For Immediate ReleaseFor More Information, Contact
November 16, 2007
PIO# 289-07		Jennifer Harris, Communications Officer, at 703.838.5078


City of Alexandria Co-Sponsors Grand Opening Event
For BRAC Transition Center

The City of Alexandria, Arlington County, and Fairfax County hosted a grand opening event and ribbon-cutting ceremony today for a new Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) Transition Center. The Center is located at 1750 Crystal Drive in the Crystal City section of Arlington County.

It is the first of its kind across the country to offer services to those affected by the forthcoming BRAC transition. Under the 2005 BRAC decisions, over 20,000 jobs will be transferred from offices in Arlington County, Fairfax County, and the City of Alexandria to military bases across the country. Its operations are funded by a grant from the Virginia National Defense Industrial Authority and the federal Office of Economic Adjustment. Employees and businesses that have been affected by BRAC can visit the center and receive information about local assistance and employment opportunities available to them.

The Arlington County Economic Development office will staff the office, and other organizations such as the City of Alexandria’s JobLink and the Alexandria Small Business Development Center, will use the center to arrange and conduct meetings with their clients.

Alexandria Vice Mayor Redella S. “Del” Pepper, who attended and made remarks at the event, said “The City of Alexandria was pleased to support the application for funding to establish this transition center. It will assist thousands of workers whose jobs are being relocated, and the City of Alexandria is ready to lend its expertise and assistance as needed to make sure our residents and those who work in Alexandria have the ability to remain in this area to live, work, and possibly start their own businesses.”
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