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Author: Louis R. Velasco
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  • February

    The human switchboard: how USACE liaisons manage information during flood fight events

    Two weeks of relentless atmospheric rivers inundated western Washington in December 2025. Rivers swelled to historic levels, threatened homes, industrial areas and stressed communities in floodplains. When the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Seattle District, ramped up its emergency operations, a small, specialized group of individuals stepped into one of the most critical and least understood roles in disaster response: the liaison.
  • January

    Rooted in strength: JBLM barracks tap into Pacific Northwest’s timber legacy for new military construction era

    U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Seattle District, JBLM Army Garrison, and 1st Special Forces Group leadership joined together to celebrate the Department of War's largest-to-date construction project using mass timber structural materials during a groundbreaking ceremony, Dec. 12, 2025. The pilot program will evaluate the use of mass timber as the primary construction material in military construction projects and its effect on environmental sustainability, infrastructure resilience, cost-effectiveness, and construction timeliness of similar projects.
  • June

    ‘You either love or hate Pullman’: USACE project engineer, Washington State University alumna, reflects on vital project for alma mater

    For Katlyn Struxness, a project engineer with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Seattle District, Pullman, Washington, isn’t just a place—it’s where innovation, community and agriculture come together in unexpected ways. Her role in the USDA Agricultural Research Service (ARS) Plant Sciences Building project on Washington State University has deepened her connection to the Palouse region, a place where she can be part of something larger than a job title.
  • May

    Breaking ground: New flight base ops facility to supercharge Fairchild AFB's global reach

    Leadership and representatives across the 92nd Air Refueling Wing, 92nd Operations Group, 141st Air Refueling Wing, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Garco Construction and more, gathered at the future site of Fairchild's new Consolidated Flight Base Operations Facility on May 9 to celebrate its groundbreaking milestone. The $48 million facility will serve as a central hub for more than a dozen Active, Guard and Reserve organizations to support the installation’s aerial refueling mission and operational readiness for years to come.
  • November

    Corps of Engineers, JBLM, celebrate new state-of-the-art Information Systems Facility

    The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers joined Joint Base Lewis-McChord (JBLM) leaders on Nov. 6 to celebrate the ribbon cutting ceremony for the installation's state-of-the-art Information Systems Facility. The significant upgrade supports the Network Enterprise Center's 24/7 network defense and information technology/management mission.
  • August

    Innovating for the future: USACE uses sustainable building materials for JBLM barracks, enhances Army’s climate resiliency goals

    The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Joint Base Lewis-McChord (JBLM), U.S. Army I Corps, and Assistant Secretary of the Army leadership joined Washington State congressional representatives for an Aug. 7 groundbreaking ceremony on a first-of-its-kind barracks pilot program using sustainable building materials meant to reduce its carbon footprint. Once complete, the new barracks will improve the quality of life for 168 Soldiers at JBLM, Washington.