Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, March 27, 1994 TAG: 9403270004
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: D-7 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: HOMESTEAD, FLA. LENGTH: Medium
The 482nd Fighter Wing's F-16 jets returned in triumphant formation for the first time since they were evacuated before the vicious storm tore apart the base's buildings and aircraft Aug. 24, 1992.
The U.S. flag flaps atop a new 80-foot pole donated by local business groups, so motorists whizzing past on the Florida Turnpike can see life at the base.
"They wanted people to know this base is open," said Maj. Bobby D'Angelo, spokesman for the Air Force Reserve Wing.
Since its days as an active duty base are over, the base will officially be renamed Homestead Air Reserve Base. The former host unit, the 31st Fighter Wing, will relinquish command to the 482nd Fighter Wing.
The reserve unit will occupy just a third of the old base's acreage. The rest will be turned over to Dade County, which has ambitious plans for aviation and other business uses.
The prospect of increased activity encourages Bill Grafmyer, who with his wife, Ann, owns a Thai restaurant near the base.
"I would say in a month, maybe another month, I should be able to pay rent," he said. "It's going to go up from there."
Before the hurricane, the base pumped $450 million a year into the economy of south Dade.
"That's backed off to a trickle since the storm," D'Angelo said.
He estimated that the reborn base should contribute $180 million to $200 million to the still battered area. But Kim Sovia, president of the Homestead-Florida City Chamber of Commerce, said the impact of the base's revival is far greater.
The roar of the jets, to which residents were as accustomed as city dwellers to traffic noise, will be a sign that normal life is returning. That quality remains elusive in an area sprouting piles of twisted steel rods and broken buildings.
"The hurricane tore away something that was really prideful here," Sovia said. "Not only is it a money situation for the economic development, but it's also a good shot of hope for the people."
Those people battled to save their base, which federal officials had in their sights before Andrew hit. Eighteen buses were filled with supporters who went to Orlando last June to persuade the government's Base Realignment and Closure Commission to spare the Homestead base - in any form.
"When that auditorium was totally full, the panel knew that we meant what we said," Sovia said.
Besides the 482nd, the Air Force Reserve's 301st Rescue Squadron, Detachment 1 of the Florida Air National Guard's 125th Fighter Interceptor Group and the U.S. Customs Service Air Branch, a drug interdiction operation, will return to Homestead. Their facilities were more severely damaged than the 482nd's.
Even now, the damage inflicted by Andrew is evident. Many buildings have been restored or torn down, while others have gaping holes. All 1,600 housing units stand empty, awaiting demolition.
But many trees have been replanted, and those that survived the storm are green again.
by CNB