FORT INDIANTOWN GAP, Pa. –
After a year and half of construction, and after numerous delays since Sept. 11, 2001, the main access control point at Fort Indiantown Gap was dedicated during a ceremony here Nov. 1.
Later in the day, the ACP began operations, and all other entrances and exits were closed to traffic, making Fort Indiantown Gap a controlled-access installation.
Soldiers and Airmen with the Pennsylvania National Guard, as well as civilians and community partners, gathered for the ceremony under the canopy of the main ACP. Remarks were shared by Col. Kevin Potts, garrison commander of Fort Indiantown Gap, and Rep. Dan Meuser of Pennsylvania's 9th Congressional District.
“For decades we’ve been concerned with security for our military installations overseas,” Potts said. “The September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on our nation changed the way the way we approach security at our facilities here in the homeland”
Potts addressed misconceptions that this ACP was constructed in an effort to "close" out the public from Fort Indiantown Gap, reiterating that the general public is still welcome and invited.
“I cannot express strongly enough that this effort has never been about closing the installation but creating a safer facility for all who spend time here,” Potts said. “In the words of the great American poet Robert Frost, ‘good fences make good neighbors.'"
Fort Indiantown Gap is consistently one of the busiest National Guard training centers in the country and the access control point project helps ensure a safe and secure environment for the service members who train here and the employees who work here.
After Sept. 11, 2001, the Department of Defense mandated tighter security at military installations, including access control points. Construction of the access control points at Fort Indiantown Gap has been delayed several times.
Individuals are now required to present a state or federally issued photo ID to access the installation. All other entrances to Fort Indiantown Gap are now be closed to through traffic.
Construction on the second access control point at the east end of the installation, near the intersection of Fisher Avenue and Quartermaster Road, is expected to begin in 2024.
Fort more information on the access-control project, visit: www.ftig.ng.mil/Gate-Construction