Fort Meade and other Maryland communities could see a rush of incoming workers as area businesses ramp up efforts in the wake military base reorganizations, according to a report in The Washington Post.
The Pentagonâs BRAC plan, or Base Realignment and Closures, involves the shifting of resources and services from base to base, and Fort Meade is one of the communities that will benefit most from the plan.
The Defense Information Systems Agency â along with its 4,300 employees, including 1,500 contractors — is relocating to Fort Meade and âlocal companies are beginning to circle, hoping that the moves will serve as a driver for new business opportunities, whether they be in contracting, real estate, law, insurance or even landscaping,â The Postâs Marjorie Censer writes.
The move spells the arrival of about 1,000 workers a month until at least May, and about five times that number in military personnel, about 5,500, according to The Post.
Overall, military installations in Maryland provide a boon to the stateâs economy.
A report measuring the economic impact of Marylandâs military installations found that the bases contribute $36 billion to the stateâs economy and help create or support 268,000 jobs.
âThis is great news for Maryland for three reasons: jobs, jobs, jobs, which mean economic security for more Marylanders,â Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.) said. âThereâs no doubt that our military facilities have a long-standing impact on Marylandâs economy, an impact that will continue to grow as new residents and businesses move to the state as a part of BRAC.â
Mikulski cautioned though that work remained to be done.
âI will continue to focus on how federal dollars can help our counties,â she added, âand fight for an increased federal investment in these priorities. My promises made to BRAC-impacted communities are promises kept.â