FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 13, 2005
NORTON SAYS A CITY WITHOUT A STATE CAN'T ABSORB MILITARY CLOSURES WITHOUT COMPENSATION
**BRAC Public Hearing--Thursday, July 7, 8:30 - 10:30 AM, location TBA. Call 202-225-8050 to testify.
Washington, DC—Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) today sharply protested the closing of Walter Reed Army Medical Center on upper Georgia Avenue, NWand the downsizing of four other military components in the District, resulting in a loss of almost 6,500 jobs. “If allowed to stand, these losses would take a big, unprecedented bite out of the city’s economy with no ready way to achieve replacements. A city without a state cannot simply absorb the loss of military, civilian and contractor jobs and the significant additional output to our economy. Today when the District suffers a dangerous structural deficit, these incomprehensible losses are completely unacceptable. Step one is to turn this proposal back. If that fails, we must insist on appropriate compensation. I have spoken with Mayor Tony Williams and we will be meeting shortly to discuss strategy and then with top Pentagon officials,” Norton said.
Norton said it would be particularly objectionable to leave a hole in the midst of one of D.C.’s upscale residential neighborhoods by shuttering Walter Reed Medical Center, proposed to move to the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda. The hospital is the flagship Army medical facility, has been a part of this community since 1909, and treats 16,000 patients a year, including injured soldiers, veterans, members of Congress and presidents. Besides the loss of 5,630 jobs from Walter Reed, there would be a net loss of 399 at Bolling Air Force Base, 363 from the Naval District Washington, including the Navy Yard in Southeast; 12 at Potomac Annex at 23rd and E Street, NW and 92 jobs on leased space. “It is not over until it’s over,” Norton said, “and this fight has just begun.”
and the downsizing of four other military components in the District, resulting in a loss of almost 6,500 jobs. “If allowed to stand, these losses would take a big, unprecedented bite out of the city’s economy with no ready way to achieve replacements. A city without a state cannot simply absorb the loss of military, civilian and contractor jobs and the significant additional output to our economy. Today when the District suffers a dangerous structural deficit, these incomprehensible losses are completely unacceptable. Step one is to turn this proposal back. If that fails, we must insist on appropriate compensation. I have spoken with Mayor Tony Williams and we will be meeting shortly to discuss strategy and then with top Pentagon officials,” Norton said. Norton said it would be particularly objectionable to leave a hole in the midst of one of D.C.’s upscale residential neighborhoods by shuttering Walter Reed Medical Center, proposed to move to the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda. The hospital is the flagship Army medical facility, has been a part of this community since 1909, and treats 16,000 patients a year, including injured soldiers, veterans, members of Congress and presidents. Besides the loss of 5,630 jobs from Walter Reed, there would be a net loss of 399 at Bolling Air Force Base, 363 from the Naval District Washington, including the Navy Yard in Southeast; 12 at Potomac Annex at 23 and E Street, NW and 92 jobs on leased space. “It is not over until it’s over,” Norton said, “and this fight has just begun.” and the downsizing of four other military components in the District, resulting in a loss of almost 6,500 jobs. “If allowed to stand, these losses would take a big, unprecedented bite out of the city’s economy with no ready way to achieve replacements. A city without a state cannot simply absorb the loss of military, civilian and contractor jobs and the significant additional output to our economy. Today when the District suffers a dangerous structural deficit, these incomprehensible losses are completely unacceptable. Step one is to turn this proposal back. If that fails, we must insist on appropriate compensation. I have spoken with Mayor Tony Williams and we will be meeting shortly to discuss strategy and then with top Pentagon officials,” Norton said. Norton said it would be particularly objectionable to leave a hole in the midst of one of D.C.’s upscale residential neighborhoods by shuttering Walter Reed Medical Center, proposed to move to the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda. The hospital is the flagship Army medical facility, has been a part of this community since 1909, and treats 16,000 patients a year, including injured soldiers, veterans, members of Congress and presidents. Besides the loss of 5,630 jobs from Walter Reed, there would be a net loss of 399 at Bolling Air Force Base, 363 from the Naval District Washington, including the Navy Yard in Southeast; 12 at Potomac Annex at 23 and E Street, NW and 92 jobs on leased space. “It is not over until it’s over,” Norton said, “and this fight has just begun.”
