Interactive Customer Evaluation (ICE) Responses

Comment Regarding Marinai Sprinklers:

The irrigation on Marinai housing needs to be modified. I run several times per week along the perimeter path before coming to work in the morning, and have been getting doused by the sprinklers. Many sprinkler heads are literally pointing across the sidewalk, and because the berm is on one side and the fence on the other, there is nowhere to run but through them. And when I take my son in the jogging stroller, he is getting soaked, too. There is no reason for the sprinklers to be doing this.

The easy solution is to run the sprinklers in the middle of the night, before people get into their morning exercise routines. And the longer term solution is to not water the sidewalks. The sprinkler heads should be moved and repointed, factoring in the significant winds that are present here. Not only are they soaking people, but it’s a waste of natural resources and a safety hazard with all of the slippery surfaces.

Making these improvements will make a more enjoyable and safe experience for those using the Marinai perimeter jogging path.

Response:

Thank you for bringing this issue to our attention. The Housing office has contacted Pizzarotti and the issue has been corrected. It’s in our best interest to ensure all facilities and sidewalks are safe, hazard-free, and available to all Marinai residents. Pizzarotti has set the irrigation timers along the perimeter walking path to water only at night and adjusted the spray pattern to avoid watering the sidewalks. Inspection points of walkway and common area sprinklers have also been added to ensure that they are operating only during the night and not spraying sidewalks. The housing office is also looking at the allotted time sprinklers are on to potentially find ways to conserve water. For any future questions or suggestions, please feel free to directly contact Housing Director Peter Faulk at DSN 624-4070 or peter.faulk@eu.navy.mil.

Comment Regarding Parking Garage PT:

Recently, someone took the time to make an ICE comment about PT being conducted on Building 414’s parking structure. Conducting PT at the unit level allows us to meet the Navy’s general requirement to three PT sessions. To rebut the comments that were made, the personnel are not interspersed between cars; this is simply not true. All Sailors that execute PT maintain a safe distance from any vehicle and others around them. No vehicles operate in the area that this is conducted in and those that do come to park away from us and in no way danger themselves, their vehicles, or our Sailors. When PT is conducted, sessions are 30 minutes or less. If that environment that day is not safe for training, PT is either relocated or postponed to maintain the safety and welfare of our Sailors. PT is never executed anywhere near vehicles that transit on and off the area.

The AIMD parking structure is utilized due to the consistent booking of the NAS II turf field and gym, the only authorized locations. Reservations that are made compete with other commands on the installation, making a consistent PT schedule difficult to maintain due to the lack of facilities. For example, for the PRT to be scheduled, reservations must be made as early as January to ensure our Sailors can conduct their PRT with the equipment required to be successful. I respectfully request reconsideration of your recent policy change to allow Sailors to conduct PT at the AIMD parking structure and allow us to maintain the highest levels of physical fitness standards.

Response:

Thank you for your suggestion. I am always happy to hear about units taking PT safety seriously. However, the wellbeing of all personnel is paramount, and the fact remains that the AIMD parking garage (Bldg. 414) has too much traffic to allow for safe training. The ban on training in the AIMD parking structure (Bldg. 414) is necessary to prevent a potentially dangerous situation from developing, for those training and drivers alike. The upper floors of the other NAS II parking garage located next to NEX mini-mart can be used for PT. As a reminder, up to four groups may reserve the NAS II turf field at one time, which allows for multiple commands to conduct PT simultaneously. Please call the NAS II Fitness Center at DSN 624-5243 to make a reservation. Also, there are facilities you can reserve for PT on NAS I in addition to the NAS II facilities you mention. These options should help alleviate the scheduling situation you describe.