Morris Ferry Dock to close Sept. 30

U.S. Air Force officials announced Monday that the land lease to operate Morris Ferry Dock on Woods Reservoir has been extended until Sept. 30 but won't be renewed or re-competed after that date.

Although the Air Force hasn't made a decision yet about the ultimate disposal of the property, the short-term impact is that there won't be a commercial boat dock there on Oct. 1. Air Force officials say it was too expensive to manage the lease and that proposals to modernize the dock would require a long-term commitment that wouldn't be the best choice.

Woods Reservoir, located primarily in Franklin County, is within the Arnold Air Force Base reservation. It was created to serve Arnold Engineering Development Center, for example by providing cooling water for some AEDC test facilities, but has been available for recreational uses as well.

"The Air Force based its decision on the fact that the original intent of the dock is far less relevant today and its assessment that taxpayer dollars to sustain the dock's current state or to modernize its operation should be devoted to mission requirements," said Col. Art Huber, Arnold Engineering Development Center (AEDC) commander.

During the last year, a study of the original intent and an analysis of alternatives were completed to help arrive at this decision, Huber said.

In 1954, when the first lease to operate the dock began, Woods Reservoir was the only public-use recreational lake in the area with little infrastructure for access. The Air Force saw a commercial boat dock lease as a way to enhance the quality of life for AEDC employees and their families while at the same time providing a public benefit.

"After studying this, we learned the original intent is far less relevant today since other facilities subsequently built on the base provide public lake access and other recreation opportunities are now available in the local area," said Huber. "However, we went a step further to analyze whether the current operation could be modernized and better serve the interests of the Air Force and the taxpayer and therefore be a worthwhile use of resources."

Different avenues for handling this lease were examined and ultimately boiled down to three viable choices: to take no action, to pursue a modernized operation or to not renew or re-compete the lease, Huber said.

The no-action alternative, maintaining the status quo, was determined not viable because continued time and money would be required to manage the lease with minimal return to the Air Force and taxpayer. Additionally, the use of resources required to meet lessor responsibilities were becoming untenable.

The Air Force issued a Request for Information (RFI) about the possibilities of modernizing the facility. That document sought input from companies with demonstrated experience in the operations and maintenance of recreation areas to include general stores, boat ramps, boat slips and campgrounds.

The main objectives of the modernization proposal were:

* to renovate, demolish or construct new docks, boat slips, store and bathrooms to provide modern, solidly-built, professional-appearing facilities that meet or exceed all current building codes;

* to possess or obtain all the necessary expertise to endure full and continuous compliance with all Air Force, federal and state safety and environmental requirements; and

* to provide monetary return or in-kind consideration to Arnold AFB.

The consistent message from companies that responded to the RFI was that to meet its objectives, the lease would have to be long-term - on the order of 25 years - to allow time to achieve a return on a lessee's investment. However, any lease longer than five years would have to be approved at Headquarters Air Force at the Pentagon.

"After considering the responses, we decided that we could not get the return on investment worth the amount of time and taxpayer dollars required to pursue and manage a long-term lease," said Huber. "Furthermore, if we did enter a long-term lease, we believed there was potential for the lessee to encounter hardship if, for instance, mid-way into it we had to invoke our right to end the lease due to budget cuts or some other reason after the lessee had invested great sums of money and time."

Based on more than a year's worth of analysis, Air Force officials say the last option, not to renew or re-bid the lease, emerged as the best option for the Air Force and the use of taxpayer dollars.

"After studying alternatives for this lease, the option to not renew or re-compete it is the right choice," said Huber. "First, I strongly believe the Air Force should be fair and equitable in its dealings with commercial ventures. Second, I believe the taxpayer and the Air Force deserve a very good return on any investment made. The money and time that will be freed up from managing this lease will be devoted to supporting the AEDC mission, which fuels our local economy and most importantly, helps defend this country. You can't ask for a better use of resources than that."

The current lessee, Morris Ferry Dock Associates, is required to restore the premises to a condition satisfactory to AEDC and remove all of the lessee's property. It remains to be decided if the area will be put to some other use.

For more information, contact AEDC Public Affairs at (931) 454-4204 or by cell at (931) 581-1172.