Chapter XIV

District Public Works Officer

 

The District Public Works Officer, an officer of the Civil Engineer Corps, was charged, under the Commandant, with the administration, supervision, and direction of all Public Works activities within the district except the activities to which Civil Engineer Corps Officers had been assigned as Public Works Officers by the Chief of the Bureau of Yards and Docks.

The Chief of Naval Operations required that the Commandant be kept informed as to all new construction undertaken in the district. Except for the Air Functional Training Commands, all activities submitted their requests in regard to new construction via the Commandant, who had the Assistant Commandant (Logistics) consider whether they are necessary and had the District Public Works Officer pass judgment as to their soundness in engineering and their correctness in estimated cost. The Air Commands submitted their requests concerning new construction to the Commandant when feasible; otherwise, they by-passed him, merely sending him copies. If the Commandant disapproved of a project, he of course could submit an unfavorable report.

The District Public Works Officer also served as Officer-in-Charge of Construction when so appointed by the Bureau of Yards and Docks. As Officer-in-Charge of Construction he received directions from the Bureau of Yards and Docks to perform specific construction

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work. This operation was performed under the direction of the Chief of the Bureau of Yards and Docks, whose local representative was the Superintending Civil Engineer, Area IV.

The functions of District Public Works Officer and Officer-in-Charge of Construction, which were carried on with one organization, were closely related. A project in its incipiency was usually a Public Works function, and later, if approved for construction, became a function of the Officer-in-Charge of Construction.

The staff of the District Public Works Officer was divided into three main sections: Contracts, Design, and Special Services. The Contracts Section was responsible for the preparation of bids and the award of contracts. It administered formal and informal contracts. It had charge of inspecting and expediting construction, and of preparing reports on construction required by the Bureau of Yards and Docks, the Superintending Civil Engineer, Area IV, and the Commandant. "Change orders" and vouchers for payment were also prepared by this branch.

The Design Section drew up plans of projects to be submitted to cognizant Bureaus when the projects were initiated by the Commandant, and passed on the technical aspects of projects submitted by field activities. It prepared drawings and specifications on formal and informal contracts, making fields surveys if necessary; it maintained liaison concerning this work with the commanding officer of the activity concerned. It passed judgment on shop drawings and proposed field changes in design. It was responsible for all drafting and estimating required by the Public Works Department, and provided technical assistance

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on problems relative to design for all activities of the Eighth Naval District.

The Special Services Section of the District Public Works Office was subdivided into four branches: Material and Finance, Maintenance, Real Estate, and Telephone. In the Material and Finance branch annual and quarterly maintenance estimates were prepared for District headquarters activities, and also monthly reports of expenditures and obligations. Here were kept the plant inventory records of office furniture and equipment for headquarters activities under the cognizance of the District Public Works Officer. Here were processed all requests for equipment, material, consumable supplies, and maintenance work for those district activities whose appropriation responsibility came under the Bureau of Yards and Docks. This branch screened all reports and estimates from district activities in regard to expenditure and form before forwarding them to the Bureau. It initiated informal contracts for maintenance of headquarters activities beyond the scope of the District Public Works Officer's maintenance force. It prepared and handled utility contracts. Finally, it was responsible for surplus materials made available as a result of the decommissioning of activities within the district.

Among the functions of the Maintenance branch of the District Public Works Office was the physical handling and crating of surplus materials. It had charge of moving office furniture and equipment and other property for activities in the Federal Building and other leased property. And it was responsible for the maintenance of headquarters activities.

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The Real Estate branch made physical examinations, estimates, surveys, descriptions, and reports in connection with the selection, acquisition, leasing, disposal, and commandeering of real estate. It conducted preliminary negotiation with owners of real estate tentatively selected for purchase or lease. In most cases, it prepared leases for forwarding to the Bureau of Yards and Docks with the Commandant's certification and recommendation. It kept check of space used by various activities and, where possible, recommended releases and consolidations in order to conform to space requirements. It submitted quarterly reports on all office space to the Administrative Office (Space Planning and Control Officer), EXOS, Navy Department; and submitted monthly storage reports to the Bureau of Supplies and Accounts. As the Real Estate branch had difficulties in the beginning obtaining space, it was confronted at the end of the war by owners of property clamoring for the Navy to release the property, so that it could be leased to commercial concerns on longer and more favorable terms.

One officer took care of all the work in the telephone branch. He handled all matters pertaining to outside Navy-owned telephone plants and the distribution of cable for new construction, and he had charge of the maintenance of telephone facilities for all Naval activities in the district, including those of the Air Functional Training Commands.

According to the organization of the Commandant's staff, the District Public Works Officer was responsible for the operation of the District Headquarters Garage. This technical responsibility was

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met by the District Domestic Transportation Officer's operating the Garage as additional duty for the Public Works Department.

The planning for demobilization brought the District Public Works Officer the task of setting up five separation centers, in Memphis, Nashville, Norman, New Orleans, and Camp Wallace. This entailed making the necessary alterations in buildings (there was to be no new construction) and furnishing all the equipment needed from surplus material. Locating vehicles, desks, bookcases, typewriters, and the like without delay involved fast work and the cooperation of a number of activities, such as the District Redistribution Office and the District Domestic Transportation Office.

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