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| Resource Library > Installation Planning > Community Center Development |
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| Installation Planning/Community Center Development |
Community Centers play an important role in supporting the Air Force mission. They are the commercial retail stores, supermarkets and specialty shops that provide the day-to-day products and services that military members and their families rely on to meet their daily living needs. They are an integral part of the installation fabric, and in many cases are factors as to how military members and their families view and measure their quality of life, and a consideration when it comes to reenlistment and retention. There isn't much the Base Civil Engineer or community planner can do in terms of customer satisfaction regarding the products and services these facilities provide or don't provide. These issues rest solely on the shoulders of the managers who are responsible for operating these facilities and accommodating the patrons. The BCE, and particularly the community planner, do play a major role in planning future facilities. From a planning perspective, it's important to know and understand something about the philosophy, marketing perspectives and concerns of those that fund and operate these retail facilities. Why is it important? Because based on years of experience, those involved with retail facilities have learned what works well regarding location and functional relationships to generate business. The purpose of this article is to make you aware of these issues as well as the site planning considerations that should be addressed in any Community Center action. Let's start from the Services perspective.
The Service Provider's Perspective
Following are some of the factors that are important from the service provider's perspective:
Location: Location, location, location. You've heard those words often repeated when it comes to the real estate market, particularly as it relates to home buying and selling. The same is true for Community Center facilities. For those who plan, program, fund and manage BX, Commissary and other retail facilities; the location of these facilities on the installation is important. Experience has shown that being prominently located on the installation, having easy and convenient user access, and in most cases being collocated with other related retail facilities are factors that promote patronage and thereby sales and profits. At most installations, the existing Community Center area is fairly well defined and for the most part, adequately serves the customer's needs. When existing facilities need to be replaced or new facilities built, the process of finding a suitable site will be based on a number of factors:
- Adequate area to accommodate building, parking and service
- Relatively close to existing retail facilities were collateral patronage can be expected
- Good visual prominence, preferably from a major road
- Short distance from base entry gates, if possible, to accommodate off-base users
Expansion: Expansion is an important consideration in planning community support facilities, particularly BXs and Commissaries. When site planning a new BX or Commissary, talk to the facility manager to find out where future facility additions would likely occur, if they were necessary. The installation's long range development plans should then be reviewed and revised accordingly to ensure these areas are preserved to accommodate any increase in required floor area. Whenever any new facility is being proposed in or adjacent to the existing Community Center, coordinate with facility managers to determine how the development may impact their future plans or existing operations. Ensure their concerns and future plans are addressed throughout the planning and design process.
Circulation and Parking: Vehicle movement and parking are two important components in Community Center planning and development. Easy access, safe internal vehicle flow, and convenient drop off and pick-up lanes all contribute to a well-planned and well-designed Community Center complex. Parking requirements for Community Centers are governed by AFH 32-1084, Facilty Requirements, Table 20-2, but also may be influenced by the sponsoring agency's standards. The layout and orientation of interior lanes and parking rows should promote safe and efficient vehicle and pedestrian movement. Interior lanes should be perpendicular to the front of the facilities; if possible. This avoids walking between cars or crossing over raised islands. The Military Transportation Management Command Traffic Engineering Agency (MTMCTEA) is a source that can provide professional assistance and support in addressing the Community Center's traffic and parking needs. Visit their web site, or e-mail them, for further information on the various services they can provide, and how to employ those services. Service Area: Community Center facilities, such as the BX and commissary, require a fairly large service area to accommodate 18-wheelers to unload their contents. Delivery area pavement, turning radii, loading docks, screening and refuse disposal all need to be addressed and integrated into the project planning and design phases. These ancillary requirements are important components to consider in creating Community Centers that are both functional and aesthetic.
The Community Center Planning Approach
How do you create Community Centers that satisfy the facility managers' goals while meshing with the installation's long range planning objectives? You do it by working as a team and understanding each other's concerns and issues. You do it by communicating, coordinating and sharing information on activities that may affect current Community Center operations as well as future planning initiatives. The key is communication. Partnering on issues of mutual interest ensures Community Center facilities not only function well together, but also integrate themselves in the overall fabric of the installation.
The Process
Community Center development is not a complicated process. It starts with defining the requirement, followed by assessing the alternatives and then choosing a preferred solution. The following steps sequentially take you through the process.
- The customer (AAFES, DeCA, or Services representative) identifies their facility requirement(s) to the BCE as early as possible to allow sufficient time to adequately review and assess various options to satisfy the requirement
- The customer, together with the BCE (usually the community planner) evaluate the alternatives and determine the most appropriate course of action; i.e., facility reuse opportunities, facility upgrade, adding to the existing facility, or constructing a new facility.
- For new facilities, potential sites are collectively evaluated with respect to sufficient land area, land use and functional compatibility, vehicle access and parking, availability of utilities, expansion potential, anti-terrorism/force protection requirements, architectural compatibility standards, and visual prominence. Follow the Environmental Impact Analysis Process (EIAP) to ensure compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).
- Review and concurrence at higher levels of the sponsoring agency funding and building the facility may be required. The same may be true from the Civil Engineering side as well. Make sure everybody is on board.
- When a preferred site is finally agreed upon, the proposed project is presented to the installation's Facility Board for approval and then added to the Map M-3, Long Range Development Plan.
Plan Integrity
Once the proposed project has been added to the Long Range Development Plan, you need to ensure that future development sustains the integrity and continuity of the Community Center. To do that, consider preparing a Community Center Area Development Plan that illustrates in detail, both existing and planned facilities, customer parking, service/delivery areas, drop off and pick-up lanes, as well as landscaping and site features for the total Community Center complex. This will give you a perspective and a picture of how the Community Center may eventually evolve at some point in the future. Each agency with an interest in the Community Center should actively participate in the Area Development Plan process and sign on to ensure its success. Commitment on everyone's part is important if the plan is to come to fruition.
Conclusion
To create a Community Center that meets the objectives of the various players involved requires a vision and communication. Knowing what you want and working together to get there is the key. When you make planning a participatory process, you increase your chances for success.
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