William Helms: “The map shows that neither of these small parcels of land is contiguous to the primary training areas at Fort…”

“The map shows that neither of these small parcels of land is contiguous to the primary training areas at Fort Bragg--known as the Northern Training Area and Overhills property; they are also noncontiguous to each other. These properties are open farmland, surrounded by private property, without the foliage and terrain that Army units stationed at Fort Bragg require for operational training. Mr. President, local leaders and Army officials had planned for the Army to provide a long-term lease for the construction of three schools--an elementary school, a junior high school, and a high school on land lying along N.C. 87 which crosses the recently acquired Overhills property. Over the last several months, they mutually agreed to forego that arrangement because of concerns that placement of schools in that area would impose restrictions on training and negatively impact the habitat of the red-cockaded woodpecker. Together, they agreed that the ideal location for these new schools was on the open tracts the Army had previously identified as being available for conveyance to the county.”