A $5.7 million demolition of this former barracks at Naval Support Activity Naples in Italy is slated to begin in May. It is too early to say what will be built in its place, an NSA Naples spokesperson said Jan. 21, 2025. Former plans for the site called for construction of an operations center. (Alison Bath/Stars and Stripes)
NAPLES, Italy — The Navy is moving forward with demolition plans for a 130,000-square foot building at Naval Support Activity Naples, as the installation faces a burgeoning need for office and operational space.
The $5.7 million project will begin in May and is expected to take about a year, Lt. j.g. Valentine Mulango, a spokesperson for Naval Support Activity Naples, said in an email.
It wasn’t clear what is planned for the site of the old barracks building, built in 1996 at the base’s Capodichino site.
It had not been in use as a barracks for years. Unaccompanied sailors now are housed at the base’s Support Site, about 14 miles away.
A building project for the barracks site is still in the design and planning development phase, and the structural details aren’t yet known, said Mulango, who added that remodeling was determined not to be the best use of the space.
Previously, the Navy told Stars and Stripes in May 2022 that a four-story operations center, with two stories above ground and two below for offices, conference facilities and administrative spaces, was planned for the site.
U.S. 6th Fleet, which is headquartered at Capodichino, said at the time that the project would “support the future operational requirements of U.S. Naval Forces Europe-Africa.”
There are more than 50 tenant commands and about 8,500 personnel at NSA Naples, according to the base. Many of those are located at the installation’s Capodichino site, which is adjacent to Naples International Airport.
Capodichino also has a hotel, food court, chapel, gym and convenience store. Family housing, schools, a hospital, the commissary, another hotel, a recreational center and other services are located at Support Site.
This month, base officials began analyzing the room available at NSA Naples for operations, commands and personnel, Capt. John Randazzo, the installation commander, wrote in an email Jan. 8.
The base is looking at “potential reconfigurations to alleviate the deficiency of space on the installation now,” Randazzo said.
NSA Naples has seen considerable growth in recent years. In March 2022, 6th Fleet stood up Task Force 61/2, a naval amphibious unit consisting of Marines and sailors from the II Marine Expeditionary Force.
And there has been a contingent of British navy sailors maintaining a presence at NSA Naples since at least 2023.
Last year, Naval Forces Europe-Africa and 6th Fleet said they would create two distinct staffs after operating as a single command for nearly 20 years.
To answer those needs, the base recently finished construction of a two-story addition to its command, control, communications, computers and intelligence facility.
Another building at Capodichino was partially renovated to allow for more workspaces.
