VERMILION PARISH, KATC - A new National Guard Readiness Center is coming to Abbeville within the next couple of years. The bomb and bulletproof building will allow the National Guard to keep a local presence in the community and bring new cutting-edge technology to Vermilion Parish.
The facility will be used to support federal and state missions. Located on city property near the Chris Crusta Airport in Abbeville, the center will include a large kitchen, auditorium, assembly hall, classrooms, physical fitness room, administrative space, storage and vault, lockers and showers, lactation room and a recruiting office. The project lease was signed back in February 2023.
A Louisiana National Guard spokesperson tells KATC they thank the legislators and the Department of Administration for making this project possible.
“Building this readiness center demonstrates the commitment from Abbeville since 1942. This is just a continuation of the great support here from the city of Abbeville and the surrounding communities for our citizen soldiers, who are not just soldiers, but citizens of the supporting areas and great state,” US Army Colonel James Slaven said.
KATC took a look at the history of this center in Abbeville and how much it will cost by the numbers.
BY THE NUMBERS:
Abbeville and the Louisiana National Guard have had a longstanding relationship that dates back decades - approximately 75 years.
On March 7, 1949, Abbeville’s mayor and city council signed the first lease of the original National Guard center in Abbeville.
The discussion of this new readiness center project started 9 years ago.
The current construction cost estimate is $22 million, with a federal share of $16.5 million and a state share of $5.5 million. However, that number could increase to $30 million (federal share $22.5 million / state share $7.5 million).
Additional costs include $1.5 million in design and $1.5 million in furniture and equipment.
According to the National Guard, 144 soldiers from 2/156th Infantry Battalion and Detachment 1, Golf Company will reside in the building.
The resilient design is expected to withstand 150 miles per hour winds and a category 5 hurricane.
The 48,279 square foot building is slated to break ground in June 2027 with an estimated 2-year construction plan.
