677 form letters sent by concerned citizens for the BRAC Commission Page: 2 of 677
This letter is part of the collection entitled: Defense Base Closure and Realignment Commission and was provided to UNT Digital Library by the UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.
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Name BRAC COMMISSION
Address
Phone# "__,____________-_______
7 July 2005
BRAC Commission
Washington DC.
c/o NIMAC
P.O. Box 231
Niagara Falls, NY 14304-0231
Dear Chairman Principi and BRAC Commissioners:
I am deeply troubled by the Defense Department's recommendation to close the Niagara Falls Air
Force Reserve Base. This recommendation is a terrible mistake and I urge the BRAC Commission
reverse this decision and remove the Niagara Falls Base from the list.
It is hard to understand why the Air Force has decided to take planes, missions, and jobs away
from so many Air Guard and Air Reserve bases and put them on more costly Active Duty bases.
Of all the bases to pick to close, how do you close the base whose unit helped rescue Jessica Lynch
in Iraq because they are the lead night vision C-130 unit in the Reserves? You must also recognize:
* The federal government has invested more than $35 million in Niagara Falls since 1995 in
new facilities.
* Base Operations Support costs have been reduced more than 33% (to include a 25%
reduction in utilities) to make the base one of the most cost-efficient facilities in the Air
Force Reserve Command.
* Closure of the base eliminates the ability to recruit and retain New Yorkers in a region in
which the units have both maintained in excess of 100% manning rates.
* Niagara Falls existing infrastructure can accommodate eight (8) additional C-130H model
aircraft without any military construction.
* Niagara Falls faces no physical encroachment nor air traffic control constraints and has
acreage on the base and adjacent to the installation for expansion.
I urge the Commission in the strongest possible terms to remove Niagara Falls AFB from the
Pentagon's recommended list of base closures and to stop the continuing retreat of the military
from our region of the country.Sincerely,
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677 form letters sent by concerned citizens for the BRAC Commission, letter, July 15, 2005; (https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc17641/m1/2/: accessed April 24, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, UNT Digital Library, https://digital.library.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.