Chinhae Naval Base sees construction boom

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Chinhae Naval Base sees construction boom
By Teri Weaver, Stars and Stripes
Pacific edition, Friday, February 6, 2009

CHINHAE NAVAL BASE, South Korea — The U.S. military’s only naval base in South Korea — the one with no pier, about 100 sailors, and a four-lane bowling alley — is in the midst of a construction boom.

Part of the plans involve upgrading aging infrastructure and buildings, including the replacement of a commissary that opened in 1958.

But part of the investment is turning Chinhae Naval Base into a technological and physical hub for the military, according to Navy officials overseeing the projects.

Next week, the Navy will move into its new headquarters on the base, a building so equipped with technology and security that it could be used as an operations headquarters for U.S. Forces Korea or the Navy’s 7th Fleet, officials said.

"I don’t think there’s any other building on the (peninsula) that is this advanced," said Mike Papale, an assistant director of information technology for Commander Naval Forces Korea who oversaw the $7 million project.


Rest of article at: http://www.stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=60506