Photo By Stephen Baack | Senior leaders with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Department of Veterans...... read more read more
Senior leaders with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Department of Veterans Affairs met Oct. 9 at the Jennifer Moreno DVA Medical Center campus in San Diego to review progress on VA projects throughout USACE.
Gathering at the USACE Los Angeles District’s San Diego Resident Office, the group included leaders with the LA District and the VA’s Office of Construction and Facilities Management, currently managing the construction of the San Diego VA Healthcare System’s Spinal Cord Injury/Community Living Center, which the group toured.
“Meetings like this are critical for leadership to get us all on the same page,” said Michael Parrish, chief acquisition officer and principal executive director for the Office of Acquisition, Logistics and Construction with the Department of Veterans Affairs, adding that, though the VA and USACE may be separate agencies, “We are one team.”
Brig. Gen. Kirk Gibbs, deputy commanding general for Military and International Operations at USACE, emphasized to the group that building strong relationships at every level is an indispensable part of a team’s ability to work together smoothly and effectively, particularly when challenges arise.
“The key to delivering projects efficiently, effectively, on time and within budget is often the strength of the relationship among USACE, the stakeholders and the other partners working on that project together,” he said.
Gibbs said this applies at every level.
“People have to know each other,” Gibbs added. “They need to find some common ground where they can connect, even on a personal level. Once they do that, they start caring about each other and then the trust begins to develop. Partners will then welcome the opportunity to pick up the phone and communicate more comfortably because they trust each other, and they are more likely to want to work together to deliver and get results.”
The nearly complete Spinal Cord Injury/Community Living Center, which is scheduled to open its doors to veterans in 2025, will provide care to veterans and active-duty personnel with spinal cord injuries and disorders, who live in the San Diego and Imperial counties in California, and in Arizona and southern Nevada.
The 197,000-square-foot, four-story standalone structure, which is replacing the current building, will be the newest of more than 20 spinal cord injury and disorder facilities at VA centers throughout the U.S.
| Date Taken: | 10.23.2024 |
| Date Posted: | 10.23.2024 13:54 |
| Story ID: | 483766 |
| Location: | SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA, US |
| Web Views: | 55 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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