GUERNSEY – A mix of military and civilians, construction workers, base staff, and local and state officials were on hand for the ribbon cutting ceremony for the new barracks building at Camp Guernsey last Wednesday. The new 17,439 square foot barracks building has a capacity of up to 175 beds when fully occupied and utilizing a multi-purpose classroom as an extra bunk-room.
After signing a contract with the Wyoming Military Department in March 2023, Hensel Phelps construction announced completion of building 511 at Camp Guernsey one month before the scheduled completion date of December 2024.
“It was great to see it get built. I am excited to be a part of the [project],” Garth School, a structural engineer from Martin/Martin who helped design the building.
The $9 million barracks building is a prototype of six buildings which could eventually be constructed on the old parade grounds at Camp Guernsey, to increase the capacity to house troops utilizing the premier joint training center. The process of obtaining funding takes time, so breaking ground on the next building would not likely happen until at least 2030.
The new barracks building is also another example of how the design-build style of construction works well for the State of Wyoming and provides a better product for the output of taxpayer dollars. Bob Snyder, facility operations specialist for the Wyoming Army National Guard and project manager for the barracks building explained: the design-build brings the owner, contractor, and engineer to the table to work as a team to create a building with the best construction with quality and thought to the end user, as well as best use of public funds, in his opinion and experience.
Snyder explained, design-builds also typically take less time to produce a finished product than the more traditional design-bid-build process. In contrast, with the more traditional contract-bid-build construction model the contractor and engineer work independently from each other, and the contractor can take any extra funds unused in the project as extra income, so there is no incentive to do the most for the project.

In design-build, each stakeholder (owner, engineer, and contractor) has a small percentage of discretionary spending for things each deem best for the project in their area of expertise, but all the funds must be used for the project. The original profit in the bid made by the contractor is all they will receive, so when they see an area that could use a little extra funding to have a better product, their discretionary funds can be used to benefit the success of the end product.
Attention to detail and thought to flexibility of use is evident throughout the building. The building has a separate lodging setup for female and male occupants, as well as dedicated officer quarters. Each floor has bathroom and showering facilities which are also A.D.A. compatible, there are plug-ins and shelf for all bunks, and occupants can flip the mattresses over to be either soft or hard. The entire building has LED lighting, and the barracks room lights are dimmable, and have a reducing timer that can be set for a specific amount of time. Additionally, materials were chosen for insulation and construction with an eye to the quality and longevity of materials. The exterior of the building is also designed to prevent bats and birds from nesting along the roof lines, and consideration was given to Wyoming wind and winter weather when locating the front entrance of the building.
There is also a laundry room with a maintenance/mechanical room directly behind the washing units, and heat and humidity are removed from the area with hot air outtake vents. There is room for more washing and drying units on the second floor, but not enough funding to purchase all the units. However, the rooms are designed to be flexible in the number of units available and can be easily added as funds are available to purchase more units. In the meantime, a portion of the space can be utilized for storage. There is a dedicated IT (Information Technology) room on both floors to provide good internet access, and a backup generator. As many of these products as possible were purchased from local venders throughout Wyoming.
With contributions from the contractor, engineer and owner in the design-build process, discretionary funds were utilized to provide amenities in the lounge area of the building; such as a pool and foosball tables, and to provide simple decorations throughout the building. Historic informational signs hung in the lounge area were designed by Camp Guernsey archaeologist Blake Griffin and funded by The Wyoming State Historic Preservation Office.
“I’m glad there will be more space. There have been several times we were short [of space] when units were in. It will be nice to be able to house more soldiers in the busy months,” said Sgt. Maj. Dale Fowler, the post sergeant major at Camp Guernsey.
Col. James Ezell, construction and facilities management officer for the Wyoming Military Department said he is pleased with the building, and the success of the project.
“It looks beautiful. There are a lot of old buildings on this base, so this is a nice change,” said Sheila Hawley of Torrington one of the housekeeping staff on base.
Following the ribbon cutting, guests were invited to a presentation by regional expert archaeologist Wayne M. Sutherland, who shared the rich geologic makeup and history of the region.
The breakdown
Funds for the barracks building have come from both federal and state sources. Six million dollars came from the National Guard Bureau, while three million dollars came from the State of Wyoming.
The engineering design team consisted of Fentress Architects, G2 Consulting Engineers, Inc. (in charge of plumbing, electrical, and mechanical), and Martin/Martin Consulting Engineers (in charge of structural and civil engineering).
Subcontractors working under the direction of Hensel Phelps were Coloscapes Concrete, Copper Springs, Modern Electric, GW Mechanical, Superior Contracting, Wattle & Daub Construction, Terracon, Sheet Metal Specialties, BJ Welding, and Pike Peak Construction.