WASHINGTON – The Coast Guard awarded a $30.5 million design-build contract Sept. 10 to J.I. Garcia of Fresno, California, to build a new child development center at Coast Guard Base Alameda.

The project will replace most of the existing facility with a new 18,930-square-foot child development center, increasing capacity from 68 to 126 spaces for children ages 6 weeks through 5 years. The new facility will include a 7,200-square-foot outdoor play area and other site improvements.

“This project is an investment in our people, our families and our readiness,” said Capt. Joseph Graham, commander, Coast Guard Base Alameda. “By expanding access to safe, reliable child care at Base Alameda, we are helping remove barriers for our workforce and ensuring Coast Guard members can stay focused on the missions our nation depends on.”

The expanded center is intended to help meet child care demand for Coast Guard families assigned to Coast Guard Island Alameda and nearby units.

The contract involves the following work:

• Building child care activity rooms, outdoor storage, an administrative office, a commercial kitchen, and a gathering area.
• Installing new pavement, sidewalks, playgrounds, windows, finishes and furnishings.
• Installing updated utilities, new heating, ventilation and air-conditioning system, and a video surveillance system.

The contract is funded by the fiscal year 2022 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and is expected to be completed in November 2028.

The Base Alameda project is part of a broader Coast Guard effort to increase and enhance child care services for the workforce by building and recapitalizing child development centers. The Coast Guard awarded similar contracts for facilities at Base Elizabeth City, North Carolina, in April 2026 and Base Kodiak, Alaska, in May 2026.

The projects are designed to improve affordability, expand access, increase capacity, and recapitalize aging facilities to meet the needs of Coast Guard families, strengthening personnel readiness for operational missions.

For media inquiries contact mediarelations@uscg.mil.

Sept. 14, 2026

WASHINGTON – The Coast Guard awarded a $173.7 million contract to The Whiting-Turner Contracting Company to advance a major modernization of Base Seattle, strengthening the shore infrastructure needed to homeport and sustain the Service’s future polar security cutters.

Awarded by the Coast Guard’s Facilities Design and Construction Center, the contract funds Phase 1B of the modernization effort. Work includes construction of a new pier at Slip 36B, structural enhancements, and utility and electrical upgrades.

The contract is funded through Fiscal Year 2025 budget reconciliation funding.

“Modernizing Base Seattle is critical to ensuring our Coast Guard has the infrastructure required to support the next generation of cutters and the missions they will perform in the Arctic and across the Pacific,” said Adm. Thomas G. Allan Jr., Vice Commandant of the Coast Guard. “This investment strengthens our ability to homeport and maintain polar security cutters, enhances readiness for our growing surface fleet, and ensures our crews have the facilities they need to meet the Nation’s evolving maritime security needs.”

Base Seattle is key to Coast Guard operations in the Pacific Northwest and supports cutter operations, logistics, maintenance and personnel assigned to regional and national missions.

The latest award builds on the Coast Guard’s initial Base Seattle modernization contract, announced in September 2025, and continues a multiyear effort to prepare the base for Arctic and Antarctic operations.

Phase 1B includes dredging Slip 36 and building two modernized major cutter berths capable of hosting polar security cutters. The initial modernization contract award, Phase 1A, is 26% complete. Phases 1A and 1B remain on schedule for completion in Fiscal Year 2029.

Phase 1C is in the planning stages. Together, the first three phases are scheduled for completion in 2030, positioning Base Seattle to support delivery of the first polar security cutter. The full modernization project will deliver four major cutter berths for the Coast Guard’s growing surface fleet.

ALAMEDA, Calif. — The U.S. Coast Guard Sentinel-class cutter Robert Ward (WPC 1130) crew concluded participation in GALAPEX 2026 offshore of the Galapagos Islands from Aug. 17 – Sept. 03, 2026.

Ecuador hosted participants from 12 partner nations, including the United States, for the fourth iteration of GALAPEX. Comprehensive joint exercise events provided participating nations an opportunity to strengthen partnerships and interoperability to counter illicit maritime activity, including illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing in the region.

