WASHINGTON - An official with the U.S. Army Materiel Command headquarters said Monday the move of about 1,000 jobs to Redstone Arsenal over the next few years is "a big deal" for both the command and for Huntsville.

The number of AMC personnel in Huntsville resulting from the latest Base Realignment and Closure relocations has grown from 10 at the first of the year to 23 today, said Ronald Davis Jr., the deputy chief of staff for business transformation, AMC headquarters. "We'll add 23 a week from (today)."

And the number will grow through the summer through voluntary transfers and new employees, he said, with about 200 there at the end of the summer.

In about a year and a half, "about 400 of the 1,000 will be in place at Redstone Arsenal," Davis said.

Davis spoke to a group of business and community leaders here for the annual Washington, D.C., trip put together by the Huntsville/Madison County Chamber of Commerce and the Decatur/Morgan County Chamber of Commerce.

Of the overall BRAC moves, the AMC portion isn't the biggest or the most expensive, Davis said, but it's still significant. Describing the command's job, he said, "If a soldier shoots it, drives it, flies it, wears it or eats it, the Army Materiel Command provides it."

The AMC, the U.S. Army Security Assistance Command, the majority of the Missile Defense Agency and the 2nd Recruiting Brigade, and helicopter work are expected to bring more than 4,500 jobs here by 2011.

Building projects

Those moves are part of the 2005 BRAC decisions. Four major BRAC building projects totaling some 1.6 million square feet are either under construction or in the advanced planning stages. Just last month, ground was broken for the final phase of the MDA's complex.

BRAC requires the MDA to move 2,248 jobs to Redstone Arsenal.

David Altwegg, deputy for agency operations at the Missile Defense Agency, said the agency has established or moved almost 1,000 positions here.

Ahead of plan

"We're ahead of the transition plan drafted in 2007," he said. "Things are going well, to say the least."

From those who have made the move, he said, "the response is overwhelmingly positive."

MDA hired a recruiting firm to "help bring outsiders to Huntsville. We really want to bring new people to Huntsville" he said, "instead of moving vacancies around." Moving vacancies isn't a desirable option, he said.

Altwegg said he didn't know the percentage of employees expected to move here. A survey of 100 employees last summer showed about 15 percent indicating they would probably make the move.

"We're going to conduct a follow-up survey this summer," he said.

The Security Assistance Command will start moving employees in June from Fort Belvoir, Va., into temporary facilities at Redstone Arsenal.

That move, said Richard Alpaugh, deputy to the commanding general, is "the key to our success in the future."

The command sells everything from body armor and consulting services to the most modern weapons systems, Alpaugh said, and has customers across 140 countries.

Cliff Crivello, USASAC's director of resource management, said 32 employees will move this summer to the arsenal, and "we're in the process of hiring 26 right now."

By the end of the summer, Crivello expects 60 to 65 employees - a mix of new hires and those relocating - will be at the arsenal. That number should grow to 200 by the summer of 2010, and ultimately to 360 at Redstone Arsenal.

Tuesday, May 20, 2008 By MARIAN ACCARDI

Times Business Writer marian.accardi@htimes.com