WASHINGTON, DC – Rep. Sam Farr, D-Carmel, announced today that the California Army National Guard received $2.9 million to repair the High Water Bridge at Camp Roberts. Repairs to the bridge, which is currently inoperable due to severe structural damage, are necessary to improve safety during training. The bridge provides the most direct link to Camp Roberts’ medical facility from the firing range. 

 

“Ensuring the safety of our National Guard members during training is critical for Camp Roberts to fulfill its mission,” said Farr. “The High Water Bridge provides the fastest route between the firing ranges and the medical facility. In the event of an emergency, every second is critical to get medical help so I am glad we are able to restore this vital link between the two locations.” 

 

Camp Roberts is divided by the Nacimiento River, with the operations facilities and housing located to the south, and the training ranges on the north. The primary bridge to cross the river is the High Water Bridge which provides the shortest path between the training ranges and the facilities. Since 2009, the bridge has been unsafe to use creating an additional 40 minutes of travel time between the two areas.

 

The project was originally identified by the California Army National Guard as the state’s top unfunded military construction project but did not originally receive funding in this year’s budget. Farr worked with the National Guard Bureau and Camp Roberts leadership to secure the $2.9 million necessary to repair the damaged bridge from unspent funds leftover at the end of the FY 2014 budget.  

 

"The repair of the High-Water Bridge at Camp Roberts has been among our top construction priorities for years. Thanks in large part to Representative Sam Farr's efforts, we'll finally be able to repair this critical infrastructure to dramatically improve the safety of our service members and make our training much more efficient," said Maj. Gen. David S. Baldwin, Adjutant General for the California National Guard. "Representative Farr continues to be a stalwart supporter of our soldiers and airmen, especially those at Camp Roberts, our most important training installation."

 

Camp Roberts has begun soliciting bids to complete the repairs.  Construction is expected to begin by mid-November and should be completed before summer training begins next year.

 

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