Ohio National Guard News

 

Ohio National Guard officially opens
Delaware Readiness Center with community partners

Story by Ohio National Guard Public Affairs
Photos by Bill Pierce, Ohio National Guard Public Affairs

Maj. Gen. Mark E. Bartman (center, right), Ohio adjutant general, and U.S. Rep. Pat Tiberi are joined by other community leaders during the official ribbon cutting for the Delaware Readiness Center.

Maj. Gen. Mark E. Bartman (center, right), Ohio adjutant general, and U.S. Rep. Pat Tiberi are joined by other community leaders during the official ribbon cutting for the Delaware Readiness Center April 20, 2015, in Delaware, Ohio. The new facility is connected to the existing Delaware Community Center YMCA, and the combined training and community center will be utilized by Ohio National Guard Soldiers and members of the local community.

Two M119 howitzers of the 1st Battalion, 134th Field Artillery Regiment are displayed in front of the Delaware Readiness Center.

Two M119 howitzers of the 1st Battalion, 134th Field Artillery Regiment are displayed in front of the Delaware Readiness Center.

Maj. Gen. Mark E. Bartman, Ohio adjutant general, talks to reporters following the ribbon cutting ceremony.

Maj. Gen. Mark E. Bartman, Ohio adjutant general, talks to reporters following the ribbon cutting ceremony.


DELAWARE, Ohio (04/20/15) — The Ohio National Guard, in conjunction with the City of Delaware and the Delaware Community Center YMCA, conducted a ribbon cutting ceremony for the new Delaware Readiness Center April 20, 2015.

The readiness center, which is connected to the existing Delaware Community Center YMCA, will replace current facilities that are more than 50 years old. It will provide the necessary administrative, training and storage areas required for its new residents to conduct unit operations and training. The combined Training and Community Center (TACC), like those recently constructed in Bowling Green, Marysville and Woodlawn, Ohio, is part of ongoing Ohio National Guard public-private partnership initiatives that share costs of developing facilities that can benefit the entire community. The cost to build the new facility is $11.4 million; the federal share is more than $8.5 million and the state of Ohio’s share is nearly $2.9 million.

The Delaware Community Center YMCA features multiple pools, gymnasiums, aerobic rooms, a fitness center, climbing wall and indoor running track. The new Ohio Army National Guard readiness center, which covers 64,975 square feet and sits on 17 acres of land, provides additional fitness rooms and another basketball gymnasium with an attached institutional kitchen.

The readiness center will be home to multiple Ohio Army National Guard units: all elements of the Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, 1st Battalion, 134th Field Artillery Regiment, currently located in Columbus, Ohio; and Battery A, 1-134th Field Artillery, currently located in Marion, Ohio.