Meade barracks 'unfit'

Mold grows where trainees sleep

But until those projects are complete, service members will live in conditions that one detachment commander called unacceptable.

"I've been in the Marine Corps close to 20 years now. I don't expect the Hilton," Chung said. But, he said, soldiers should not be forced to live in barracks that are poorly ventilated and contaminated with mold.

During inspections this month, Fort Meade officials identified 50 to 60 problems, ranging from leaks to windows that would not open, said Tom White, the post housing officer.

Some of the problems were at the Air Force Student Detachment barracks, where airmen live for several months at a time while training at the Defense Information School.

The T-shaped building was built in the 1950s as open-bay barracks for cavalry units. The ventilation system that was installed in the 1970s is outdated, McGreedy said.

"They were built for a different time and a different purpose," McGreedy said.

During inspections this month, almost every room was found to contain mold. Three rooms had so much mold on the walls that they were deemed uninhabitable, McGreedy said.

In recent days, contractors have sprayed the mold with a biocide and repainted the walls. Plumbing is also being replaced.

But many underlying problems - such as the lack of a modern ventilation system - are too large to fix without a major renovation. The problem, McGreedy said, is service members would have nowhere to live if the building were closed for repairs. Officials are trying to figure out how to make the repairs without displacing service members for long periods, he said.

He pointed out that the building will likely be razed within three years, after the barracks undergoing major renovations reopen.

"We don't want to throw more money [toward piecemail repairs] than we need so we're committing millions and millions of dollars to a temporary solution," he said.

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