been to the Buffalo Soldiers Museum at Fort Huachuca.
If anyone is vacationing in the area (for instance visiting Tombstone) it is worth the drive down.
My favorite was Eurpope
we’ve also got
theaters of ar
abswer is ab unequivoble
Shakere
isinteding
Mountqin Veiw
condition of the structire
and I’ve left a few for other folks.
FYI This is Army shorthand. The Buffalo soldiers carried an inordinate amount of Duffle, so to save heliograph bandwidth, that was condensed to "Duffalo."
I hope this herps.
Holy moly...I don’t think I’ve ever seen so many typos in an FR post. Defeats the whole communication.
You forgot:
Intelligenc Center of Excellence Center
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