Improvements continue on Sembach

Throughout the remainder of this fiscal year, Sembach Kaserne will become the new workplace for hundreds of Soldiers and civilians, including the headquarters of the Installation Management Command-Europe, the U.S. Army Europe Band and the 30th Medical Command, among others.

And good things await them, said Steven Pelletier, U.S. Army Garrison Kaiserslautern’s director of Family, Morale, Welfare and Recreation.

“We’re doing a $6 million renovation to the (former Air Force enlisted club),” Pelletier said, adding that a grand opening date will be announced. “The facility at that time will be called the Sembach Community Club.”

It will be more than just a club, though, and will include a Community Bank ATM and a brand new Warrior Zone.

“We will also have a mini one-stop shop, which will follow our model of the one-stop shop on Landstuhl,” Pelletier said.

At the one-stop shop, customers can buy value-added tax forms, enroll in the utilities tax avoidance program, and get tickets for Outdoor Recreation and KMC Onstage events.In addition to the club, other major projects are on track to be completed in the months ahead, including a Sembach Teen Center Annex, slated to open Sept. 1, and a new Java Cafe, scheduled to open one month later.

“So, if you’re looking for a place to stop by, read a newspaper, search the Internet and have a cup of coffee, that will be in Bldg. 109,” Pelletier said.

The effort to expand services to support a growing population grew out of customer feedback, Pelletier said.

“Many of the Sembach things came out of a grassroots thing called the Army Family Action Plan,” he said. “We identified many shortcomings … so we’ve had to make some investments to upgrade those facilities.”

“We continue to renovate facilities, to bring the existing facilities up to standard,” said Paul Lindemer, chief of the engineering division with the garrison’s Directorate of Public Works.

Combined with the Air Force’s 86th Force Support Squadron, the USAG-K MWR offers the KMC 140 facilities and programs, more than anywhere else in Europe, Pelletier said.