Photo By Christine Paul | Ken Wenger, Milford Lake park manager, and April Coleman, real property accountability...... read more read more
April Coleman is no stranger to change. Growing up in a military family, Coleman was accustomed to changing environments. As a former Airman and military spouse, she’s continued to live a life full of change.
“I grew up a military brat,” said Coleman. “[I’ve lived in] Puerto Rico, Iran, Germany, Alaska, Florida, Oklahoma and Missouri.”
But constant change brings opportunities to experience new places and try new things. Coleman embraced the unique aspects of military life and has held varying positions over the years, from an Air Force air traffic controller, veterinary technician, pharmacy technician, real estate agent to teacher.
Now, as the Kansas City District’s real property accountability officer in the district’s Real Estate Division, Coleman is responsible for inventorying all real property. This includes buildings and other structures like playgrounds, picnic shelters and parking lots, which are permanently attached to the land owned by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
One portion of Coleman’s job is inspecting all real property at each of the district’s 18 lake projects and other outlying project offices, which are spread across Kansas, Missouri, Iowa and Nebraska. The project offices are on a three-year inspection cycle, with spring and summer being the busiest times of year for Coleman to schedule her inspections.
“I make sure our acquisition documents are correct … and reflect [USACE’s] interest in what we own,” she said. “The inspection is just one small part of the job. I have to physically get my eyes on every single thing we own and get a picture of it.”
On an inspection day, Coleman prefers to start early, as they can last all day and depending on the size of the project, can take one to three days to complete. She will coordinate with project staff, either a park ranger or other staff member who is familiar with the project, and together they go to every piece of real property, take a photo and ensure it matches her inventory documents.
“[Inspection days] are long, normally 10-to-12-hour days, so we will start as early as the sun is up and take pictures of everything. We just go down the list and drive from place to place. You definitely get your steps in,” she laughs.
Speaking to Coleman, one of the first things you notice is her positive attitude and energy; her smile is infectious. Even though inspection days are long, often in hot, humid weather, and require walking in sometimes precarious locations (she has previously encountered rattlesnakes, wild turkeys, bobcats, eagles, ducks, dogs, ticks and swarms of butterflies while on inspections), they are Coleman’s favorite part of the job. For Coleman, the day is what you make of it.
“[My favorite part of the job is] being out of the office at the projects. The people make it fun,” she said. “You’re out there all day so we just make it fun.”
Ever the diplomat, Coleman doesn’t have a favorite project office; she enjoys visiting them all. What matters most to her are the people and relationships she has built since she started as the district’s real property accountability officer in August 2016.
“I don’t have a certain lake that I like better than the others,” said Coleman. “I love talking to the people at the projects that have been around for years, learning about their stories and learning about the history of each project.”
Internally, Coleman relies on other real property accountability officers in USACE since she is a team of one at the Kansas City District. Over the years, she has built a network of people she can call on when she has a question or needs help. Coleman attributes her satisfaction with the job to the people and relationships she has built.
“I help a lot of the other districts’ real property accountability officers … because there’s not many [in USACE],” said Coleman. “Building those relationships [is important] because each district seems to have their own way of doing things because the missions are different. So, that little network of people makes it fun.”
| Date Taken: | 07.22.2024 |
| Date Posted: | 07.22.2024 10:24 |
| Story ID: | 476715 |
| Location: | JUNCTION CITY , KANSAS, US |
| Web Views: | 21 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Real property, real people: District real property accountability officer on making the most of her job, by Christine Paul, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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