Kunsan Airmen begin dormitory moves

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Alice Moore
  • 8th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
KUNSAN AIR BASE, South Korea --  After being under construction for more than two years, the first of three new "Dorms-4-Airmen," dormitories was officially unveiled during a ribbon cutting ceremony here Sept. 27. 

The new dorm will house nearly 280 Airmen who are expected to begin moving out of their current dorm into their new home during the next couple of weeks. 

"We will have every E-1 through E-4 Airman and Soldier stationed here to be in a new dormitory once all four of our new dorm projects are complete," said Col. CQ "Wolf" Brown, 8th Fighter Wing commander. "Leadership has been working very hard to ensure our Airmen have a better quality of life. With the first of the new dorms complete, we are now on our way to providing world-class facilities for Wolf Pack members to call home during their tour here." 

When it came time to decide who would move into the new facility, leadership had to consider some factors. 

"It wasn't an easy decision. Many factors had to be considered," said Master Sgt. Brooke Cushing, 8th Civil Engineer Squadron housing flight superintendent. "Our two biggest priorities were maintaining unit integrity and getting our Airmen out of some of worst dorm conditions." 

The "Dorms-4-Airmen" are designed into four-room modules, providing all four occupants a private room, along with their own private bathroom. The module occupants share a kitchen and common living room. The unit is also equipped with a washer and dryer. 

Along with the new dorm now complete, the base also has other quality of life initiatives in the works. Airmen can also expect new heating, ventilation and air conditioning upgrades in the older dorms. 

"The HVAC project will completely replace the current HVAC system and portions of the pluming systems in four dorms, extending the facility's life expectancy by eight to 10 years," Sergeant Cushing said. 

The current plan is to upgrade dorms 1401, 1406, 1407 and 1408. The buildings will have the current boilers and chillers in the mechanical rooms replaced. The dorms will also have all hot and chilled water HVAC lines in each dorm room and hallways replaced as well as the fan-coil units in each dorm room. 

However, in order to get the work done, the entire dorm must be vacated for three months. Although there are some disadvantages to this, Sergeant Cushing said there are some pluses to the change and upcoming required moves. 

"In the short term, the people who move during the upgrades will have their own rooms," Sergeant Cushing said. "The new HVAC and plumbing systems will improve the quality of life for the Airmen who will occupy these dorms for years to come." 

Sergeant Cushing said the bottom line is that things are being done to ensure a better quality of life for everyone in the years ahead. 

A complete list of move schedules can be found on the intranet page at https://web.kunsan.af.mil/ from there, individuals can click on the "Kunsan Dormitory Item," tab. 

There are currently two other new dorms under construction. They have an estimated completion date of sometime in 2008 and 2009.