Smith Barracks climbs the hill above Baumholder, Germany. The U.S. military presence in the town is set to grow, as ground was broken Sept. 19, 2024, for new annexes at the installation, part of an ongoing $500 million construction program. (Stars and Stripes)
Work is underway on new annex facilities at the U.S. Army’s garrison in Baumholder, Germany, where $500 million worth of construction is taking place in anticipation of the transfer of special operations troops from Stuttgart.
Last week, Army officials held a groundbreaking ceremony for the annexes at the installation. The development program entails creation of new buildings and restoration of operational ones, U.S. Special Operations Command Europe said in a statement Sept. 19.
Four annexes are slated to be built as part of Baumholder’s expansion, but the statement didn’t say how many are under construction in the wake of the groundbreaking.
Two of the annexes are scheduled to be completed by 2027, and the two others will come online the following year.
About 1,000 special operations troops, family members and support staff are expected to make the move from Stuttgart to Baumholder by 2026.
The projects will improve the quality of life in Baumholder and also put the incoming personnel closer to Ramstein Air Base, “the premier power projection platform in Germany,” according to the statement.
Col. Stephen Murphy, command engineer for U.S. Special Operations Command, speaks at a groundbreaking ceremony in Baumholder, Germany, on Sept. 19, 2024. Construction is underway on a set of annexes, which are part of a $500 million building program as Baumholder gets set for the transfer of special operations forces. (Xzavier Marte/U.S. Army National Guard)
Part of U.S. Army Garrison Rheinland-Pfalz, the Baumholder base is about a 40-minute drive from Ramstein. By contrast, the garrison in Stuttgart is over two hours away from the Kaiserslautern-area air base.
The facilities are part of more than 60 projects intended to redevelop the Baumholder garrison, which at one time was scheduled for closure as part of the Army’s post-Cold War drawdown in Europe.
But the service reversed course on that decision years ago and has since been pouring in resources to improve living conditions at the base. Hundreds of new family housing units are being built.
More than one-third of the projects have already been completed, military officials said in the statement.
For special operations forces, the shift to Baumholder will offer access to larger ranges for shooting and maneuvers than what is available in Stuttgart, a major metro area that hosts U.S. European and Africa Command headquarters.
While the Baumholder move will affect special operators, the command’s headquarters will remain in Stuttgart.