IUU fishing represents a critical strategic and economic threat to global maritime security. By depleting marine resources, it undermines food security, destabilizes vulnerable coastal economies, and negatively impacts law-abiding maritime commerce. Moreover, IUU fishing networks frequently intersect with broader illicit maritime activity such as human, drug, and weapons trafficking. Active counter-IUU fishing enforcement provides maritime law enforcement authorities with the ability to disrupt transnational criminal organizations and safeguard the global maritime domain.

Participating nations included Argentina, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Guatemala, Italy, Japan, Peru, Spain, and the United States. Other military branches represented included the U.S. Navy and U.S. Air Force. Participating agencies included the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, Global Fishing Watch, WildAid, and the Indo-Pacific Regional Information Sharing platform.

U.S. Coast Guard personnel from the CGC Robert Ward, Southwest District enforcement, and Pacific Area conducted joint exercises and simulated maritime enforcement scenarios with partner nations throughout the exercise.

The CGC Robert Ward crew conducted simulated High Seas Boarding and Inspections (HSBI) alongside partner forces to review a vessel’s compliance with maritime law and detect signs of illicit activity. Additionally, the crew participated in a joint high speed pursuit exercise and steamed alongside international partners to enhance at-sea formation proficiency and multi-ship coordination. Shoreside, the crew marched in several GALAPEX parades in Santa Cruz and San Cristobal Islands, Galapagos. In recognition of participation, San Cristobal’s Honorable Mayor, Rolando Caiza Carrillo, presented the keys to the city to the commanding officer of CGC Robert Ward, Lt. Jak Loewenstein.

“Partnerships built through exercises like GALAPEX are essential to our shared maritime security,” said Loewenstein. “The scope of nations represented in this year’s exercise reflects a collective recognition of the importance of collaboration to strengthen partnerships and counter illicit maritime activity.”

“Exercises like GALAPEX strengthen essential maritime security partnerships to effectively combat illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing and enhance the overall collective maritime security in the region,” said Capt. Jason Hagen, chief of enforcement, Southwest District. “Operations of this scale depend on cross-border cooperation, and the Coast Guard remains committed to working alongside our international partners throughout the Eastern Pacific.”

HONOLULU – The crew of Coast Guard Cutter Joseph Gerczak (WPC-1126) returned to Honolulu, Tuesday following a 52-day patrol in support of Coast Guard Oceania District’s Operation Blue Pacific.

The Joseph Gerczak crew departed Coast Guard Base Honolulu in July and traveled more than 7,500 nautical miles, making port calls in the Republic of the Marshall Islands, Fiji and American Samoa. Patrolling in support of Operation Blue Pacific, the cutter’s crew worked alongside Pacific Island partners to bolster maritime security and sovereignty, counter illicit maritime activities and protect vital marine resources.

The Joseph Gerczak crew exercised partnerships with the Republic of the Marshall Islands and Fiji through bilateral maritime law enforcement agreements. In total, the Joseph Gerczak crew and their Pacific partners conducted 29 bilateral maritime law enforcement boardings and eight high-seas boardings in support of Operation Island Chief, a coordinated effort to detect and combat illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing in the Pacific.  While in the Republic of the Marshall Islands, the Joseph Gerczak crew participated in sports with local youth and students from the College of the Marshall Islands in Majuro. In American Samoa, the crew led a seamanship showcase with community leaders and National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration officers.

“My crew and I are very proud of this patrol,” said Lt. Andrew Loeffler, commanding officer of Coast Guard Cutter Joseph Gerczak. “The crew’s dedication to fostering these important partnerships is vital in building a more secure and prosperous Pacific. I’m extremely proud of the crew’s continued professionalism, proficiency and unrelenting courage during this patrol.”

Operation Blue Pacific is an overarching multi-mission Coast Guard endeavor to promote security, safety, sovereignty and economic prosperity in Oceania. Coast Guard cutters, aircrew and personnel deploy throughout Oceania to maintain unrestricted, lawful access to the maritime domain for all nations, improve regional stability, and solidify the Coast Guard as a reliable partner for maritime safety, security and stewardship in the Pacific.

The Joseph Gerczak is a 154-foot Sentinel-class fast response cutter homeported in Honolulu. The cutter’s primary missions are maritime law enforcement, search and rescue, and national defense.