After more than 30 years, a new educational and administrative center will be constructed on Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge. The center, named after the late Congressman Herbert H. Bateman, will include 5,000 square-feet of exhibits, a classroom/wetlab, 125-seat auditorium, a CNHA sales area, and office space for staff, volunteers and interns.

"We are more than excited," said Refuge Manager John 0. Schroer. According to Schroer, the bids for construction opened on August 30th. "The plan is to have a contractor on board by the end of September and to actually begin construction sometime later this fall."

The building will not only accommodate the more than 1.4 million visitors who annually f lock to the refuge from all 50 states and many different countries by providing them unprecedented opportunities to learn about and engage in wildlife dependent educational and recreational activities, but boasts sustainable design technologies as well. For example, the building features a geothermal heating system, recycled construction materials (e.g., cork and bamboo flooring); constructed wetlands to process waste water; and, all natural materials for roofing, siding and flooring. Moreover, the Bateman Center is being constructed on previously disturbed habitat, resulting in the removal of only nine trees and disturbance to 0.1 acres of habitat.

The President's budget currently includes $2.9 million for construction of the center. Additionally, Senators John Warner and George Allen have bumped up the Presidents request to $3.4 million and the refuge may receive an additional $1 million from the Department of Transportation's TEA-21 fund. A corporate fund-raising campaign has also begun, spearheaded by the Bateman Center Committee. The campaign is seeking individual corporate donations of $25,000 or more to sponsor the interpretive and educational components of the facility.

"When the doors to the Bateman Center open in March 2003, it will instantly become the most-visited facility in the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service," said Schroer. He also noted that the grand opening will coincide with a national celebration focusing on the 100th anniversary of the National Wildlife Refuge System. The system, begun in 1903 by President Theodore Roosevelt at Pelican Island, Florida, has grown to include more than 92, million acres in all 50 states and U.S. territories.

So mark your calendars and join the celebration at Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge...where people and wildlife meet!

Angela V. Tracy, Supervisory ORP Chincoteague NWR