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                         July 26, 2002

DHPW: Stewards of historic West Point

Story and photo by Kathy Eastwood
Staff Writer 

You see them everywhere, with an operating budget of over $97 million a year, they are the caretakers of the community. They cut grass, empty garbage, set up for special events, repair/remodel housing units, put out fires, landscape, provide insect control, water and utilities and stock the ponds with trout.

"We effect the daily lives of everybody at the academy and the millions of visitors each year," said Martha Hinote, customer relations’ representative at the Directorate of Housing and Public Works. "We make the post run. We fix, build when needed and preserve the historic nature of West Point."

DHPW, under the direction of Col. Tom Luebker, encompasses the Water Plant, Environmental division, Utilities & Facilities division, Housing, Custodial Services, Natural Resources, Forestry and the Fire Department.

"The United States Military Academy is the Army’s oldest continuously occuppied post with over 17,000 acres and a historic site with over 300 registered historic structures," said Bob Frederick, operations officer for DHPW who provided these statistics. There are over 1,300 buildings, 150 miles of road and over 300 miles of utility lines that are under DHPW’s watchful eyes, according to Frederick.

DHPW efforts can be felt and seen throughout the community. The Utilities and Facilities division sees to it that the roads are plowed, sewers are clean, roofs are fixed and ditches are dug when needed according to Hinote. "Our water supply is self-contained. Water is supplied to the tune of up to 4.5 million gallons a day, especially during the summer. The golf course uses about .5 million gallons a day," she added. "During droughts, we will provide Highland Falls with water as well if needed."

David Kaczor, a carpenter here who recently worked on quarters 30 and 78 said, "Everyone is entitled to quality housing. There are moves going on all the time and we need to go in and inspect the housing unit for damage or any repairs that are needed. At times, there are emergency situations that involve safety and security issues that can get you pulled off of one job in order to deal with it quickly." Two other carpenters, Tom Burns and Jim Barone recently built a fence for child safety concerns at one housing unit.

"DHPW handles 35,000 service orders per year for repair and maintenance," according to Hinote.

The Natural Resource Branch stocks the ponds with trout every spring, monitors bald eagles and more recently, black bears, monitors flora and fauna and plants trees, shrubs and flowers. Jim Beemer, fish and wildlife biologist provides informative articles on wild animals that may wonder around the community.

The Fire Department provides rescue and fire aid when needed and was especially welcomed in 1999 when our community was surrounded by forest fires. Helicopters could be seen donning large buckets, dipping them into the Hudson River, flying to the top of the mountain and dropping the payload directly on the fire. The forest rangers were out in force assisting the firefighters by instituting a controlled burn along the fire line.

You see them everyday, doing their individual work for one of the largest organizations in the community, keeping the community safe and secure 24/7.

For Customer Service at DHPW call 845-938-4407.