President Signs Bill That Includes $8.6 Million For New ‘Armory Of The Future' At Norwich U.

August 18, 1999

(Aug. 18, 1999) -- President Clinton has signed into law an annual military construction budget, including $8,652,000 sponsored by Sen. Patrick Leahy and Sen. Jim Jeffords, for construction of a modern new "armory of the future" at Norwich University in Northfield, for use by the Vermont Army National Guard. The senators had included the project in the Military Construction Appropriations Bill for federal fiscal year 2000, which the President signed Tuesday.

The funds are for construction of a 94,649 square-foot Vermont Army National Guard multi- purpose training facility to be built at Norwich University in Northfield, on land Norwich will donate for the project. The state is expected to contribute up to $200,000 for special design features.

The armory -- the top construction priority of Vermont Adjutant General Martha Rainville -- would implement a new concept for Army national guard training facilities, allowing low-cost computer simulations and video-teleconferencing capabilities for soldiers, combat vehicle crews and battle staffs. It also will house the headquarters and the headquarters company of the 86th Armor Brigade and several associated units, including an Information Warfare unit. The facility's design and equipment would enhance soldier training while reducing training costs, serving as a model for the rest of the nation.

Jeffords said: "This new armory will be a national model and put the Vermont Army National Guard at the cutting edge of new training technology. The facility will give our guard the tools they need to continue their outstanding service into the next millennium. I salute General Rainville and all the members of the guard for their efforts to protect citizens of our state and our entire nation."

Leahy, a senior member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, which wrote the bill, said: "This is a major advance for Vermont's Army National Guard. It is fitting that our state, known for its high technology, will build this next-generation armory. General Rainville wants to keep our top-rated guard at the forefront in readiness and in skills, and this facility will help keep our guard prepared."

"This is a project that began as an informal discussion between the Vermont Army Guard and Norwich University, and has now become a model for future military construction projects in the country," said Rainville. "Through the efforts of Senators Leahy and Jeffords, this partnership between the Guard and Norwich University will help to keep the Vermont National Guard on the cutting edge of technology into the 21st Century."

"This project further cements a long and great relationship between Norwich University and the Vermont National Guard," said Norwich University President Richard W. Schneider. "With about a hundred Norwich students active as Guardsmen and women, this facility increases our commitment as a university to the importance of national service."

The senators pointed out that Vermont National Guard personnel, who regularly outshine their counterparts from other states in their tank gunnery achievements, today cannot fire main gun ammunition in Vermont during their training or tactically deploy more than two platoons for maneuver training. Instead they use platoon gunnery simulators at Ft. Knox, Kentucky, nearly 1,000 miles away. They said that bringing this technology closer to home will allow more units to train more frequently so they can reach higher levels of readiness, and at less cost.