Crossville's surfacing solutions are ready for duty in this army base dining facility.

With more than 70,000 soldiers passing through its classrooms each year, Fort Lee has become the third largest training site in the U.S. Army. As one of the most comprehensive training facilities, Fort Lee consists of the Combined Arms Support Command, the Army Logistics University, the U.S. Army Ordnance School, the U.S. Army Quartermaster School, and the U.S. Army Transportation School. Most of these areas support the Advanced Individual Training complex, which is where soldiers complete their individual training after they graduate from basic combat training.

Following the 2005 Base Realignment and Closure mandates, Fort Lee began a massive, $1.2 billion base modernization mission, bringing to the post new training facilities, administrative areas, dining facilities, barracks, and support facilities for military families. With the population increase, a renovated dining facility was included in the modernization schedule with the design phase beginning in 2015.

Opening in 2019, the Fort Lee Dining Facility (DFAC) is a high-performance facility that integrates with the buildings on the Advanced Individual Training complex. The dining facility construction blends with the adjoining facilities in the complex, and it was designed for a minimum lifespan of 50 years, as is the standard for government buildings.

Fort Lee’s renovated dining facility is about 30,450 square feet and supports the expanded barracks complex. It includes a commercial grade kitchen, food preparation and storage areas, administrative office spaces, the main dining area, as well as a field feeding food preparation area, and distribution facility. The building also includes an employee locker room and showers for men and women.

With seating for almost 550 soldiers, the dining facility has the capacity to serve 1,300 soldiers in 90 minutes (three times a day, seven days a week, 52 weeks a year). When not being used in a dining capacity, the dining facility has mesh room dividers to create smaller gathering spaces.

Abiding by strict government codes and requirements, the interior design concept focused on durable materials that would be easy to maintain. The color selection creates an aesthetically balanced space with a timeless, neutral color scheme—especially important when considering the anticipated 50-year lifespan of the facility. In addition, the selection of environmentally-friendly and sustainable interior materials supported the achievement of LEED-NC Silver rating.

With soldiers coming into the facility from every type of training, the flooring had to be high-performance to withstand high traffic. For the main dining areas and restrooms, the design team chose Crossville’s SpeakEasy collection in the Sweet Georgia Brown color scheme. This collection has a natural combination of light, medium, and dark striations to blend with the overall neutral color palette. The SpeakEasy collection resembles authentically timeworn, barn wood yet has the enduring qualities of porcelain tile. The designers specified SpeakEasy in the matte finish to provide safety underfoot.

Finishing the walls and other surfaces, the design team chose Crossville’s Color Blox collection in multiple hues and sizes. With minimalistic texture and shading that blends beautifully with other interior finishes, the Color Blox collection highlights the serving areas with beautiful tile patterns on the buffet areas and drink stations. In addition to the serving spaces, the kitchen areas and restroom walls have full-height ceramic tile walls in neutral tones that complement the general wall paint.

“It is such an honor to be a member of the design team for the Fort Lee DFAC. This facility will serve as an efficiently-functioning dining facility while offering a modernized, aesthetically pleasing environment for the large number of soldiers it will serve on a daily basis as they selflessly sacrifice to defend our country’s freedom,” shares Jennifer D. Wainwright, certified interior designer for the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers.

Jennifer Reeves of Mosaic Commercial Solutions concurs. “The finished project looks good and the purpose for the space is so important to those that will use it. It is a pleasure to have been involved.”