Get ready! FamCamp is coming to Peterson

  • Published
  • By Audrey Jensen
  • 21st Space Wing
PETERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Colo. --  In 2019, the Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado, will no longer be able to say it’s the only Air Force installation in Colorado without a FamCamp.

After Outdoor Recreation at Peterson AFB collected customer inquiries and assessed fees, wages and capacities of campgrounds 20 miles around the base in 2016, it was clear there was a need for a FamCamp on base, according to Tim Wise, 21st Force Support Squadron, Outdoor Recreation director.

“We’re seeing a huge need or want for in this area since we have so many retirees, and we’re looking to fill that niche by putting one on Peterson AFB,” said Wise.

The FamCamp, which will consist of 18 acres between the Child Development Center and Area Dental Lab along Stewart Avenue, will have mostly recreational vehicle parking, some tent sites, on-site bathrooms and showers, sewage and electricity, Wise said.

“Colorado Springs has one of the largest military retiree populations since Colorado is a big destination,” he said. “Obviously a lot of our retirees have campers or RVs — being at such a desirable location, there are more customers than there are sights available in this town.”

Peterson AFB currently has about 330 RV parking spots, Wise said, but this is just for storage and there is currently a waiting list for all RV sizes on base.

Though the project has been “in the works for several years now,” Wise said, funds were awarded to the project about a year ago for architecture and design. On Jan. 5, the land was surveyed by an architecture firm, which will present new design plans the first week of February to representatives from Peterson AFB and the Air Force Services Activity from Joint Base San Antonio, Texas, Wise said.

Initially, Outdoor Recreation planned for 27 RV-hookup sites in the designated area, but the new architecture company assigned to the project is looking to place 64 RV stalls, Wise said.

In addition to a FamCamp, the Outdoor Recreation master plan will eventually bring additional sport courts, a larger disc-golf course and possibly a new recreation center to the base, Wise said.

“I think ultimately what it will do is give base residents much more recreational activities,” he said. “Not only does it give our military retirees and dependents, or people travelling through and visiting military families, a secure location to stay and explore Colorado from, it also gives them an overall great experience that ties into what Colorado has to offer.”

 

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