JOINT BASE LANGLEY-EUSTIS, Va. —
Leadership from the 733rd Mission Support Group and the Center for Initial Military Training hosted a town hall to address the concerns of the Fort Eustis community at Joint Base Langley-Eustis, March 24, 2017.
According to U.S. Army Col. Ralph Clayton III, 733rd MSG commander, while his staff has worked to fulfill the needs of the mission and provide service to customers, processes can always be reevaluated.
“There’s always room for improvement,” said Clayton. “We’re looking for your suggestions and comments, and we will make sure they are heard.”
The town hall was also streamed live on the installation’s Facebook page to enable participation from individuals who were unable to attend.
“This is really about being transparent and being here for you,” said Maj. Gen. Anthony Funkhouser, CIMT commander. “We’re here to make the community better and you guys at the grass roots level have the best ideas.”
During the meeting, community members were able to vocalize their concerns to agencies across the installation about a variety of issues, from the implementation of bus stop coverings, to gaining further knowledge about the base’s concealed weapon policy.
Understanding the impact that both Ft. Eustis and its surrounding communities have on one another was one point that was emphasized throughout the discussion.
“The Joint Land Use Study looks at the impact between local communities, [their] growth and some of the environmental factors,” Clayton said. “The community will benefit by having a little bit better data in terms of the interrelationship between Eustis and the local community.”
To conclude the town hall, Clayton and Funkhouser reiterated the value of having open forums, such as these, to provide a safe atmosphere for community members and Soldiers to make their voice heard, and look forward to hosting another one in the future.
“To have an open dialogue like this allows you to get those burning questions out,” Clayton said. “You get to address some things, and we get to have the experts in one consolidated place, [who] will have some deliverables to take back to work on some of these issues.”
Issues presented during the discussion were noted and those that were unanswered will be posted to the installation’s official Facebook page for further reference.