Today, members of the Wichita City Council, the Sedgwick County Commission, the Kansas National Guard and the United States Marines Corps Reserve announced the official site and partnership for the planned Homeland Defense Readiness Center.
The Homeland Defense Readiness Center will be the second of its kind in the nation. “The Readiness Center will serve as a model of how cooperation and teamwork can accomplish some important goals that benefit the entire community,” said Mayor Bob Knight. “The Homeland Defense Readiness Center will help us make your families and your community safer, stronger, and better prepared to respond to any kind of disaster.”
The Readiness Center will be a regional hands-on training complex for first responders who deal with terrorist attacks, natural disasters and other civil emergencies. The facility will house the Armed Forces Reserve Center for both Kansas National Guard and Marine Corps Reserve. In addition, there will be classrooms and tactical training facilities for City and County law enforcement and fire departments – our community’s first responders. The tactical training area will include a multi-story burn tower, an emergency responder driving course, and a hazardous material and rescue training area. The facility will also provide classrooms available for use by community groups.
The Readiness Center will be located at I-135 and East 29th Street North, west of Hillside and south of K-96 Highway (a map is enclosed). Gossen Livingston Architecture has provided a design for the 130,000 square foot, two-story facility (architect’s rendering is enclosed).